5. The 'Tombs of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus' (1st Century AD)

According to the Gospel of Mathew, Joseph of Arimathea offered his own tomb to Jesus: "And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed" (27:59-60). As per tradition, both Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus who had arranged the burial of  Jesus was later interred in these tombs, not far from the tomb of their master.

These first-century tombs preserved inside the Church of Holy Sepulcher indicate that the place was used as a burial area at the time of Jesus. Since New Testament (Hebrew 13:12) says Golgotha was outside the walls of Jerusalem and Jews always buried their dead outside the city, these tombs could validate the authenticity of the Church of Holy Sepulcher's claim of being the traditional crucifixion site.

Location: Look for the Syriac Orthodox Chapel of St Joseph of Arimathea and St Nicodemus, a dark and dilapidated room back (west) to the edicule (traditional Tomb of Jesus Christ) and opposite to the Coptic Chapel. The tombs are on the far side of the chapel and usually lit with candles inside.

Date: March 23, 2008; December 11, 2009 and April 2, 2010.