Another “Once Upon a Time in Jerualem”
The Aghion House is a corner building in the Talbiya neighborhood, located at the intersection of Balfour and Smolenskin Streets.
It was built for the Jewish-Greek businessman and merchant Edward Raphael Aghion, one of the wealthiest men in Alexandria, Egypt, at the time.
The Aghion family originally hailed from Spain, later migrating to Salonika, Greece, and eventually settling in Alexandria, Egypt.
Aghion studied in Alexandria and Paris becoming a successful businessman.
His wife, Linda, a native of Cairo, was the first woman in Egypt to become a lawyer and also served as the president of WIZO Egypt.
Aghion established and managed the Egyptian Cotton Exchange and became one of the influential businessmen in the country.
In 1935, he immigrated to the Land of Israel with his family, co-founded the Migdal insurance company, and invested in the Vulcan factory and the Phoenicia glassworks—pioneering enterprises in the pre-state economy under British rule.
Upon arriving in the country, Aghion purchased land in the Talbiya neighborhood and commissioned the renowned architect Richard Kaufmann—who had previously designed the Rehavia neighborhood and over 100 other settlements across Israel—to design his home.
Construction began in 1936 according to Kaufmann’s plans, and the original building was inaugurated in 1938.
In 1947, the British authorities required the Aghion family to vacate the house as part of a newly established security zone in the area.
After the British were expelled from the country and during the War of Independence, Aghion allowed the Irgun fighters to use the house as a hospital for wounded soldiers.
Following the outbreak of the War of Independence, as a “token of gratitude” for Aghion’s many contributions to the Egyptian economy, the Egyptian government, which “knew not of Joseph,” nationalized all the family’s assets and businesses.
In 1952, the State of Israel purchased the house from Aghion, intending for it to serve as the official residence of then-Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett and the Aghion family moved to Haifa.
Since 1973, the building has served as the official residence of the Prime Minister of Israel, replacing the house on Ben Maimon Street, which had been owned by the Jacobs family that I wrote about in a separate article— Link.
In June 1974, Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin moved into the residence for his first term. Menachem Begin later lived there, closing a historical loop by residing in the former Irgun hospital, which had once been under his command.
Other prime ministers who lived there included Yitzhak Shamir, Shimon Peres, and more.
Students at the nearby Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance recall morning encounters and handshakes with their distinguished neighbors.
In those days, prime ministers were approachable, stepping out to greet students by the school steps, in a time before security teams armed with sunglasses, earpieces, and whispered communications.
After Menachem Begin’s resignation, the house underwent interior renovations, and in the 1990s, a security wall was built around it, closing part of Balfour Street to traffic.
Over time, the intersection of Balfour and Ben Maimon Streets became a focal point of civic activism, while the Terra Sancta fence evolved into a “political Wailing Wall.” Prime ministers came and went—or were assassinated—but to this day, anyone with grievances, protests, or urgent messages for the prime minister takes them to that fence, voicing their concerns in animated dialogue with the stones.
Just 87 years have passed since the house was built, yet it has witnessed historical events equivalent to at least 500 years in a more tranquil country.
But this is our Jerusalem, where every stone tells a story, and every building leaves behind a trail of history in the making.
And respect is due to Mr. Aghion—a Jew born in a small Spanish town, who migrated to Salonika, found success in trade, moved again to Alexandria, founded the Egyptian Cotton Exchange, immigrated to the Land of Israel under foreign rule, purchased a home, invested in an insurance company that became an empire, and built industrial enterprises when the idea of independence seemed like science fiction.
He lost everything in Egypt upon Israel’s establishment, yet lived to see the fulfillment of the Zionist dream.
The story of the wandering Jew—thanks to whom, and others like him, we can finally lay down our walking staff.
Shabbat Shalom to all those far and near from Jerusalem.
May the Jewish people cease wandering and return home, together with all the hostages and IDF soldiers, and may we hear only good news.
Amen.
Photographer unknown.
