We begin our tour of the Temple
(Bais Hamikdash) from the Temple Mount's eastern gate. But first,
something of an overview of the mountain's general layout might be helpful.
As you might have guessed, the Bais Hamikdash
was built at the top (although not necessarily the center) of a mountain
- specifically, Har Moriah.
A large square area at the top of the mountain was levelled out and hollow domes were built into it (for both support
and protection from any underground impurities). The total walled-in
area was 500x500 Amos.
To the south and west of the mountain was
the city of Jerusalem. The two Southern
entrances to the Temple mount were the most frequently used (being
closest to the city proper). Despite this fact, the "main" entrance was to the East - the
Shushan gate).
Within the walls, and a little bit off
center to the north and west, lay the main courtyard (Azarah.) The
floor of this rectangular courtyard
was elevated as much as 22 Amos from the floor at the outer wall to allow
for the natural elevation of the mountain. The Azarah itself was
encircled by a clear area ten Amos wide and, at its edge, a low fence. According
to the Rambam, the fence marked the beginning of an elevated platform).
Contrary to the way we usually think of it,
the space of the mountain outside of the Azarah wasn't simply empty, but
was crowded with at least forty-five buildings. Some of the buildings were
used for storage, some as living quarters for Temple functionaries and
one - just inside the Shushan gate - was a meeting chamber for a small
Sanhedrin of twenty-three judges.
In the pictures
of the Bais Hamikdash included in this project, there are none of the buildings
which really filled the mountain (except that of the Sanhedrin).
These buildings were left out for the following reasons:
- For simplicity's sake
- In the interest of accuracy - we didn't have the faintest idea how these buildings would
have looked and didn't want to include pictures which were almost certainly
wrong!
Rabbi Boruch Clinton teaches at the Ottawa Torah Institute yeshiva high
school and Machon Sarah high school for girls (both in Ottawa, Canada).
You may reach him with comments and questions at
bclinton@torah.org.
You can now read some of Rabbi Clinton's essays on Torah life at
http://www.ncf.ca/~es625/essays
You can also buy his collection of essays on
the Book of Shmuel (Samuel) in printed form at
www.lulu.com/marbitzmedia
Copyright © 2000 by Rabbi
Boruch
Clinton and Project Genesis, Inc.
