Ancient Jerusalem: From Solomon to Suleiman

Catalog description

Attempts to approach the city of Jerusalem and the complex interaction of political, social, and above all religious realities that continue to define the city. The course focuses on Jerusalem as a mythic as well as a historical entity; attempts to disentangle some of the threads that make Jerusalem the rich tapestry of meaning it has become. It does this by a careful reading of textual material from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic sources, as well as of archaeological and art-historical data. The course focuses especially on the Temple Mount as a site of religious practice, transformation, myth, and conflict because of the long shadow it casts over the traditional landscape of Jerusalem.