An animated portcullis using objects, curves, hooks, and a single driver controlling it.
Pulleys and such can be easily relocated to fit your scene.
No materials, but each object is UV mapped for tiled textures. All items are named, and are enclosed in a single group.
A slightly different version can be seen here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idokqfs-Cms
Impressive attention to detail. Nice job!