# Herodian Temple visual references

Research date: 2026-09-20. These are photographs of a modern reconstruction in the Israel Museum, not photographs or exact records of the ancient building. The [museum dates its model to 66 CE](https://www.imj.org.il/en/wings/shrine-book/model-jerusalem-second-temple-period), slightly later than a 30–60 CE scene. Use it for a consistent visual scheme and label resulting work an interpretive reconstruction.

## Best image references

These reference photographs were consulted during research and are not bundled with the scene download. The links below identify their original sources and credits.

| Local file | What it clarifies | Source / reuse |
|---|---|---|
| `Second_Temple.jpg` | Best elevated frontal view: east-facing façade, Court of Women, semicircular stairs, inner gate, court walls, side porticoes | [Ariely / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Second_Temple.jpg), CC BY 3.0 |
| `TempleMount_HolylandModel.JPG` | Best whole-platform view: long perimeter colonnades, southern Royal Stoa, broad paved outer courts, inner sanctuary offset within the platform | [Berthold Werner / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TempleMount_HolylandModel.JPG), public-domain release; crop by Dbachmann |
| `israel-museum-temple-gje.jpg` | Southern retaining wall, paired entrances and broad external stair approaches, Royal Stoa massing | [Gerd Eichmann / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jerusalem_zur_Zeitenwende-10-Modell-Tempel-2010-gje.jpg), CC BY-SA 4.0 |
| `israel-museum-temple-case.jpg` | Close façade: massive rectangular opening, layered lintel, engaged columns/pilasters, Corinthian capitals, cornice, roof ornament | [Daniel Case / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Second_Temple_in_model_Jerusalem_at_Israel_Museum.jpg), CC BY-SA 3.0 |
| `israel-museum-sanctuary-freud.jpg` | Front and surrounding court buildings together | [Freud / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2010_Israel_Museum,_Modell_Tempel-Allerheiligstes.jpg), CC BY-SA 3.0 selected from offered licenses |
| `Second_temple.jpg` | Oblique façade and long side elevation; white walls, gold accents, vertical rhythm | [Xsteadfastx / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Second_temple.jpg), CC BY 3.0 |

For published photos, credit the named photographer, link the source and license, and identify edits. CC BY-SA photo adaptations retain the relevant share-alike terms. Exact model details remain modern reconstruction choices even when the photo license permits reuse.

## One coherent geometry scheme

Use the following **Middot-based** proportions. Keep cubits as the source unit. A uniform 0.5 m per cubit is a convenient scene-scale assumption, not a proven historical conversion.

| Element | Source dimensions / shape | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Temple façade / porch | 100 cubits broad, 100 high; temple complex 100 east–west | [Middot 4:6–7](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.4.6) |
| Rear temple body | 70 cubits north–south; porch extends 15 beyond it on each side | [Middot 4:7](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.4.7) |
| Porch opening | 20 cubits broad × 40 high, with stepped projecting lintel beams | [Middot 3:7](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.3.7) |
| Court of Women | 135 × 135 cubits; four unroofed corner chambers; surrounding gallery in the description | [Middot 2:5](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.2.5) |
| Women’s Court → Court of Israel | Fifteen semicircular steps, not a straight monumental stair | [Middot 2:5](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.2.5) |
| Inner court | 187 cubits east–west × 135 north–south | [Middot 5:1](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.5.1) |
| East-to-west allocation of inner court | Israel 11; priests 11; altar 32; altar-to-porch 22; temple 100; rear space 11 cubits | [Middot 5:1](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.5.1) |
| Altar | Stepped square 32 × 32 cubits at base; corner horns; distinct ramp on its south, 32 long × 16 wide | [Middot 3:1–3](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.3.1) |
| Porch ascent and laver | Twelve steps; laver between porch and altar, slightly south | [Middot 3:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.3.6) |
| Gates and barriers | Inner precinct has a low boundary; ordinary openings described as 10 wide × 20 high; Nicanor’s doors remain copper/bronze | [Middot 2:3](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.2.3) |

The ramp correction uses the nominal Middot tier sequence: a one-cubit base, five cubits to the surrounding ledge, then three to the upper surface, with corner horns above. The projecting base runs on the north and west with short returns. Whitewash, renewed before Sukkot, covers the underlying masonry. The scene therefore uses a pale, slightly uneven finish rather than exposed ashlar joints on the altar and ramp. See [Middot 3, translated text](https://avande1.sites.luc.edu/jerusalem/sources/middot.htm).

