An Arab who was hanging about declared that he had seen the stone before it was broken, and that it had tapered to an end. The form suggests the top of the so-called Tomb of Absalom in the Kedron Valley, referred to the Maccabæean period.
The Second Heap would require much excavating to show the lines of building which are lost under the débris. The Arabs described an apse, which the workmen had broken up, towards the south; probably the one described by Warren. Near by we picked up fragments of plaster, with frescoes in various colours. The Arabs described frescoed walls, still in situ, a few yards to the north, which had been re-buried. They also gave tantalising accounts of inscriptions which had been broken up, but I could father no idea whether they were Greek or Latin. In this heap there were also a lot of Roman tiles, some detached, others built with mortar. The usual size was 912 inches square, and 2 to 3 inches thick, though some were larger. The beautiful stucco work seen in the illustration came from this heap. The Arabs described a drain or aqueduct (which would have been under the building), large enough for a man to crawl through.
The Third Heap was considerably lower. It was from this that the greatest number of stone had been taken. Lines of walling had been followed, and in the trenches the indications of the places where the stone had lain were so perfect that exact measurements could be taken. In these I was assisted by my artist friend, Mr. George Hunter. It was fortunate that we were there just at the time when the excavations had ceased and before the trenches had been filled up by earth washed down by the storms, which will for ever obliterate the lines of building. As it is I have been able to reconstruct the building in its main features (see Plan). The south-east corner at A may have been situated a few feet further south, but not many, as proved by the slope and débris. The wall from A to F was fully traced and measured at 200 feet. Its breadth was found at various points to be 4 feet 6 inches. Walls at right angles to the main wall were found at B, C, D, and E, their width being 3 feet 6 inches. The north wall was represented by a ridge, as it had not been excavated, except for a few feet at G; but these few feet of wall were found to be in an exact line with the corners F and H, and at exact right angles with the wall A—F. From H the next wall was traced for 108 feet 6 inches to 1, with a width of 4 feet 6 inches; it then took a turn to the west for 15 feet (outside measurement), and turned again to the south with a wall running west at M. The wall I—J, with the wall J—N, did not seem to be as thick as the wall H—I. The corner at N was not found, but a ridge ran from N to A, indicating the line of wall. Signs of walls were found from I to K, from I to T, from L to K, and from M to P. A wall was also found at U.
On the basis of these walls, taken with the heaps of debris, I have made the accompanying plan. The walls actually traced are shaded. The main features of the building are unmistakable. That a wall ran from T to U is apparent from a distinct ridge. The open court, H, S, U, T,
