Witnessed by three disciples of the prophet: The Jerusalem 32 inscription from 32 AH/652 CE

The nine-line inscription incised on a block of stone employed in secondary use in a tiny mosque outside the southwestern corner of the Temple Mount has been an enigma for half a century, since its discovery by B. Mazar in 1968. The only part of the text that I was able to read contains the names of three of the prominent comrades of the Prophet Muhammad. There is also reference to the 'protection' and 'guarantee' extended in the name of the Prophet, but the nature of the inscription and more details about its contents remain obscure. Building on the verb shahida (from shahada, 'witnessed'), which appears in the inscription and in parallel historical texts relating to the capitulation of Jerusalem to the Muslims, and on the names that appear in the inscription and in these literary sources, I suggest that the inscription commemorates the treaty between the Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem and the conquerors.