The Temple Mount is the site of the First and Second Temples, central sanctuaries in Jewish history. The First Temple is traditionally associated with King Solomon and was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE; the Second Temple was rebuilt after the return from exile and expanded by Herod, then destroyed by Rome in 70 CE. The Temple of Jerusalem reference and the historical account of Mount Moriah describe this chronology.
What establishes the site’s Jewish history
Jewish prayer, liturgy, and historical writing identify Jerusalem and the Temple as the center of ancient Jewish worship. The Roman-era historian Josephus described the Temple and its destruction; later Jewish sources preserve the memory of the sanctuary in annual fasts and daily prayer. The platform’s retaining walls, including the Western Wall, belong to the expanded precinct built under Herod. They are not remnants of the Temple building itself.
Archaeology around the Old City has documented remains from the First and Second Temple periods, including inscriptions, ritual installations, and structures. Such finds establish ancient Jewish life in Jerusalem and provide context for the history of the Temple Mount. Excavation directly on the platform has not occurred in modern archaeological practice, so material from nearby sites must be distinguished from objects found on the Mount itself.
What the soil finds can show
In 1999–2000, soil and stone debris removed from the compound was dumped at several locations. Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist Yuval Baruch’s published survey reports architectural elements, pottery, glazed tiles, glass, stone vessels, metal objects, beads, and coins spanning Iron Age II to modern times. The Israel Antiquities Authority report documents the range of material and where debris was deposited.
The Temple Mount Sifting Project recovers and studies objects from this debris. Its methodology explains that the soil was removed from its original layers; labeling and statistical comparison can help researchers investigate patterns, but an artifact without its original context cannot by itself prove the exact room or structure where it was used. These finds contribute to the record of activity on the Mount, alongside written history and archaeology elsewhere in Jerusalem.
For the later Islamic structures built on this same platform, see how the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque were built.