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The present Temple Mount was constructed by Herod the Great beginning in 20 BC. Construction on it continued for 83 years until AD 64 when a halt was called to the project and 18,000 workers were laid off (riots resulted). The Temple Mount is 1/6 the size of today's Old City and covers 35 acres. Construction of this rectangular platform required filling in a large part of the Central Valley.
The Temple Mount , is identified in both Jewish and Islamic tradition as the area of Mount Moriah where Abraham offered up his son in sacrifice.Here King Solomon built the First Temple almost 3,000 years ago. It was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, but 70 years later Jews returning from exile built the Second Temple on the same site. King Herod refashioned it into an edifice of great splendor.
In Muslim tradition, the place is also identified as the "furthermost sanctuary" from which the Prophet Mohammed, accompanied by the Angel Gabriel, made the Night Journey to the Throne of God.
Following the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in the year 70, the area of the Temple was deliberately left in ruins. This desecration was not redressed until the Muslim conquest of the city in 638. He ordered the clearing of the site and the building of a "house of prayer".
The Temple Mount , is identified in both Jewish and Islamic tradition as the area of Mount Moriah where Abraham offered up his son in sacrifice.Here King Solomon built the First Temple almost 3,000 years ago. It was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, but 70 years later Jews returning from exile built the Second Temple on the same site. King Herod refashioned it into an edifice of great splendor.
In Muslim tradition, the place is also identified as the "furthermost sanctuary" from which the Prophet Mohammed, accompanied by the Angel Gabriel, made the Night Journey to the Throne of God.
Following the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in the year 70, the area of the Temple was deliberately left in ruins. This desecration was not redressed until the Muslim conquest of the city in 638. He ordered the clearing of the site and the building of a "house of prayer".