 Tomb of Zechariah (western facade) | |
 Interactive map of Tomb of Zechariah | |
| Location | Kidron Valley, Jerusalem |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 31°46′34.45″N35°14′20.83″E / 31.7762361°N 35.2391194°E /31.7762361; 35.2391194 |
| Type | Tomb |
| History | |
| Material | Stone |
| Founded | 1st century AD |
| Site notes | |
| Public access | Yes |
TheTomb of Zechariah is an ancient stone monument inJerusalem that is considered in Jewish tradition to be the tomb ofZechariah ben Jehoiada. It is a few meters from theTomb of Absalom and adjacent to theTomb of Benei Hezir.
The monument is amonolith—it is completely carved out of the solid rock The lowest part of the monument is acrepidoma, a base made of three steps. Above it there is astylobate, upon which there is a decoration of twoionic columns between two half ionic columns and at the corners there are twopilasters. The capitals are of the Ionic order and are decorated with theegg-and-dart decoration. The upper part of the monument is anEgyptian-stylecornice upon which sits a pyramid. The fine masonry and decoration that is visible on the western side, thefacade, is only the western side. On the other sides of the tomb, the work is extremely rough and unfinished; it seems as if the work was stopped before the artists could finish the job.[1]
According to aJewish tradition, which is first suggested by the 1215 AD writings of Menahem haHebroni, this is the tomb of the priestZechariah Ben Jehoiada, a figure that theBook of Chronicles records to have been stoned:
The style of the construction, which includesHellenistic details such asIonic columns, is similar to that of theTomb of Benei Hezir, and several authors think that they are near-contemporary with one another; scholars specialising infunerary practices and monuments have ascribed a first-century CE date to the tomb.[3] It has been proposed that theTomb of Zechariah is actually thenefesh (a Jewish funerary monument similar to the Greekstele) for the Tomb of Benei Hezir,[4] which is accessed from a rock-cut passage adjacent to the monument, and which states that it has an adjacentmagnificent structure, an item not otherwise identified.
| Christian cemeteries | |
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| Jewish cemeteries | |
| Military cemeteries | |
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