[Rambam, Beit Habechirah 2:6–14](https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1007195/jewish/Beit-Habechirah-Chapter-2.htm) gives more precise handbreadth distinctions and describes a small separation between ramp and altar. This model retains its uniform half-metre cubit convention; it is not a handbreadth-exact reconstruction. A narrow visual joint is bridged by the visitor movement surface. Two auxiliary connections now illustrate the base and ledge routes; their detailed geometry is interpretive. Full altar service and hidden drainage remain unmodeled. Visitor access to the altar is an educational feature, not a depiction of unrestricted ancient access.

The Golah chamber's previous conjectural footprint intersected the ramp. Its illustrative room is now beyond the south enclosure with a separate court entrance, leaving the main ramp approach clear. This placement, doorway, room dimensions and cistern mechanism are modeling interpretations; the chamber's name and water-supply function follow Middot 5:4.

Face the sanctuary east. Looking west from the eastern approach, the Court of Women and its stairs precede the inner gate; the altar and taller sanctuary lie farther west. The monumental façade should remain visibly broader than the rear body. The model’s flat, parapeted roof, deeply recessed opening, layered cornice and engaged columns make its silhouette distinctive; treat their precise ornament as reconstruction.

## Other ancient testimony and disagreements

[Josephus, War 5.5.2–6](https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Jews/Book_V) describes white stone with gilded front surfaces, golden vine ornament, roof spikes, a twelve-step sanctuary ascent, double outer colonnades with carved cedar roofs, and a 100-by-100-cubit façade. His porch opening is 70 high × 25 wide and his altar is 50 square, differing from Middot. Do not combine these into an apparently exact measured reconstruction. He describes the Holy of Holies as empty, so an Ark is inappropriate in this Second Temple interior.

[Josephus, Antiquities 15.11.5](https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Antiquities_of_the_Jews/Book_XV) supports the southern Royal Stoa as a three-aisled structure with four column rows, Corinthian capitals and a higher central aisle. This is a useful distinction from the simpler perimeter porticoes.

The museum’s exact capital shapes, roof cresting, painted marbling, door motifs and window arrangements are interpretive. The visual sources establish what this model depicts, not that every detail is archaeologically proven. Avoid deriving modern cityscape details or a precisely dated 30 CE plan from the entire 66 CE model.

## Sukkot activity placement

| Scene | Supported activity | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Daytime procession / altar service | Water carried from Siloam in a gold vessel, trumpet signals at the Water Gate, priest ascending the altar ramp for libation | [Sukkah 4:9](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.4.9) |
| Daytime altar surrounds | Willow branches set beside the altar with tops bending over it; daily circuit, seven on the seventh day | [Sukkah 4:5](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.4.5) |
| Temple Mount pilgrims | People carrying lulavim; the text describes their collection in a particular first-day-on-Shabbat practice | [Sukkah 4:4](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.4.4) |
| Evening Court of Women | Tall golden lamps, each with four bowls and ladders; oil filling and bright illumination | [Sukkah 5:2–3](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.5.2) |
| Evening stairs / court | Levites with string instruments, cymbals and trumpets on the fifteen steps; dancers with torches and songs | [Sukkah 5:4](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.5.4) |

The cited lamp passage does not fix the total number of lamp poles; four poles is a reconstruction choice. Select a specific time of day instead of showing all rites simultaneously. Keep ordinary pilgrims in their appropriate courts, and locate priestly altar service inside the restricted inner precinct. Crowd density, choreography, clothing colors, exact instrument forms and the timing of a particular imagined moment need interpretive labeling.

## Text provenance

The saved `Mishnah_Middot.*.json` snapshots are Sefaria API responses, English version “Mishnah Yomit by Dr. Joshua Kulp,” marked CC-BY. The saved Sukkah responses use the William Davidson English edition, marked CC-BY-NC. Use the guide’s paraphrases for scene decisions; do not copy the modern Sukkah translation into a commercial product without checking permissions. API pattern: `https://www.sefaria.org/api/texts/Mishnah_Middot.2?lang=en&context=0`.

## Night celebration, arrivals and mikvah (September 2026 additions)

Mishnah Sukkah 5:2–4 describes golden lampstands with four bowls, ladders, torch-bearing dancers and musicians on the fifteen steps. The nighttime option depicts a weekday of Chol Hamoed; its exact choreography, lamp heights and count of participants are illustrative. Women are represented in the gallery. This scene is separated from the daytime water procession.

