[4][5] The large almost rectangular platform above the slopes of the hill known as the Temple Mount, was constructed by building a substructure consisting of a series of vaulted arches in order to reduce pressure on the retaining walls.

[6] These vaults, according to Priscilla Soueck, were "supported by eighty-eight pillars resting on massive Herodian blocks and divided into twelve rows of galleries",[7] and may have originally been storage areas of the Second Temple.

The structure has been called Solomon's Stables since the time of the Crusades as a historical composite: 'Solomon's' refers to the First Temple built on the site, while the 'stables' refers to the functional usage of the space by the Crusaders in the time of Baldwin II (King of Jerusalem 1118–1131 CE).

The first corridor runs from the main door, the second is a hallway with storage, and the third is now closed with stone, possibly dating to the same period of the Umayyad.

[10] In the winter of 1996 the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf acquired a permit to use Solomon's Stables as an alternative place of worship for occasional rainy days of the holy month of Ramadan.

[11] The Waqf began digging a huge hole in the southeastern area of the Temple Mount, without a permit from the Jerusalem municipality or archaeological supervision using tractors and heavy vehicles.

[8] This action drew criticism from archaeologists, who said that archaeological strata and artifacts were being damaged in the process and the excavations weakened the stability of the Southern Wall.

The excavations are thought to have been responsible for creating a large, visible bulge in the Southern Wall that threatened the structural integrity of the Temple Mount, necessitating major repairs.

[12] The repairs have been called "unsightly" because they appear as a large, bright, white patch of smooth stones in a golden tan wall of rusticated ashlar.

According to this report:[8] In a June 2000 interview with The Jerusalem Post, the chief Waqf archaeologist said that his colleagues examined the material taken out of the dig "either before or after the excavation" and "found nothing of special interest".