The Dome of the Rock is a shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. It was initially completed in 691 CE at the order of Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik during the Second Fitna. The Dome of the Rock is now one of the oldest works of Islamic architecture.
It has been called “Jerusalem’s most recognizable landmark,” and it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with two nearby Temple Mount structures, the Western Wall, and the “Resurrection Rotunda” in the nearby Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Its architecture and mosaics were patterned after nearby Byzantine churches and palaces. The octagonal plan of the structure may also have been influenced by the Byzantine Church of the Seat of Mary (also known as Kathisma in Greek and al-Qadismu in Arabic) built between 451 and 458 on the road between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
The site’s significance stems in part from religious traditions regarding the rock, known as the Foundation Stone, at its heart, which bears great significance for Jews and Muslims. It is recognized by all three Abrahamic religions as the site of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac.
The Dome of the Rock is located at the visual center of a platform known in English as the Temple Mount and in Arabic as Al-Haram ash-Sharif, or “the Noble Sanctuary”. It was constructed on the site of the Second Jewish Temple, which was destroyed during the Roman Siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE.
Muslims believe the location of the Dome of the Rock to be the site mentioned in Sura 17 of the Qur’an, which tells the story of the Isra and Mi’raj, the miraculous Night Journey of Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to “the farthest mosque”, where he leads prayers and rises to heaven to receive instructions from Allah.
The Night Journey is mentioned in the Qur’an in a very brief form and is further elaborated by the hadiths. Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab (579–644) was advised by his associate, Ka’ab al-Ahbar, a Jewish rabbi who converted to Islam, that “the farthest mosque” is identical with the site of the former Jewish Temples in Jerusalem.
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