An archaeological discovery at the location where Jesus is supposed to be buried can provide new evidence that supports the Biblical report.
Researchers discovered remains of an old garden under the foundation of the church of the Holy Grave in Jerusalem, a finding they say, coordinating the gospel of John.
John 19:41 reads: 'Now at the place where he was crucified, there was a garden; And in the garden a new grave, in which there was never man. There they laid Jesus. '
A team of the Sapienza University of Rome analyzed the plant residues of the site and went out with the pre-Christian era and placed them around the time of Jesus' crucifixion and funeral. Historians generally date his death to about 33 AD.
Francesca Romana Stasolla, leading archaeologist, told The Times of Israel: 'The gospel mentions a green area between the Golgotha ​​and the grave, and we identified these cultivated fields'
The discovery contributes to the continuous debate about the location of Jesus' funeral.
Many scholars support the church of the Holy Grave as the site, stating the presence of rock-cut graves from the first century.
Others claim that the garden hurry, another old cemetery in Jerusalem, is better in line with Biblical descriptions.
Archaeologists found remains of an old garden under the foundation of the church of the Holy Grave in Jerusalem, of which they said it confirms the Gospel of John
There is a long debate about where Jesus was laid to rest. Some say the Church, while others believe that he is placed in an old rock -cut grave, known as the garden trap (photo), which matches Biblical text
Excavations started during the renovations of the church in 2022, but the team recently found some 'the evidence of the presence of olive trees and vines from about 2,000 years ago'.
However, they do not yet have to complete radio cabbage tests that is done to determine the age of samples by measuring the decay of carbon-14 (14c) isotope.
Carbon-14 is included in tissue when something dies, including plants and changes over time, so that scientists can calculate an exact time for when it lived.
The location of the church of the Holy Grave sees around four million visitors every year.
The church, which is more than 5,400 feet in diameter, was built on top of a Roman temple dedicated to the goddess Venus in 335ad.
The construction was commissioned by the Roman emperor Constantine I and during the conversion a grave was discovered that is considered that of Jesus who died almost 300 years earlier.
According to Stasolla, the hidden layers under the floor of the church have revealed new details about the history of ancient Jerusalem.
“The church stands on a quarry, which is not surprising because a large part of the old city of Jerusalem stands on a quarry,” he told the Times of Israel.
Archaeologists issued the floor of the church (depicted) when the uncovered signs of an old garden mentioned in the Bible, as Jesus was laid to rest
'The quarry was already active in the Iron Age. During the excavation we found earthenware, lamps and other everyday objects from that period. '
As soon as the quarry stopped working, the area was used for Framland.
“Low stone walls were founded and the space between them was filled with dirt,” said Stasolla.
“The archaeobotanical findings are especially interesting for us, in the light of what is mentioned in the Gospel of Johannes, whose information is considered written or collected by someone who is now familiar with Jerusalem.”
In addition to agricultural land, the old quarry was also reused as a cemetery with graves carved into rocks.
Stasolla suggested that Constantijn knew which grave Jesus was and built the church on top to isolate the surrounding funerals.
The team also discovered a circular marble base under the sanctuary that crosses what is considered the grave of Jesus.
They will perform more tests to determine the age and origin of the marble.
In July 2024, archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences (OAW) announced a 'sensational' discovery in the church of the Holy Grave.
They found an alter who was missing when the church was set on fire in the 1800s.
The stone, eight feet long and five feet wide, was decorated with ribbon thornows, a Roman practice during the Middle Ages and various markings that cause researchers to believe that it was the altar that was initiated in 1149.
The album was found in the church, but the front portion was covered with graffiti of tourists. Researchers suspected that it is why it remained unnoticed for centuries.
However, the unusual decorations on the side -facing side led the researchers to the so -called 'Cosmatesque'.
“This special production technique for marble decoration was practiced exclusively by Guild Masters in Papal Rome, who spent the skill from generation to generation,” the team shared.
'A characteristic characteristic of this technique was the ability of the masters to decorate large surfaces with small quantities of precious marble.
'In the medieval Rome, Marble was mainly scraped from old buildings, forcing the Cosmatesque Masters to optimize the marble they could find.
“Their solution was to put together small marble pieces with the greatest precision, to confirm in such a way that complex geometric patterns and dazzling ornaments are created.”
Cosmatesque artworks are considered cherished by the Pope, so much so that an outside Rome has rarely been found and only one in Westminster Abbey has been found outside of Italy.
“The Cosmatesque Altar that has now been rediscovered in Jerusalem must also have been created with the blessing of the Pope,” the researchers said.
“By sending one of the Cosmatesque Masters to the Kingdom of Jerusalem to make the new height in the holiest church of Christianity, the Pope supported the claim of Christianity on the city.”
