Portico and Footprints

View of  three  huge footprints in the portico of the Iron Age temple at Ain Dara.  Each footprint is 3 ft. [1 m.] long!!  They are unique in temple architecture in the Ancient Near East.  John Monson suggests that they "... are probably intended to indicate the presence of the deity who resided in the 'Ain Dara temple" (p. 27 below).

The steps in the upper right portion of the image lead to the threshold and main hall of the temple.

Image courtesy of Mark Connally.

To view other images from Ain Dara Click Here.

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For a diagram of the temple see p. 23 in Monson, John J. “The New 'Ain Dara Temple: Closest Solomonic Parallel.”Biblical Archaeology Review vol. 26, no. 3 (May/June, 2000): 20–35, 67.

Image from the Zondervan Atlas of the Bible, p. 138. To view/use additional images from the Atlas Click Here.

Image from the Zondervan Atlas of the Bible, p. 147.