The Holiest Spot on Earth
685-691 AD
685 685
35.15E32.47N
MISC

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL
	The Dome of the Rock, built between 685, and 691 by Caliph `Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan was originally built as a shrine for pilgrims. It is situated on the spot where Moslem tradition says the prophet Mohammed ascended to heaven. When it was built however, it seems that the building's purpose was to commemorate the great prophets -- Abraham, Jesus, and Mohammed -- and their connections to the Moslem faith. Whatever the case, it is undeniably the place where a great religious drama has been played out.
	It is thought by many that this hill is the spot where the Jewish patriarch Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac around 1900 B.C. In 1026 B.C. Israelite King Solomon completed a magnificent temple dedicated to the worship of Yahweh, or Jehovah. The Temple was destroyed in 607 BC by the Babylonians.
	By permission of the Persian monarch Cyrus, Jewish governor Zerubbabel rebuilt the Temple in 515 BC, though on a much smaller scale. This temple lasted nearly 500 years. In 35 BC, King Herod began yet another temple for the Jews. In about 30 AD Jesus and his disciples came to this temple, and, according to the Bible, Jesus said it too would be destroyed, so that, "By no means will a stone be left here upon a stone."
	A few decades later, the Jews revolted against Rome. In 70 AD, only six years after the Temple's completion, Roman general Titus breached its walls, and despite his desires, was set ablaze. Interestingly, it was greed, not fire, that brought the Temple down. A band of solid gold encircled the top of Herod's Temple. In order to salvage the gold, which had melted in the fire, Roman soldiers had to pull down each stone. In 135 AD, after a second Jewish revolt, the Romans forbade any Jew to visit the site on pain of death.
	During this time, the Temple Mount became a landfill for Jerusalem, which at that time was called Aelia Capitolina. The beautiful stones, columns and capitols were covered with rubbish, human waste, and dead animals. Later, when the Roman Empire became officially Catholic, the area was renovated to honor the place where Jesus walked and worshipped.
	After removing the rubbish, the Romans thanked God for the wonderful building materials that were once Herod's Temple. It was from these that they created an immense Byzantine church. Only 100 years later, the Moslems invaded Jerusalem and destroyed the church. They too thanked God for the building materials they salvaged from the church. It was primarily from those materials that the Dome of the Rock was built.
	The architect who designed the Dome of the Rock was a Byzantine Christian. The design he chose was typical for Byzantine churches of the time. The result is an octagonal building, each side representing one of the "happinesses" spoken of by Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount. Since Jesus spoke of nine ways to happiness, one could say that the Dome of the Rock is short by one side.
