(here is the impression made by the hand of the angel Gabriel, who held the rock down to prevent it from following the prophet), and this Rock is the Place of Prayer of all the Prophets.
Even more mysterious than the Sacred Rock is the Sacred Well below it. Descending a flight of steps at the south-east corner of the rock we enter a cave, in the rocky floor of which is a circular slab of marble, which returns a hollow sound when struck, but which is never uplifted. The Arabs appear to regard it as the mouth of Hell, for they call it the Well of Souls, and have a dread of the consequences if any evil spirit should escape. It is a tradition that in the Temple the ark of the covenant used to stand over this cave, and that it was afterwards concealed in the cave, or below it, by Jeremiah, and still lies hidden beneath the sacred rock.
The ground of the Haram enclosure is honeycombed with tanks, into some of which the water finds its way by unknown channels. One of the tanks is called the Great Sea, and would hold 2,000,000 gallons of water; another would hold 1,400,000, and all the tanks together 10,000,000 of gallons at the least. This would be more than a year's supply for the city in its best days, a valuable resource in times of siege.
Solomon's Stables.—Under the Haram area, at the south-eastern part, are the vaults known as Solomon's Stables—thirteen rows of vaults of a variety of spans. They were used as stables by the Crusaders, and the holes in the piers by which the horses were fastened may still be seen. The name of Solomon's Stables is supposed to have been given by the Crusaders, who may, however, have been guided by some earlier tradition. The vaults are in part ancient and in part a reconstruction, probably about the time of Justinian (sixth century A.D.).
The Jews' Wailing Place.—Outside the Haram, on the
