Yad Kennedy
| Yad Kennedy | |
Yad Kennedy (John F. Kennedy Memorial)
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 Location in Israel
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| Coordinates | 31°44′56.69″N 35°8′4.98″E / 31.7490806°N 35.1347167°E |
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| Location | Mateh Yehuda Region near Jerusalem |
| Designer | Architect David Resnick with sculptor Dov Feigin |
| Material | Concrete and glass |
| Height | 60 ft (18 m) |
| Beginning date | 1965 |
| Completion date | 1966 |
| Opening date | 4 July 1966 |
| Dedicated to | John F. Kennedy |
| Internal area includes bust of Kennedy, eternal light, memorial wall inscribed with excerpts of Kennedy's speeches, and library of photographs and documents related to US-Israel relations until time of Kennedy's death | |
Yad Kennedy (Hebrew: יד קנדי), located in the Mateh Yehuda Region near Jerusalem, Israel, is a memorial to John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, who was assassinated in Dallas, Texas in 1963. The 60-foot high (18 m) memorial is shaped like the stump of a felled tree, symbolizing a life cut short. Inside is a bronze relief of Kennedy, with an eternal flame burning in the center. It is encircled by 51 concrete columns, one for each of the 50 states in the United States plus one for Washington, D.C., that nation's capital. The emblems of the states (and of the District of Columbia) are displayed on each of the columns, and the columns are separated by slim panels of glass. The monument measures approximately 250 feet (76 m) in circumference around its base, and there is space within the memorial for approximately 100 visitors at a time. The monument was built in 1966 with funds donated by American Jewish communities.
Yad Kennedy and its adjoining picnic grounds are part of the John F. Kennedy Peace Forest.
The Hebrew word yad, which is used for a number of memorials in Israel (including the well-known Holocaust memorial museum Yad Vashem), comes from the Book of Isaiah, chapter 56, verse 5: "And to them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name (yad vashem)."
The site is located 7 miles (11 km) from downtown Jerusalem, in the same general direction as Hadassah Medical Center, on top of the highest of the Jerusalem hills, at an elevation of 825 metres (2,707 ft). The site overlooks what was at the time of the dedication the Jordanian village of Bittar (now a part of Israel's West Bank), the historic site of Betar, famous as the last stronghold of the Jewish revolt led by Simon Bar Kochba against Roman forces in 132–135 CE. The view from the parking lot has been described in the Frommer's travel guide as "breathtaking – a never-ending succession of mountains and valleys." On a clear day, the Mediterranean Sea can be seen in the direction of Tel Aviv, 40 miles (64 km) away. The memorial can be reached by following the winding mountain roads past Ora and Aminadav. It is approximately 45 minutes by foot from the nearest main road, where the closest Jerusalem city bus is #20, although special tour buses are normally utilized for group visits.
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