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	Jerusalem: Al Aqsa Porch, Pier 4 colonette, elbow bracket, and capitals Jerusalem: Al Aqsa, Pier 4 colonette, elbow bracket, and capitals (photo: DAP 24-579 /IAA)
	The North Porch or Portico of Al Aqsa was first built by Templars during the Crusader period (AD 1099-1187). The Porch was expanded in the 13th-16th centuries under successive sultans, recorded by insciptions on the north facade.  This photo (DAP 24-579) of Pier 4 shows its corner colonette, elbow bracket, and capitals representing the original North Porch configuration. The photo was taken during 1938-1942 testing by the Palestine Department of Antiquities (DAP). Here the inner face of Pier 4 is viewed from the southwest. At left is a corner shaft or colonnette, topped with a small capital of acanthus leaves. At right is an elbow bracket (b,c), with similar but more eroded capitals. The whole is topped by a cornice. This and four other piers with the original (Crusader) porch construction are all made from a single type of limestone. Other pier elements have a miscellanous assortment of marble and limestone elements, added 1217-1550. DAP photos, drawings, and R. W. Hamilton`s 1942 report are in the Archives at the Israeli Archaeology Authority (iaa-archives-org.il).
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