Western Wall facts

Here are some fascinating, lesser-known facts about the Western Wall: 1. The Western Wall that we see today was built in 20 BCE by King Herod when he expanded the Second Temple. The First Temple, built by King Solomon in the 8th century BCE, was destroyed by the Babylonians when they destroyed Jerusalem and took the Jewish people into captivity. The Second Temple was built when the Jews returned from exile, and then it was embellished by King Herod. 2. The Western Wall is an engineering masterpiece. It is made of enormous blocks of stone carefully stacked so they will...

​ 3. Between 1948 and 1967 when the Old City of Jerusalem was in Jordanian hands, Jews were not allowed to visit or pray at the Western Wall. It was only after the liberation of Jerusalem during the 1967 Six Day War that Jews were once again free to access their own holy site.4. More than a million prayer requests are inserted into the stones of the Western Wall every year. Twice a year the Rabbi of the Western Wall collects these pieces of paper and buries them in the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives. 5. If you...