- https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.5.2
- https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.5.4
- https://www.sefaria.org/English_Explanation_of_Mishnah_Middot.2.5

Mishnah Sukkah 4:9 describes water brought in a golden vessel from Shiloach (Siloam). The expanded scene models a stepped pool and five illustrative stages: filling the golden vessel, the ascent, arrival at the Water Gate, climbing the altar ramp and pouring into the western receiving bowl. Pool dimensions, inlet position, exact gestures and the compressed connecting route are illustrative. The adjacent eastern bowl is for wine; this animation focuses on water. Gate blasts are described in the stage caption but no authenticated blast recording has been added. “Mayim shelanu” normally refers to water rested overnight for matzah; it is not the name used for this Sukkot procession. This experience depicts the Sukkot water ceremony requested in the follow-up.

- https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.4.9
- https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4682200/jewish/Shulchan-Aruch-Chapter-455-The-Laws-Governing-the-Water-Used-to-Knead-the-Dough-from-which-Matzah-is-Made.htm

The bath is an interpretive rock-cut/plastered stepped mikvah outside the sacred precinct, informed by excavated Second Temple baths. Its position and dimensions are chosen for this experience; it is not an exact surveyed archaeological bath or a complete hydraulic reconstruction. It is shown unoccupied and can be inspected by walking or teleporting down its steps.

- Israel Antiquities Authority excavation reported by City of David: https://cityofdavid.org.il/en/ritual-bath/
- https://cityofdavid.org.il/en/ritual-bath-from-the-time-of-the-second-temple-in-the-givati-parking-lot-eng/

Travelers walk in with bundles, a ridden donkey and a pack donkey. These are plausible period transport elements, not a reconstruction of a named caravan. Animals remain on the outer approach. The donkey's baggage is adapted from a reusable historical-game asset; its exact contents are illustrative. Children's pebble sorting and small tosses replace ball and hoop play; this is generic play, not a claim that a particular documented ancient game has been recreated.

The night scene cycles original instrumental music and the credited later Hasidic nigun; it is not recovered Temple music or an additional licensed recording of a named Simchas Beis Hashoevah song.


## Expanded water journey
Primary text: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.4.9?with=Mishnah
Archaeological context: https://cityofdavid.org.il/en/siloam-pool-opened-eng/ and https://cityofdavid.org.il/en/5-things-to-know-about-the-pilgrimage-road-eng/ . The excavated road is roughly 600 m; the scene compresses this. The outside gate viewing landing is an experience aid, not an attested ancient structure. Household pottery, food, baskets and roadside buildings are contextual artistic additions. The five stages replay individually; they do not yet provide a continuous geographically accurate city traversal.

The final libation stage uses an elevated educational viewing position so the vessel and bowls are visible. It does not represent a visitor access area.

## Residential quarter and four species (expanded scene)

The enterable house is an interpretive modest household with plastered stone walls, timber roof beams, a living room, rear storage and sleeping spaces, pottery, chalkstone cups, oil lamps, woven mats and a hand quern. It is not a copy of an excavated urban house. Regional Hasmonean/Herodian evidence for plastered walls, room connections and repaired plaster floors is described by the Israel Antiquities Authority: https://hadashot.iaa.org.il/Report_Detail_Eng.aspx?id=25901 . Domestic oil-lamp evidence is also discussed in https://hadashot.iaa.org.il/Report_Detail_eng.aspx?id=26247&mag_id=134&print=all . These regional comparanda support materials and object types, not this exact plan, roof or room arrangement.

The meal contains round bread, figs, dates, grapes and olives in ceramic dishes, with simple open cups. It is a plausible festival meal, not an attested menu. No modern produce or modern tableware was intentionally added. The table meshes and foods are newly authored geometry rather than scanned food assets.

All 352 members of the daytime public-court gathering carry a closed palm frond (lulav), three myrtle sprigs (hadassim), two willow sprigs (aravot), and a separate citron (etrog). This follows the count in Mishnah Sukkah 3:4, which preserves differing opinions: https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Sukkah.3.4 . A citron is not a generic lemon; the model uses an uneven rind, stem and pitom. Holding gestures are illustrative, not an exact reconstruction of a ritual sequence. The added public approach colonnades are an interpretive completion of the scene, not a surveyed Temple Mount plan.


