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Last update - 00:00 23/09/2007
Antiquities Authority: Archaeologists unearth quarry used to renovate Second Temple
By Nadav Shragai, Haaretz Correspondent, and Reuters
Tags: Israel, Second Temple, quarry 

The Antiquities Authority announced Sunday that archaeologists have found an ancient quarry where King Herod's workers may have chiselled the giant stones used to renovate the Second Temple in Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago.

The Authority said Sunday that experts believe stones as long as eight meters were extracted from the quarry and then dragged by oxen to building sites in Jerusalem for major projects such as the Temple.

"This construction most likely included the walls of the Temple Mount and other monumental buildings," the authority said in a statement.
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Some of the blocks discovered at the site resemble stones used in the lower parts of the Temple Mount compound, the site of two biblical Jewish temples, the statement said.

King Solomon is believed to have built the first Jerusalem temple 3,000 years ago. The Temple was destroyed in the 6th century BCE, and was rebuilt on the same site some 70 years later. In the 1st century BCE, King Herod conducted a massive renovation of the Temple and its compound, before it was razed by the Romans during the sacking of Jerusalem in 70 CE.

The Antiquities Authority said workers stumbled upon the quarry during excavations as part of a plan to build a new school in an outlying Jerusalem neighborhood known as Ramat Shlomo.

Archaeologists also discovered coins and shards of pottery which confirm the quarry was operating during the Second Temple period, when rulers of the city under King Herod embarked on major construction projects.

Archaeologists also found a complete iron tool at the site which they believe was used to chisel out the blocks from the quarry.

The complex known as Temple Mount by Jews is also revered by Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary). It houses Islam's third holiest mosque, making it Jerusalem's most contested site and giving it a pivotal role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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  1.   wow 18:28  |  realism 23/09/07
  2.   the 2nd temple never existed! jewish lies!... 18:56  |  Richard S 23/09/07
  3.   #1 wow 19:01  |  kel 23/09/07
  4.   Amazing 19:17  |  KUTW 23/09/07
  5.   The Good news just keeps coming! 19:18  |  Gina 23/09/07
  6.   3. kel 19:20  |  KUTW 23/09/07
  7.   not the real story 19:21  |  ecr 23/09/07
  8.   #3 This is not a competition, these were impressive too 19:30  |  Genuine Tosefta 23/09/07
  9.   1. 1. Realism (and everybody who wants to see it) 19:31  |  KUTW 23/09/07
  10.   re #3 `#1 Wow` 19:36  |  Colin Wright 23/09/07
  11.   An alternative end to the story 19:40  |  Genuine Tosefta 23/09/07
  12.   That rocks! Totally cool! 20:19  |  Joe 23/09/07
  13.   Cool. But the Arabs are destroying every trace of it. 20:30  |  Jon 23/09/07
  14.   kel 3 20:55  |  realism 23/09/07
  15.   I am repeating my question again. I know Moslems are reading. So, 20:58  |  Massoud Levy 23/09/07
  16.   Good == lets rebuild the temple ,the 3rd 21:03  |  augustine e johnson 23/09/07
  17.   God`s Temple: the most important archeological site on Earth 21:05  |  Hal 23/09/07
  18.   Just a co-incidence? 21:14  |  Just Wondering 23/09/07
  19.   Jerusalem and Temple 21:39  |  jma 23/09/07
  20.   second temple 21:41  |  jma 23/09/07
  21.   to Hal: why God`s and G-d`s temple? and why most important to all 22:33  |  nobodysacred 23/09/07
  22.   TM never was holy to muslims 22:39  |  LMV 23/09/07
  23.   to "Just wondering": I am wondering too 22:42  |  nobodysacred 23/09/07
  24.   to jma: so who should claim it according to your Yahwe and Son? 22:48  |  nobodysacred 23/09/07
  25.   credit to G. Edelstein 23:06  |  baalh 23/09/07
  26.   #9..KUTW 23:08  |  Nemesis 23/09/07
  27.   19. jma: Jerusalem is Jewish 23:10  |  KUTW 23/09/07
  28.   26. Nemesis 23:20  |  KUTW 23/09/07
  29.   #2: Never heard that 00:01  |  Roni 24/09/07
  30.   Its all settled then! 00:10  |  Paulo 24/09/07
  31.   jerusalem 01:10  |  jma 24/09/07
  32.   jerusalem 01:14  |  jma 24/09/07
  33.   second temple 01:17  |  jma 24/09/07
  34.   #27..KUTW 03:44  |  Nemesis 24/09/07
  35.   Temple 19:16  |  Bertha Rogers 24/09/07
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