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There's a lot to discover in the Jewish Quarter about its
ancient past. The following sites are just a few of several
that focus on the Second Temple period of the city (ca. 515
BCE-70 CE).
Herodian Mansions/Wohl Archaeological Museum
One of the most unique museums in the world, the Herodian
Mansions Museum complex preserves the excavation of a 385
foot section of the Upper City near the Temple Mount that
dates back 2,000 years. The preserved and partially restored
site now occupies the basement of the Wohl Torah Centre.Excavated
between 1971-74, the site and center were dedicated in October
1987. The Centre is located on the edge of Hurva Square, the
center of the restored Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.
The most striking feature of the western part of the museum
is a complex of ritual baths, mikvaot. A mikvah requires
a minimum of around 200 gallons of pure rain or spring water,
and must be about 5 feet deep or more. Cut into stone, these
pools were emptied, and presumably filled by hand. The rooms
were decorated with beautiful mosaics in Aegean style patterns,
without depictions of humans or animals.
At the eastern end of this basement museum is a complex containing
a palatial mansion, a courtyard, and a peristyle building.
The rooms consistently portray a classical architectural style
minus the portrayal of human or animal images that would be
regarded as a violation of the commandment banning images.
Clearly the people who owned these houses were Jews of the
highest economic stratum in Jerusalem who enjoyed all the
trappings a classical Roman life with in the constraints of
their religious beliefs. One room appears to have been a 'living
room' or reception hall with a magnificient mosaic floor in
red, black and white tiles. Another, even larger room from
the palatial mansion portion, boasted stucco walls modeled
in broad panels imtating bossed ashlar stones like those forming
the Western Wall. At least some of the panels employed red
fresco and other color decorative elements.
Most of the complex shows clear signs of a total conflagration:
the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE at the hands of the
Romans.
The Burnt House
A far smaller complex but again located underground just north
of the eastern end of the Herodian Mansions complex. This
museum takes downstairs to the basement of a wealthy home
that also served as a cottage industry workshop. Numerous
limestone vessels, tables, weights, grinding mortars, and
perfume bottles were found here, strongly suggesting the area
was used for the manufacture of oils and unguents used in
Temple service. Among the finds was a stone weight engraved
with words which translate: 'belonging to the son of Katros.'
The Talmud mentions that the house of Katros was a priestly
family which served in the Temple before its destruction.
Like everything else in the area, this building was destroyed
by a massive conflagration inflicted by the Romans on the
city in 70 CE. Most poignantly, archaeologists discovered
the arm and hand bones of a young woman in this area, not
far from an iron spear leaning against a wall. This small
but informative museum includes display cases full of artifacts
found in the room, plus an effective slide and sound presentation.
The Temple Institute
Equally informative and controversial, The Temple Institute
exhibit area in the Jewish Quarter is designed to help visitors
imagine the equipment and rituals of the Temple when it stood
2,000 years ago, and when it will someday stand again. Whether
or not you favor the restoration of the Temple, this museum
offers information and insights you won't find anywhere else.
Here you can see priestly garments satisfying all known requirements
described in the traditional texts. The garments have a very
difficult weaving pattern, so the loom that produces them
is partially computerized! Keep in mind that there's nothing
in Torah or Talmud that would prevent the weaving of priestly
garments by computer! Some items may be halakhically correct,
but still have an amusing appearance. For example, a copper
priestly washbasin looks more like a samovar than anything
else. The folks at the Temple Institute believe God will initiate
the restoration of the Temple at His will and in His good
time. But ask any of the staffers when the think the Temple
will return, and they will express the heartfelt wish that
the event will occur in our lifetimes. On that basis, the
Temple Institute is devoted to educating both fellow Jews
and non-Jews about what they hope is an imminent event.
For more on the museums and archaeology of the Jewish Quarter,
take a look at these books:
Avigad, Nahman. Discovering Jerusalem. Nashville:
Thomas Nelson, 1980.
The Herodian Quarter in Jerusalem. Jerusalem: Keter
Publishing House, 1989.
Mare, W. H. The Archaeology of the Jerusalem Area. Grand
Rapids: Baker Book House, 1987.
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