Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Archeologists unearth Herod's tomb

From JPost, May. 8, 2007, by ETGAR LEFKOVITS AND AP ...

The grave and tomb of King Herod has been discovered at Herodium, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced Monday.

The most outstanding among Herod's building projects, the Herodium is the only site that carries his name and is where he chose to be buried, said Hebrew University Professor Ehud Netzer at a press conference on Tuesday. Netzer, who is credited with the site's discovery, has been working on the project since 1972.

The burial site is accessible via a monumental flight of stairs, 6.5 meters wide, that leads to the hillside and was especially constructed for the funeral procession, he said.
The location and unique nature of the findings leave no doubt that this was Herod's burial site, Netzer said.

....Known as the "great builder," Herod was the king of Judea from 37 to 4 BCE. Among the his major achievements were the significant expansion of the Second Temple, the building of Caesarea port, and the rebuilding of Masada.

It has long been assumed that Herod was buried at Herodium, but decades of excavations failed to uncover the site until now. The first century historian Josephus Flavius described the tomb and Herod's funeral procession.

Herodium was one of the last strong points held by Jewish rebels fighting against the Romans, and it was conquered and destroyed by Roman forces in 71 CE, a year after they destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem.

According to Jewish historian Josephus, Herod was interred at the Judean Desert fortress he ordered built during the Second Temple period, located 10 km. southeast of Jerusalem near Tekoa in Gush Etzion, but until now no grave had been found.

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