Ancient Jerusalem #266148

In the repairing or rebuilding of cities in ancient times there is no evidence that they were so far remodelled and enlarged as to be totally different from the original. At least some resemblance to the old remained. There may have been important changes, but, except in the rarest instances, the site was permanent. The opposite of this rule, however, we are asked to believe of Jerusalem; that in rebuilding it its old form and size were so entirely altered that they could never afterwards be recognized; that with one or two exceptions all traces of its public buildings, its castle and palaces, were obliterated; and that even the position and course of its walls were forgotten. In a word, that the nation which built one of the most famous cities of antiquity and occupied it continuously for several centuries, a nation that took no small pride in its own records and memorials, failed to remember where Jerusalem stood and the location of its castle, temple, palaces, and walls. Surely this is asking too much.