The lecture focuses on findings that were discovered in archaeological excavations conducted in the Western Wall tunnels, at the foot of the Herodian Temple Mount, next to Wilson Arch and immediately north of the Western Wall Plaza during the last years. The excavations, on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, are initiated and funded by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The remains that were discovered testify to an intensive activity of construction that took place at the foot of the Temple Mount during the late Second Temple period – in the first century BCE - first century CE, until the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE. The historical sources indicate the existence of public buildings in this area, such as the “First Wall”, the Council House, the Bouleuterion, the Xistos, and more. Indeed, the finds demonstrate the civil, public, character of this area, during the Second Temple period, although the identification of the discovered structures is not certain at this stage of the research.
The findings shed light on the construction projects in the discussed area that were designed to shape the urban topography, to drain the area (that is located at the confluence of two rivers), and to adorn the place with impressive buildings. It is likely that the initiators of the construction were the leaders of the city, and maybe even the king.
This lecture will describe the structures that were discovered and propose a reconstruction of the urban layout, at the foot of the Temple Mount, in the last decades of the Second Temple period.
