Temple Mount
The Temple Mount (Hebrew: הַר הַבַּיִת, romanized: Har haBayīt, lit. 'Temple Mount'), also known as the Noble Sanctuary (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, 'Haram al-Sharif'), and sometimes as Jerusalem's holy esplanade,[2][3] is a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem that has been venerated as a holy site for thousands of years, including in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.[2][3]
The present site is a flat plaza surrounded by retaining walls (including the Western Wall), which were originally built by King Herod in the first century BCE for an expansion of the Second Jewish Temple. The plaza is dominated by two monumental structures originally built during the Rashidun and early Umayyad caliphates after the city's capture in 637 CE:[4] the main praying hall of al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, near the center of the hill, which was completed in 692 CE, making it one of the oldest extant Islamic structures in the world. The Herodian walls and gates, with additions from the late Byzantine, early Muslim, Mamluk, and Ottoman periods, flank the site, which can be reached through eleven gates, ten reserved for Muslims and one for non-Muslims, with guard posts of the Israel Police in the vicinity of each.[5] The courtyard is surrounded on the north and west by two Mamluk-era porticos (riwaq) and four minarets.
The Temple Mount is the holiest site in Judaism,[6][7][a] and where two Jewish temples once stood.[9][10][11] According to Jewish tradition and scripture,[12] the First Temple was built by King Solomon, the son of King David, in 957 BCE, and was destroyed by the Neo-Babylonian Empire, together with Jerusalem, in 587 BCE. No archaeological evidence has been found to verify the existence of the First Temple, and scientific excavations have been limited due to religious sensitivities.[13][14][15] The Second Temple, constructed under Zerubbabel in 516 BCE, was later renovated by King Herod and was ultimately destroyed by the Roman Empire in 70 CE. Orthodox Jewish tradition maintains it is here that the third and final Temple will be built when the Messiah comes.[16] The Temple Mount is the place Jews turn towards during prayer. Jewish attitudes towards entering the site vary. Due to its extreme sanctity, many Jews will not walk on the Mount itself, to avoid unintentionally entering the area where the Holy of Holies stood, since, according to rabbinical law, there is still some aspect of the divine presence at the site.[17][18][19]