Herod’s Family Tomb in Jerusalem - The BAS Library
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Herod’s Family Tomb in Jerusalem

Archaeological clues suggest monumental structure resembles Augustus’s tomb in Rome

By Ehud Netzer

We have not found Herod’s tomb, but we have examined a structure that may be Herod’s family tomb. It is not at Herodium but is in Jerusalem itself opposite the Damascus Gate, the most elaborate entrance to the Old City. As with Herodium, my interest in the Jerusalem structure at first had nothing to do with any interest in the burial of Herod or his family. The Jerusalem structure was intriguing because it contained some rare stonework called opus reticulatum. Opus reticulatum is part of a Roman wall-building technique used mainly in the period from the first century B.C. […]

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Footnotes

1.

See Ehud Netzer, “BAR Readers Restore and Preserve Herodian Jericho,” BAR 04:04 and Suzanne Singer, “The Winter Palaces at Jericho,” BAR 03:02.

2.

The remains at Banias were excavated for the first time in two very short seasons in 1977 and 1978. In this expedition, which I led, we found a relatively large hall on an elevated rock terrace with a colonnaded veranda in front of it. The structure is undoubtedly the work of Herod; perhaps it is the temple he built here that is mentioned by Josephus. I hope to return to Banias soon for additional excavations.

3.

An ashlar is a rectangular building stone with surfaces trimmed at right angles, permitting a tight fit against adjacent stones.