The Wailing Wall is the one surviving wall of the great temple of Solomon which the Babylonians destroyed when they overran Israel and sacked Jerusalem. In this painting you can see it has been rebuilt but not restored to its original condition. Certain stones seem out of place and probably were in different locations in the original structure.
Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824 – 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as academicism. He is considered one of the most important painters from this academic period, and in addition to being a painter, he was also a teacher with a long list of students.