Tour inside Jesus’ tomb R

ESEARCHERS say they are a step closer to taking the world inside Christ’s tomb. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is home to the 18th-century Edicule, or shrine, which encloses the tomb many believe to be the place where Christ was laid after the crucifixion. It draws millions of visitors every year and is considered the most sacred site in Christianity.

A conservation team working on the much-needed restoration of the shrine was recently given permission to uncover the tomb for just 60 hours, possibly for the first time since at least 1555.

The burial bed had been covered in marble cladding to protect it, probably from eager pilgrims keen to remove bits of the original rock as souvenirs.

When it was removed, a layer of fill material was discovered, but under that was another marble slab with a cross carved into its surface.

Fredrik Hiebert, National Geographic’s archaeologist-inresidence, was quoted as saying: “I’m absolutely amazed. My knees are shaking a little bit because I wasn’t expecting this.

“It appears to be visible proof that the location of the tomb has not shifted through time.”

In addition, researchers confirmed the existence of the original limestone cave walls within the Edicule.

The team also cut a window into the southern interior wall of the shrine, exposing the wall of the cave in which Christ was said to be buried.

The first Christian emperor of Rome, Constantine, built the first church over the tomb in 325AD. That church was destroyed in 1009, and a new one, the present church, was finished in 1049.

“It will be a long, scientific analysis, but we will finally be able to see the original rock surface on which, according to tradition, the body of Christ was laid,” Hiebert said.

The rock surface, or “burial bed” was hewn from the side of a limestone cave following Christ’s crucifixion, according to Christian tradition.

The Edicule, rebuilt between 1808 and 1810 after a fire, is being restored by scientists from the National Technical University of Athens.

Chief researcher Professor Antonia Moropoulou, said: “We are at the critical moment for rehabilitating the Edicule.

“The techniques we’re using will enable the world to study our findings as if they themselves were in the tomb of Christ.”

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