**6. Solomon's Temple: Ground-Plan Architecture in Context**

In this section, we will discuss the five main parts of the temple and examine whether these architectural elements are known from temples in the Levant. If these elements are known from the archaeological record, then the biblical description is anchored in the context of its time. If, however, such architecture is not known in the period in question, it will be difficult to accept that the description reflects historical reality.

#### **Two Columns**

Two particularly magnificent bronze columns named Jachin and Boaz are described in the text. A pair of columns is present in various temples excavated in or around the Land of Israel. Two columns were found in front of the entrance to the Late Bronze Age temple at Hazor and in front of the Iron Age temples at Motza, Ain Dara in Syria, and Tell Tayinat in southern Turkey. Two columns can also be seen in several of the building models dated to the Iron Age (Garfinkel and Mumcuoglu 2016, pp. 112–13, 119, 123–25).

There are two opinions about the exact location of the columns and their function. Some see them as merely decorative and assume they were freestanding on either side of the doorway and did not support a roof. The other approach sees them as supporting the roof of the Forecourt, as shown on a clay building model from Idalion in Cyprus (Garfinkel and Mumcuoglu 2016, p. 105; Katz 2016, ).
