 Some rudimentary ritual sacrifice had continued at the site of the first temple following its destruction.According to the closing verses of the second book of Chronicles and the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the Jewish exiles returned to Jerusalem following a decree from Cyrus the Great (, ), construction started at the original site of the altar of Solomon's Temple.After a relatively brief halt due to opposition from peoples who had filled the vacuum during the Jewish captivity (), work resumed c. 521 BCE under Darius I () and was completed during the sixth year of his reign (c. 516 BCE), with the temple dedication taking place the following year.