As Rosh Hashanah draws nigh, Western Wall gets traditional cleaning

By JPOST.COM STAFF

08/25/2013 14:50

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Workers at Judaism's holiest site remove prayer notes.

The Western Wall (C), the Dome of the Rock (L) and al-Asqa mosque (R) in Jerusalem. Photo: REUTERS/Marko Djurica

With the Jewish new year upon us, maintenance workers at the Western Wall on Sunday cleaned out the prayer notes left behind by the many tourists and dignitaries who made the pilgrimage to Judaism's holiest site in order to submit a request to God.

Rosh Hashana cleaning at Western Wall       1 OF 10

Marc Israel Sellem/The Jerusalem Post 

Workers at the Western Wall clean notes out of the crevices

The notes are taken to the Mount of Olives for burial, as per tradition. Jews began placing notes in the cracks of the Western Wall in the 18th century, and since the custom has remained in practice.