Dome of the Rock summary

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Dome of the Rock, or Mosque of Omar, Oldest existing Islamic monument. It is located on Temple Mount, previously the site of the Temple of Jerusalem. The rock over which it is built is sacred to both Muslims and Jews. In Islam, Muhammad is believed to have ascended into heaven from the site. In Judaism it is the site where Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac. Built in 685–91 as a place of pilgrimage, the octagonal building has richly decorated walls and a gold-overlaid dome mounted above a circle of piers and columns.

Jerusalem Summary

Jerusalem, ancient city of the Middle East that since 1967 has been wholly under the rule of the State of Israel. Long an object of veneration and conflict, the holy city of Jerusalem has been governed, both as a provincial town and a national capital, by an extended series of dynasties and states.

Israel Summary

Israel, country in the Middle East, located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. It is bounded to the north by Lebanon, to the northeast by Syria, to the east and southeast by Jordan, to the southwest by Egypt, and to the west by the Mediterranean Sea. Jerusalem is the seat of government

Islam Summary

Islam, major world religion promulgated by the Prophet Muhammad in Arabia in the 7th century ce. The Arabic term islām, literally “surrender,” illuminates the fundamental religious idea of Islam—that the believer (called a Muslim, from the active particle of islām) accepts surrender to the will of

ʿAbd al-Malik Summary

ʿAbd al-Malik was the fifth caliph (685–705 ce) of the Umayyad Arab dynasty centred in Damascus. He reorganized and strengthened governmental administration and, throughout the empire, adopted Arabic as the language of administration. ʿAbd al-Malik spent the first half of his life with his father,