The foundation will be responsible for examining and preserving the stone until a decision is made regarding its future.

A crane clears a fallen stone from the Western Wall, July 25 2018
A crane clears a fallen stone from the Western Wall, July 25 2018. (photo credit: DAVID MICHAEL COHEN/TPS)

 

The stone that fell out of the Western Wall on Monday morning was transferred Wednesday by the Israel Antiquities Authority to the care of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation.

The foundation will be responsible for examining and preserving the stone until a decision is made regarding its future.

A stone that fell from the Western Wall is cleared away by crane, July 25, 2018. (David Michael Cohen/TPS)
A stone that fell from the Western Wall is cleared away by crane, July 25, 2018. (David Michael Cohen/TPS)

 

The stone, weighing an approximate 400 pounds, was transferred off site by means of a crane to the Western Wall Plaza.

Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi of the Western Wall, will discuss possible options with engineers from the Antiquities Authority, after which he will hold a halachic discussion on the matter with a number of other rabbis.

The stone fell shortly after the end of the fast of Tisha Be’av, and narrowly avoided hurting a woman who was praying nearby. The Jerusalem Engineer’s office subsequently closed the prayer platform by which it fell, until the Antiquities Authority concludes a survey of the other stones above the site.

As reported by The Jerusalem Post