intended to increase the knowledge, interest, and anticipation of the reader, thereby hastening the realization of our hopes and prayers for the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash.

"Jerusalem, By Far the Most Famous of the Cities of the East"
We diligently study our sources, studiously review Jewish history, but rarely if ever give the slightest thought as to how Jerusalem and our Beit HaMikdash must have appeared to contemporary educated Greeks and Romans. One of the most remarkable passages from the literature of antiquity describing a city comes from the pen of the noted Roman author, Pliny the Elder (23-79CE) in his Naturae Histori- arum. Pliny was a soldier, lawyer, adminis- trator, erudite scholar, admiral of the western Roman fleet, geographer, historian and inde- fatigable traveler. In his voluminous works he devoted four books to describing the cities of the then known world.

Pliny, writing shortly after the Churban, declared pre-destruction Jerusalem "by far the most famous of the cities of the east". He cites many ancient and celebrated cities throughout the Roman Empire, Mesopotamia and Partha, but on none of them does he lavish such praise as he does on Jerusalem. Such illustrious Egyptian cities as Memphis and Thebes are almost com- pletely ignored. Even populous Alexandria, the second largest city in the Roman Empire, and a great commercial center, only merits the comment that it was founded by Alexander the Great and that it is a well planned city.

He notes that Damascus is situated in a fruitful area and that glass is manufactured in Sidon. Tyre's claim to fame is that it was the mother of many new cities including Carthage, Rome's erstwhile rival. Antioch, the third largest city in the Empire merits only a sentence and the scores of wealthy populous mercantile cities of Asia Minor and Mesopotamia rate barely that. In his eyes it was Jerusalem that was "by far the most famous of the cities of the east".

The Greek historian Polybius (c200-c120BCE), recounting the successful war of Antiochus III against the Egyptian Ptolemies, notes the role of Jewish forces. Even at that early period, Polybius remarks that the Temple of Jerusalem was world renowned. The Roman historian Tacticus (55-120CE), who was not distinguished for his love of Am Yisrael, describes the "famous" city of Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash in his Historiae. The fortifications were cleverly built, taking full advantage of the natural terrain. In the mountainous areas, the fortifications rose 20 meters above the ground and in the valleys, the watchtowers guarding the city loomed 40 meters high. From a distance, the watchtowers looked even more impressive, because, despite their actual heights, their tops were at the same level! He adds that the fortifications surrounding the Beit HaMikdash were even more magnificent than those encircling the city. "The Temple was distinguished by its fabulous wealth and (highly unusual in the syncretistic Greek and Roman world of the time) only Jews were permitted to approach its doors. Only priests could cross its threshold." The Greek and Roman writers emphasize the plentiful water supply enjoyed by Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash. This was all the more remarkable in their eyes, because Eretz Yehuda is not a particularly rainy area and there are no large rivers.

Tacticus notes that Har HaBayit had flowing fountains, pools and numerous channels and cisterns ingeniously designed to catch and store rain water.

He accentuates that "the founders of Jerusalem, realizing that their customs were different from those of other men, knew that they would be involved in many wars. Therefore they made all possible preparations to enable Jerusalem to withstand a long siege". Sulpicius Severus in his Chronica, a late text though considered relatively reliable, cites a passage not found in our editions of Tacticus. Severus, quoting the "missing Tacticus", relates the arguments of members of Titus' staff who, after the conquest of Jerusalem, sought to spare the Mikdash. "This holy building is the most beautiful structure ever built by the hand of man and should not be destroyed. If we leave it unharmed, its continued existence would serve as a witness to the moderation (sic) of the Romans. But if it would be destroyed, the Roman name would be forever blackened."

The Beit HaMikdash after Herod's refurbish- ing was indeed magnificent. The Mishna in Midot states the Bayit soared 100 Amot into the air - roughly the height of a modern 17 story building! When we go to the Kotel, we are amazed at the sheer size of the enormous ashlar stones that Herod used in his construction. But the Kotel itself is actually a tiny remnant of Herod's 485 meter long western retaining wall of Har HaBayit - almost half a kilometer long! When we look up, we see a six-sided blue building with a gold covered dome roughly the height of a 6 story building. Our resplendent Beit HaMikdash was almost three times as high and was considerably more magnificent. Josephus, in describing the eastern façade of the Bayit, writes, "Now the outward face of the Temple in its front wanted nothing that was likely to surprise either men's minds or their eyes; for it was covered all over with plates of gold of great weight and at the first rising of the sun, reflected back a very fiery splendor, and made those who forced themselves to look upon it to turn their eyes away, just as they would have done at the sun's own rays. But this Temple appeared to strangers, when they were coming to it at a distance, like a mountain covered with snow; for those parts of it which were not covered with gold were exceedingly white." (Wars 5:5) Josephus paints an incredible picture of the Royal Stoa that towered above the southern side of Har HaBayit. "This cloister deserves to be mentioned better than any under the sun; for while the valley was very deep, and its bottom could not be seen, if (a man) looked from above into the depth… he would be giddy… his sight could not reach to such an immense depth. This cloister had pillars that stood in four rows… and the thickness of each pillar was such, that three men might, with their arms extended, encircle a column and join their hands again, while its height was roughly 8 meters with a double spiral at its base… and the number of all the pillars (in that court) was 162…" (Antiquities 15:11) While this glorious portico has not survived, the extant adorned architectural fragments and the size of the embellished Corinthian capitals found, testify to the accuracy of Josephus' detailed description.

"He who has not seen Jerusalem in her splendor has never seen a desirable city in his life. He who has not seen the Beit HaMikdash in its full construction has never seen a glorious building in his life. Which Beit Hamikdash?… the building of Herod. (Sukka 51b) "Ten measures of beauty descended to the world, nine were taken by Jerusalem and one by the rest of the world." (Kedushin 49b)

"...But Jerusalem? Everyone praises her as it is written, 'Is this the city that men called the perfection of beauty, the joy of the whole earth? (Eicha 2:15 - Shemot Rabba 36:2)

Catriel Sugarman (acatriel@netvision.net.il, 02-652-7531) gives illustrated lectures on the Beit Hamikdash and related topics. Catriel is in the process of writing a book:The Temple of Jerusalem, A Pilgrim's Perspective: A Guided Tour through the Temple and the Divine Service.

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