## Temple interiors and expanded crowd (current build)

This build contains 67 selectable modeled spaces, not a claim that every room or subterranean route of the historical Temple is known or reproduced. The room directory includes open courts as well as enclosed rooms. Core proportions use the existing 0.5 m/cubit assumption. Some existing precinct dimensions, levels, floor thicknesses and the courtyard layout are approximated. The preserved fifteen-step ascent is navigable; full Temple Mount topography remains incomplete. The Royal Stoa and underground immersion route are now included as interpretations; see v17 below.

| Modeled element | Textual basis | Interpretation in this build |
|---|---|---|
| Four unroofed corner chambers, 40 cubits across | [Middot 2:5](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.2.5) | Door locations, furnishings, work layouts and wall heights. The southwest oil/wine identification follows the received explanatory tradition; the text preserves uncertainty. |
| Instrument stores opening toward the Court of Women | [Middot 2:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.2.6) | Two small reconstructed storage spaces, with illustrative instruments. Their precise dimensions are unknown. |
| Ulam, Heikhal and inner-room dimensions | [Middot 4:1, 4:7](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.4.7) | Gilt panels, door decoration, stone colors, roof details and lighting. |
| 38 side cells: 15 north, 15 south, 8 west | [Middot 4:3–4](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.4.3) | Counts and three-level arrangement follow the text. Individual lengths, floor heights, doors, benches, lamps and specific functions are not established. Most cells remain sparsely furnished to avoid invented sacred functions. |
| Winding passage to the upper storey | [Middot 4:5–6](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.4.5) | The north–west–south sequence informs the connected route. Slopes, railings, support construction and room shortcuts are study interpretations, not a surveyed ancient circulation system. |
| Menorah south, table north | [Menachot 98b](https://www.sefaria.org/Menachot.98b) | Branch curvature, supports and detailed vessel profiles. The passage records debate about orientation. |
| Twelve showbread loaves | [Menachot 11:7](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Menachot.11.7), [Leviticus 24:5–9](https://www.sefaria.org/Leviticus.24.5) | Loaf shape and rack design. These are distinct from the ordinary sukkah meals. |
| Two curtains; inner room without the Ark | [Yoma 5:1–2](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.5.1) | Curtain colors, folds and stone shape. Yoma preserves a one-curtain opinion as well; this scene follows the two-curtain account with opposite end openings. |
| Six courtyard chambers | [Middot 5:3–4](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.5.4) | This edition's north side has salt, Parva and washers; south has wood, Golah and Hewn Stone. Other textual/commentarial schemes reverse the sides. Longitudinal placement, dimensions, furnishings and room access in this model are not settled facts. |
| Parva roof immersion place | [Middot 5:3](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.5.3), [Yoma 3:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.3.6) | Basin form, dimensions and roof access. No bathing person is depicted. |
| Beit Hamoked's four chambers | [Middot 1:6–9](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.1.6) | Southwest lamb chamber, southeast showbread preparation, northeast stored altar stones, northwest immersion descent. The hall shell, exact sizes and fixtures are interpretive. The v17 descent connects to the interpreted underground passage, bath and warming place. |
| Ground rings north of the altar; twelve laver taps | [Middot 3:5](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.3.5), [Yoma 3:10](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Yoma.3.10) | Material details, table placement and tap shapes. No sacrifice is staged. |

The enlarged daytime crowd is an illustrative gathering carrying the four species, not a claim to reproduce a particular dated ritual or a precisely counted ancient assembly. The 320 background participants use fixed individual poses with subtle whole-body sway; 32 foreground participants are articulated. Clothing and faces are reused art assets with variation, not 352 unique scanned people. The night celebration is a separate scene.

All modeled rooms can be selected for educational exploration. This does not imply historical public access: the Heikhal was for priestly service, and the High Priest's entry to the inner room belonged to Yom Kippur, not Sukkot. Hosts' Yiddish is the user's chosen presentation language. Object descriptions are authored notes, not conversations with a historical eyewitness. Lighting and acoustic treatment serve visibility and atmosphere and are not measurements of the ancient building.


