Marcus La Roy Cole, age 15, of Indianapolis, Ind., for his question:

WHAT IS THE WAILING WALL?

The Wailing Wall, also called the Western Wall, is a long wall in Jerusalem. During Biblical times, this wall formed the western part of the courtyard of the Jews' holy Temple. The wall is 160 feet long and about 40 feet high.

Archaeologists have discovered that 19 rows of stones extended about 20 feet underground. The lower part of the Wailing Wall contains stones said to be from Herod's Temple.

Beginning in the 700s, the Arabs allowed Jews to assemble at the wall on the evenings before their Sabbath and before their feast days. In services held at the wall, the Jews recalled their traditions and sufferings. The wall continues to be used to this day. The Jews regained access to the wall when Israel captured the Jordanian section of Jerusalem in 1967.