Q 01/05

In its broadest sense, how long is the entire western retaining wall of the Temple Mount?

A) 488 m

B) 520 m

C) 560 m

D) 610 m

Answer · why

A) 488 m

The famous prayer section is only about 57 metres of it; most of the rest is hidden behind medieval houses in the Muslim Quarter.

Q 02/05

Which ruler is thought to have begun the wall while expanding the Temple Mount around 19 BCE?

A) King Solomon

B) Herod the Great

C) Emperor Hadrian

D) Herod Agrippa I

Answer · why

B) Herod the Great

Coins found under the foundations in 2011 suggest the wall was not finished in his lifetime, matching Josephus's account that work ended under his gre...

Q 03/05

How many of the wall's 45 stone courses at the plaza lie below street level?

A) 17

B) 22

C) 28

D) 34

Answer · why

A) 17

The full height from foundation is about 32 metres, of which some 19 metres stand above ground.

Q 04/05

The medium-sized stones above the Herodian courses were added during which period?

A) Byzantine

B) Crusader

C) Umayyad

D) Mamluk

Answer · why

C) Umayyad

The small stones at the very top are more recent, many from the Ottoman period.

Q 05/05

The wall's huge blocks are of what kind of stone?

A) Nubian sandstone

B) Black basalt

C) Pink granite

D) Meleke limestone

Answer · why

D) Meleke limestone

They were possibly quarried at Zedekiah's Cave under the Muslim Quarter or at Ramat Shlomo, four kilometres away.