Solomon’s legacy combines theology, politics, and myth. The Hebrew Bible attributes to him a vast empire, significant trade connections, and grand architectural achievements. While traditional chronologies place his reign circa 970–930 BCE, archaeologists and historians are divided over whether such a monarch existed at all, or whether the biblical Solomon represents a literary construct projecting a later period's ideals into the past. Excavations across Israel and surrounding regions have yielded structures attributed to his era, but direct evidence linking these to Solomon is elusive, and many layers once thought "Solomonic" are now dated a century later.

The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon by Sir Edward John Poynter 1890. The Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

circa 1000 BCE

Biblical and Rabbinic Sources
The primary biblical accounts of Solomon’s reign are found in the Deuteronomistic History (1 Kings 1–11) and the Chronicler’s account (2 Chronicles 1–9). These texts present a centralized monarchy with administrative sophistication, including international diplomacy, expansive taxation systems, and monumental construction projects. The Deuteronomistic account emphasizes covenantal fidelity and divine approval, while Chronicles presents a more idealized portrayal aligned with post-exilic temple theology. Rabbinic expansions, found in the Midrash and Talmud, embellish Solomon’s persona, attributing to him command over the natural and supernatural world, including animals, spirits, and weather. These elaborations, while non-historical, indicate his symbolic resonance across Jewish tradition.

Christian Interpretive Traditions
Early Christian writers, including Origen, Jerome, and Augustine, interpreted Solomon allegorically, particularly through the lens of Christology. The Song of Songs was read as an allegory of Christ’s love for the Church, and Solomon’s temple became a typological precursor to the spiritual temple of the New Covenant. Patristic sources often juxtaposed Solomon’s wisdom and his moral fall, using his narrative as a moral didactic tool. By the medieval period, Solomon was also associated with mystical traditions, including the concept of divine wisdom (sophia) and speculative philosophy, often integrated into cathedral iconography and theological works.

Quranic and Islamic Historical Narratives
In Islamic tradition, Sulayman ibn Dawud is regarded as both a prophet and a king, endowed with miracles and divine insight. Quranic references to Solomon (notably in Surahs al-Naml, Sad, and Saba) emphasize his just rulership, command over jinn and nature, and moral rectitude. Unlike the Hebrew Bible, the Quran omits references to a temple and instead emphasizes functional signs of divine favor. Tafsir literature (notably by al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir) expands on these narratives with intertextual borrowings and embellishments from Jewish and Christian lore (isra’iliyyat), including detailed accounts of Solomon’s throne, the Hoopoe bird, and the Queen of Sheba. Islamic philosophical literature (e.g., the Ikhwan al-Safa) sometimes adopts Solomon as a symbol of harmonized rule between reason and revelation.

Classical and Later Historical References
Josephus' Antiquities of the Jews (Book 8) preserves a version of Solomon’s life based on biblical texts and possibly now-lost Second Temple period traditions. He elaborates on Solomon’s alliances, maritime expeditions, and his interaction with foreign dignitaries. Greco-Roman writers occasionally reference Solomon, though often through indirect or polemical means; Eupolemus, a Hellenistic Jewish writer, attributed philosophical teachings to Solomon. Arab geographers and chroniclers in the medieval period, such as al-Mas'udi and Ibn Khaldun, referenced Solomon within cosmological and historical frameworks, often portraying him as a civilizational founder or a universal monarch.

circa 1000 BCE

Judaism
Solomon embodies the apex of Israelite political and spiritual unification. His construction of the First Temple represents the crystallization of monotheistic worship centered in Jerusalem. Rabbinic sources engage extensively with his theological and moral ambiguity—praising his wisdom while critiquing his political marriages and eventual idolatry. The Talmudic tradition discusses whether Solomon retained his prophetic spirit after his apostasy, and midrashim preserve both reverence and reproach, reflecting his dual role as sage and cautionary figure.

Christianity
Solomon’s wisdom literature—Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs—forms part of the Christian Old Testament canon, often interpreted through moral and allegorical lenses. His figure is typologically associated with Jesus, especially in statements such as “one greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42). Medieval Christian mysticism often integrated Solomonic themes, particularly in the construction of Gothic cathedrals and speculative theology, where Solomon became a symbol of divine architecture and spiritual knowledge.

