A Rabbi's Guide To The Land Of Israel
Jerusalem of Gold of Copper & of Light
"The Temple Mount"

At the end of the First Century BCE, Herod the Great rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem and doubled the size of the Temple Mount. He extended it to the North, South, and West and enclosed it with four enormous retaining walls. These retaining walls served to support the increased surface area of the top where Herod rebuilt the Temple.

The original Temple, built by King Solomon, was destroyed by Nebuchadnezer and the Babylonians in the year 586 BCE. The survivors were led into exile in Babylonia. The Second Temple, having been rebuilt by Ezra and Nehemiah, was destroyed by Vespasian and the Romans in 70 CE. Both Temples were destroyed, it is said, on the 9th day of Av which has become a day of mourning for Jews throughout the ages.

Today, two Moslem mosques dominate the view of the Temple Mount: the golden-domed Dome of the Rock in the North and the lead-domed El-Aqsa Mosque in the South. Remnants of the retaining wall of Herod's Temple Mount are recognized today as the Western Wall, but a great deal of Herod's construction still lies underground.

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Temple Israel Jerusalem