More on the world's oldest Temple

Gobekli Tepe, in Turkey (+ some speculative hyperbole from the press).

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1157784/Do-mysterious-stones-mark-site-Garden-Eden.html

Alec Garrard's amazing temple model

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1155962/Pensioner-spends-30-years-building-amazing-model-Herods-Temple---admits-wont-finish-it.html

Royal Seal from the time of Hezekiah

Some royal seals from the time of Hezekiah, king of Jerusalem and reformer of the temple cult, were discovered recently south of Jerusalem.

http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Israel+beyond+politics/Royal-seal-impressions-discovered-23-Feb-2009.htm?DisplayMode=print

Virtual Tour of Temple Mount

This is a really splendid panoramic tour of the Muslim monuments on the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount.

http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200901/al-haram/tour.htm

Illustrating the Bible

A blog on some recent attempts to conceptualize and illustrate Herod's temple.

http://bibleillustration.blogspot.com/2009/02/messiah-in-temple-project.html

Mandaeans in the News

The Mandaeans are a small sect claiming John the Baptist as their prophet, with unique set of gnostic scriptures, and interesting esoteric rituals like purification rites than may link back 2000 years to Temple times. In the wake of the instability in Iraq many have migrated out of Iraq, with Worcester MA becoming a new center.

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wfcr/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1465170

For more on the Mandaeans, see:

Buckley, Jorunn, The Mandaeans: Ancient Texts and Modern People, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2002)
Lupieri, Edmondo, The Mandaeans: The Last Gnostics, (Eerdmans, 2002), with extracts from primary sources

Antonia Fortress

Leen Ritmeyer's always interesting site has a review of current discussions on the location and size of the Antonia Fortress on the northwest corner of the Temple Mount during the days of Jesus.

http://www.ritmeyer.com/2009/02/02/the-antonia-herods-temple-mount-fortress/

The Order of Kolob?

A French mix of Freemasonry, Mormonism, and esotericism.

http://religion.info/english/articles/article_412.shtml