Disappointment and Discovery

Today we were supposed to go to the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock. Sadly, however, the Muslims were not allowing Non-Muslims in and so it was not possible. Maybe it was connected with the troubles that have been occurring in Gaza but no reason was given.
So instead a number of went to the Israel Museum. There was a wonderful section of Jewish Life and we enjoyed visiting the archeological section even though we had thought we had seen enough archeological sites. What we saw in the museum were some of original structures as well as many artifacts of the places we had visited. It was like the icing on the cake. We had been to Qumran so seeing some of the actual scrolls in the museum was special.

Leona and Jan at the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit

The magnificent model of the second Temple and ancient Jerusalem before the Romans destroyed it in the year 70

Examples of Torah scrolls. A feature of every synagogue the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) are always written on a scroll rather than in a book.

A booth from the Festival of Booths or Tents

The fifth season of excavations at the Beersheba uncovered these stones of a large horned altar. This structure had been destroyed in the late 8th century BCE, probably as part of the reforms of King Hezekiah and his suppression of shrines outside Jerusalem described in 2 Kings 18.

The Holy of Holies from Tel Arad - they are not sure what its purpose was

The original Pilate (Pilatus) inscription from Caesarea Philippi.

A cornerstone from the Temple