The
Temple Mount (,
Har HaBáyit), also known as the
Haram (,
al-Ḥaram al-Šarīf, "Noble Sanctuary", or ,
al-Ḥaram al-Qudsī al-Šarīf, "Noble Sanctuary of Jerusalem"), is one of the most important religious sites in the
Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years. At least four religious traditions are known to have made use of the Temple Mount:
Judaism,
Greco-Roman paganism,
Christianity, and
Islam. The present site is dominated by three monumental structures from the early
Umayyad period: the
al-Aqsa Mosque, the
Dome of the Rock and the Dome of the Chain.
Herodian walls and gates with additions dating back to the late
Byzantine and early Islamic periods cut through the flanks of the Mount. Currently it can be accessed via eleven gates, ten reserved for Muslims and one for non-Muslims, with guard posts of
Israeli police in the vicinity of each.