The Bible says that Jesus was buried in a "new" rock-cut tomb near his crucifixion site, and most scholars believe that tomb is located in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
Peter Horree/Alamy Stock PhotoBurial of Jesus Christ by Costa Lorenzo.
After Jesus Christ was crucified outside the city of Jerusalem, the Gospel of John states that his body was placed in “a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.” But where was this tomb? Where was Jesus buried after his crucifixion — and before his resurrection took place?
Over the centuries, several different sites have been offered as the possible location of Jesus Christ’s burial. Scholars largely believe that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre contains Jesus’ tomb, though compelling arguments have been made for other locations as well, including the Garden Tomb.
This is the story of where Jesus Christ was buried, from what the Bible tells us to the debate over the location today.
What The Bible Says About Jesus’ Burial
Where was Jesus buried? Clues about Jesus’ tomb can be found in the Bible, which offers a description of what took place following his crucifixion outside the city walls of Jerusalem in either 30 or 33 C.E.
The Bible states that Jesus Christ was crucified near Golgotha, or the “place of the skulls.” It also says that after Jesus’ death, one of his wealthy followers named Joseph of Arimathea asked Pontius Pilate for Jesus’ body. Pilate let Joseph have it, and Joseph prepared Jesus’ body for burial.
Public DomainThe Burial of Christ by Carl Bloch.
“Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock,” Matthew 27:59-60 states. “He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.”
John 19:41 confirms that Jesus was buried near Golgotha in a new tomb: “At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.”
According to the Bible, Jesus was resurrected three days later. This makes Jesus’ burial place all the more significant to Christians — so where is it?
Locating The Tomb Of Jesus Christ
Between 325 C.E. and 326 C.E., Constantine, the first Roman emperor to be Christian, sent a delegation to Jerusalem to find Jesus Christ’s tomb.
Chabe01/Wikimedia CommonsA bronze statue of Constantine The Great, the first Roman emperor to be Christian, in York, England.
Jerusalem had changed since the time of Jesus. For example, Jesus’ crucifixion was described as taking place “near the city” and “outside the gate,” indicating that it happened outside of the city walls. But by the time Constantine’s delegation arrived, the city’s walls had shifted.
Still, locals told Constantine’s men that they knew where to find the burial place of Jesus Christ. They claimed that it lay beneath temple to Venus which had been built under Hadrian. Constantine’s men tore the pagan temple down, and discovered a tomb cut into a limestone cave.
This matched the Biblical description (“cut out of the rock”), so Constantine ordered the construction of a church at the site called the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Though it’s been destroyed by wars and natural disasters over the centuries, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre stands to this day.
Gerd Eichmann/Wikimedia CommonsThe Church of the Holy Sepulchre as seen in 2010. Though it’s been destroyed many times, the church has always been rebuilt.
Inside, a shrine known as the Aedicule marks the location of Jesus’ burial. For centuries, Christian pilgrims have visited the site, though the church covered it with marble cladding in 1555 to prevent damage or theft.
During restoration work in 2016, researchers studied a piece of mortar which they found had been laid in the fourth century — lending credence to the idea that the site had been discovered then by Constantine’s delegation. But is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre the burial place of Jesus Christ?
Many believe so, but it’s not the only place that’s been suggested.
The Garden Tomb Or The Church Of The Holy Sepulchre?
While generations of Christians believe that Jesus was buried at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, other possible site have also been floated over the years as well. One such site is the Garden Tomb.
A rock-cut tomb discovered in 1867, the Garden Tomb is near Gordon’s Calvary, a rocky hillside in the shape of a skull which some believe could be the true site of Golgotha. Thousands of years ago, it was the site of an ancient garden, replete with cisterns and a wine press. Significantly, the Bible states that Jesus Christ was crucified near a “garden.”
Gary Todd/Wikimedia CommonsThe Garden Tomb, another site that’s been suggested as Jesus Christ’s burial place.
Though compelling, there is one problem with the Garden Tomb. It may be too old. The Bible states that Jesus was buried in a “new tomb,” but the Garden Tomb appears to be from the eighth or seventh centuries B.C.E.
“There’s no doubt that historically, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, has the evidence on its side,” Steve Bridge, then the deputy director of the Garden Tomb, noted in a 2012 interview with PBS. “What we say we have here is something that matches the Bible description.”
Indeed, the Garden Tomb may seem to be a better match to how Jesus’ burial place is described in the Bible at first glance. But new evidence suggests that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre might have once been the site of a garden as well.
In early 2025, archaeologists took a look at soil samples from beneath the church’s stone floor. They found the remains of olive trees and grapevines from roughly 2,000 years ago, suggesting that the the Church of the Holy Sepulchre could have once been the site of a garden.
Jlascar/Wikimedia CommonsThe Aedicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus Christ was purportedly buried.
In the end, we may never know with 100 percent certainty where Jesus was buried. It could be the Garden Tomb, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, or some lost or undiscovered site. But wherever Jesus Christ was buried, it’s certainly one of the most important places in the world. There, Jesus Christ was purportedly crucified, killed, and resurrected — and the story of his execution and resurrection to the rise of Christianity around the world.
After reading about the mystery of where Jesus was buried, learn what scholars think Jesus looked like. Or, discover the debate over when exactly Jesus Christ was born.
