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Jerusalem during the Second Temple Period

Jerusalem during the Second Temple period describes the history of Jerusalem during the Second Temple period, from the return to Zion under Cyrus the Great (c. 538 BC) to the siege and destruction the city by Titus during the First Jewish–Roman War (70 CE).[1] During this period, which saw the region and city change hands several times, Jerusalem was the center of religious life for all Jews; even those who lived in the diaspora prayed towards Jerusalem on a daily basis and made pilgrimages during religious festivals. Under Hasmonean and Herodian rule, Jerusalem served as a royal capital and the seat of all major national institutions.[2] In Jerusalem, the Pharisees of Second Temple Judaism developed into the Tannaim and Judaism's post-Exilic religious identity as it continues today,[3] and the Hebrew Bible was perhaps canonized, although exactly when this occurred remains disputed. It was also in Jerusalem during the later stages of this period that Christianity was born.

The 600 years of the Second Temple period can be divided into several periods, each with its own distinct political and social characteristics. The physical development of the city was greatly affected by the changing characteristics of each era, while at the same time influencing these periods themselves. The city's population was characterized by social stratification, both economic and religious, which grew more pronounced over the years. There existed in the city, for example, a clear distinction between a rich and cosmopolitan elite and the wider population wishing less influence in the nation's ways from the outside world. Social strata also encompassed different religious outlooks, each with its different emphasis: some reliant on the Temple priests, while the majority were led by traditional non-priestly families, emphasizing the world of Torah study and the development of law over the formal hierarchy established in the Temple.

In the citadel known as the Tower of David.

In , west of the contemporary city walls, where remains of Hasmonean fortifications were unearthed.

Mamilla

In the Jewish Quarter, in and around the "Israelite Tower" and the remains of what may have been the "Gennath gate" mentioned by Josephus.

At the base of the eastern wall of the Temple Mount.

The was Jerusalem's main fortress, dominating the Temple Mount and housing the city's garrison. It was built by Herod over the Hasmonean Baris before 31 BCE and was named after Mark Antony. It shared the same features as the Hellenistic tetrapyrgion, although rectangular. In each of its corners stood a tower, one of which was taller than the others.[55]

Antonia

The Herodian Citadel stood at the present site of the . Herod built the citadel, sometimes referred to as the "Towers Citadel", on a hill already fortified in Hasmonean times. Herod built three towers at the site, naming them Hyppicus, Phasael and Mariamne, after his friend, brother and wife. It was at the Hyppicus that the "first wall", approaching from the south, turns east towards the Temple Mount, and also where the "third wall", constructed in the mid-1st century CE, would meet the "first wall".

Tower of David

Books of , Nehemiah, Haggai and Zechariah.

Ezra

Antiquities of the Jews, Book 11.

Flavius Josephus