Tradition of petrified birds in the Dome of the Rock

On the southern exterior wall of the Dome of the Rock, a very important Islamic shrine in Jerusalem's Old City, there are two marble slabs, both carved from the same stone and placed side by side to form a symmetrical pattern, that depicts two birds. In a recent article published in the Journal of Near Eastern Studies, "Solomon and The Petrified Birds on the Dome of the Rock," author Elon Harvey explores the history of this marble decoration and describes how different narratives about Solomon and two birds contributed to the multiple understandings of this imagery.