Foyer

The beauty of the building’s interior is obvious in the foyer.  The ticket window, which was conserved, is architectural testimony of the passenger hall that operated here at the beginning of the last century.

This exhibit focuses on various themes related to the construction of the Valley Train, such as the engineer Meissner, photos related to the train, and even a diagram with a map of the stations at the peak of its operations.

Around you are authentic items that were used by the station workers, such as signaling and communication devices, a train track lock, and more.

One of the curious displays is the “Sultan’s “blessing” rail, on the left side of the room. This is an original train rail, on which a blessing to the Turkish sultan Abdul Hamid the Second, who built the Valley Train, was inscribed. Over the years, several “blessing rails” like these were found in various parts of the tracks. There are rails that were recycled: for example, in Bethlehem of Galilee, there is a Templar house whose second floor was built on top of train rails, some of which feature the sultan’s blessing. Another example can be seen on the slopes of the Yagur River, where the rails are part of a dam that controls the flow of water. It is still unclear how many blessing  rails were made and how it was decided where to place them.