Islam
Sulayman is among the most prominent prophets in the Quranic corpus. He is portrayed as a paradigm of divinely guided kingship and justice, with authority over jinn, birds, and winds—seen not as supernatural fantasy but as signs (ayat) of divine support. His interaction with the Queen of Sheba (Bilqis) is depicted as an episode of da‘wah (invitation to monotheism), underscoring his missionary role. His character in Islamic tradition is entirely positive, with no mention of apostasy or moral failing.

circa 1000 BCE

Temple Mount / First Temple
The epicenter of Solomon’s religious and political legacy, the Temple Mount is believed to have hosted the First Jewish Temple described in 1 Kings 6–7. Due to political sensitivities and religious prohibitions, systematic archaeological excavation of the platform is not possible. The absence of direct archaeological remains has prompted reliance on textual reconstructions, architectural parallels, and subterranean survey data.

circa 1000 BCE

Hazor, Megiddo, Gezer
These three cities are explicitly mentioned in 1 Kings 9:15 as part of Solomon’s building program. Monumental architecture including palaces, fortifications, and water systems has been uncovered at each. However, the stratigraphic dating and cultural affiliations of Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer with Solomon are debated. Some scholars now attribute the bulk of this construction to later Iron Age phases, particularly under the Omride and Jehu dynasties.

circa 1000 BCE

Ezion-Geber and Ophir
Cited as ports used in maritime ventures for trade in gold, silver, ivory, and exotic animals (1 Kings 10:22), their precise locations remain unverified. Ezion-Geber is traditionally associated with Tell el-Kheleifeh near Aqaba, but archaeological work has re-dated the site's occupational phases to the 8th–7th centuries BCE, postdating Solomon’s reign.

circa 1000 BCE

Mount of Offense
Identified in later tradition with the eastern slope or ridge of the Mount of Olives, this site was reputedly home to shrines erected by Solomon for his foreign wives' deities (1 Kings 11:7–8). While no archaeological remains directly associated with this episode have been found, the narrative forms part of theological critiques of Solomon’s tolerance of foreign cults.

circa 1000 BCE

Solomon's Pools
The so-called Pools of Solomon, located near Bethlehem, are three large reservoirs, traditionally linked to Solomon's water infrastructure, though the present structures date to the Hasmonean (140 to 63 BCE), Roman prefecturate (63 to 37 BCE), Roman colonial period (37 BCE to 324 CE) . They illustrate how Solomonic attribution continued in later periods as a means of legitimizing infrastructure and sacred geography.

circa 1000 BCE

Kursi Suleiman
The so-called Kursi Suleiman, is an Ottoman period domed building inside the Haram as-Sharif complex al-Aqsa or the compound, which according to local Muslim tradition marks the site where prophet Suleiman died while overseeing the contruction of the Heikal. Jerusalem, also known as the Kursi-i Suleiman (the chair of Solomon) or the foot-stool of Solomon. The domed structure is located along the Eastern Wall, north of Golden Gate and south of the Gate of the Tribes and today it serves as a school of Hadith (Dar ul-Hadith). The structure it self was probably built towards the end of Ottoman era.

circa 1000 BCE

Minimalist vs Maximalist Schools
Maximalists accept a basic historicity of Solomon’s reign, seeing him as a tribal chieftain whose exploits were later magnified. Minimalists, such as Thomas Thompson and Niels Peter Lemche, argue that Solomon is a largely literary invention created during the Persian or Hellenistic periods. The debate reflects broader questions about the use of the Bible as a historical source.

Political Use of Solomonic Legacy
Solomon’s association with the Temple Mount renders him central to Israeli national identity and claims over Jerusalem. Conversely, Islamic traditions emphasize Solomon as a prophet unconnected to Jewish national narratives. These divergent views have geopolitical implications, particularly regarding the status of the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount in Israeli-Palestinian discourse.

Interfaith Narratives
Solomon remains a shared figure across Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, though the theological emphases differ. Interfaith dialogue sometimes invokes Solomon as a bridge between traditions, though differing readings of his legacy also reflect deeper theological divides.