In October 2016, scientists in Jerusalem lifted the marble cover off the place where Christians believe Jesus was buried. It had not been opened for centuries. What they found, and what the lab tests later showed, gave a surprising answer to a very old question.
The Most Important Tomb in Christianity
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre stands in the Old City of Jerusalem. For most Christians around the world, it marks the place where Jesus was crucified, buried and rose again.
Inside the church is a small shrine called the Edicule. It surrounds a rock shelf, or “burial bed,” where tradition says his body was laid. Millions of pilgrims queue to step inside it every year.
Because so many beliefs meet in this one small space, the tomb has been fought over, rebuilt and protected for nearly 2,000 years. That long history is also why scientists were so keen to look inside when the chance finally came in 2016.