## v12: ritual detail and everyday stories

- Water: [Mishnah Sukkah 4:9](https://www.mishnah.org/learn/sukkah/4/9/) describes a golden three-log vessel filled at Shiloach, the Water Gate signals, ascent by the ramp and a left turn, with water in the western bowl and wine in the eastern. Drips, footfalls, animation timing, pool geometry and the compressed journey are illustrative.
- Night: [Mishnah Sukkah 5:4](https://www.mishnah.org/learn/sukkah/5/4/) describes torch dancing, singing and Levite musicians. The three circles, visitor responses and 80-second sequence are invented staging, not recovered choreography or ancient recorded music.
- Four species: [Mishnah Sukkah 3:9](https://www.mishnah.org/learn/sukkah/3/9/) associates waving with passages of Hallel. The extension and lifting demonstration does not claim to recover every movement of ancient practice. Existing modern Hoshanas audio is not relabeled as a Hallel performance.
- Household objects: [IAA, Lots of Pots](https://publications.iaa.org.il/atiqot/vol112/iss1/5/) and [IAA, Herodian pottery comparanda](https://publications.iaa.org.il/atiqot/vol106/iss1/9/) inform the general regional range of cooking, serving and storage vessels. [IAA stone-vessel research](https://publications.iaa.org.il/atiqot/vol113/iss1/9/) supports including stone vessels. These are comparanda, not claims that each modeled pot duplicates an excavated object.
- The meal, arriving family, outdoor table, stalls, guest visit, mat, door and children’s turn-taking game are explicitly interpretive everyday stories. No individual family, game rules, market floor plan or dialogue is attested.
- The guide repeats the room notes’ distinction between recorded functions, interpretive furnishing, and educational access. The new Yiddish audio is the requested modern interpretive language. Generated pronunciation has not had a native-speaker review.

## v13 domestic and visitor additions

The new storage chest, linen arrangement, cup, shutter leaves, worn thresholds, rooftop vessels, distant houses and airborne particles are artistic domestic/environmental details. Their exact forms and placements are not claimed to follow a particular excavated Jerusalem house. The original architectural source distinctions and historically restricted Temple areas remain unchanged. Head turns, hand interactions and family reactions are imagined everyday behavior. The map is a navigation diagram of this model, not an archaeological map of Jerusalem. Menu shortcuts, saved places and controller practice are modern visitor aids.

## v14 inspection and character motion

The separately held four-species display is a modern study aid. Its optional etrog enlargement is labeled 2.4×; the full set uses the existing modeled dimensions. It does not prescribe ritual handling or claim to recreate ancient gestures. Nearby characters' glances, breathing and posture shifts are artistic animation. Head-covering adjustments address mesh clipping, not a new archaeological claim.

## v15 material and interaction refinements

Folded head-covering surfaces and finer botanical surface relief are artistic refinements of the existing modeled forms. They are not reproductions of a specific excavated garment or a claim about one historically exact citron. Controller labels and inspection magnification are modern visitor aids.


## v16 pottery and household study

The clay bodies, firing variation, inclusions and worn grinding surfaces are modeled artistic details, not photographic scans or copies of identified excavated objects. Jar placements and dimensions retain the previous scene convention; their interiors are now modeled shells.

The optional hand-quern study uses a lower stone and a loaf-shaped handstone, with grain and flour illustrating the principle of grinding. The IAA report [Kafr Kanna (Jebel Khuwweikha), pp. 8–9](https://hadashot.iaa.org.il/images/Kafr_Kanna_English.pdf) describes regional grinding stones and discusses the continued use of older forms alongside changing milling technology. This supports a regional tool comparison, not the prevalence of this particular design in 66 CE Jerusalem. Shape, motion, number of passes and flour output are illustrative. The tool rests in the household scene; the optional demonstration is identified as study, separate from festival observance.

## v17 — outer precinct and underground immersion

Primary references checked for this expansion:
- [Middot 1:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Middot.1.6): descent to immersion in the Beit Hamoked complex.
- [Tamid 1:1](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Tamid.1.1): underground passage, lamps, immersion, warming fire and privacy. The modeled staircase, barrel vaults, pool dimensions, folded cloths, furnishing and exact path are conjectural. An unoccupied chamber supports educational exploration.
- [Josephus, Antiquities 15.11.5](https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/ant-15.html): four column rows, three aisles, Corinthian capitals, taller central roof and the total of 162 columns. This model adopts that spatial scheme and count, not a resolved scholarly reconstruction of each dimension. The 13.9 m modeled columns, roof structure, proportions and compressed placement are interpretive. The fourth row is partly engaged with a southern wall. No claim is made that the full Temple Mount is now complete.
- [Zevachim 62b:1](https://www.sefaria.org/Zevachim.62b.1) and [The Chosen Temple 2:14](https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah%2C_The_Chosen_Temple.2.14): subsidiary ramps serving base and ledge. The modeled branching lengths and walking surfaces are interpretive; the adopted cubit convention remains approximate.

Yiddish narration remains a requested modern presentation choice and has not received native-speaker review. No new voice clip is claimed to be reviewed or historical.