Editing Calvary

{{Short description|Site of Jesus' crucifixion}}
{{Redirect|Golgotha||Golgotha (disambiguation)|and|Calvary (disambiguation)}}
{{Distinguish|cavalry|Calgary}}
[[File:Golgotha (Church of the Holy Sepulchre).jpg|thumb|Traditional site of Golgotha in the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]]]]

'''Calvary''' ({{langx|la|Calvariae}} or {{lang|la|Calvariae locus}}) or '''Golgotha''' ({{langx|grc-x-biblical|Γολγοθᾶ|Golgothâ}}) was a site immediately outside [[Jerusalem in Christianity|Jerusalem]]'s walls where, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, [[Jesus in Christianity|Jesus]] was [[crucifixion of Jesus|crucified]].<ref>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Calvary}}</ref>

Since at least the early medieval period, it has been a destination for [[pilgrimage in Christianity|pilgrimage]]. The exact location of Calvary has been traditionally associated with a place now enclosed within one of the southern chapels of the [[Simultaneum|multidenominational]] [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]], a site [[Christian folklore|said]] to have been recognized by the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] empress [[Helena, mother of Constantine I|Helena]], mother of [[Constantine the Great]], during her visit to the [[Holy Land]] in 325.

Other locations have been suggested: in the 19th century, [[Protestants|Protestant]] scholars proposed a different location near the [[Garden Tomb]] on Green Hill (now "Skull Hill") about {{convert|500|m|abbr=on}} north of the traditional site and historian [[Joan E. Taylor|Joan Taylor]] has more recently proposed a location about {{convert|175|m|abbr=on}} to its south-southeast.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

{{anchor|Biblical references and etymology|Name|Names|Bible}}

==Biblical references and names==
[[File:Altar of the Crucifixion in The Church of The Holy Sepulchre.ogv|thumb|Altar at the traditional site of Golgotha]]
[[File:Голгофа.jpg|thumb|The [[altar]] at the traditional site of Golgotha]]
[[File:Illustration from Views in the Ottoman Dominions by Luigi Mayer, digitally enhanced by rawpixel-com 65.jpg|thumb|Chapel of Mount Calvary, painted by [[Luigi Mayer]]]]
The [[English language|English]] names Calvary and Golgotha derive from the [[Vulgate]] [[Late Latin|Latin]] {{lang|la|[[wikt: calvaria|Calvariae]]}}, {{lang|la|[[wikt: calvaria|Calvariae]] {{linktext|locus}}}} and {{lang|la|{{linktext|locum}}}} (all meaning "place of the Skull" or "a Skull"), and {{lang|la|{{linktext|Golgotha}}}} used by [[St Jerome|Jerome]] in his translations of [[Matthew 27]]:33,<ref>[[Vulgate]], [https://vulgate.org/nt/gospel/matthew_27.htm Matthaeum 27:33]. (Latin)</ref> [[Mark 15]]:22,<ref>[[Vulgate]], [https://vulgate.org/nt/gospel/mark_15.htm Marcum 15:22]. (Latin)</ref> [[Luke 23]]:33,<ref>[[Vulgate]], [https://vulgate.org/nt/gospel/luke_23.htm Lucam 23:33]. (Latin)</ref> and [[John 19]]:17.<ref>[[Vulgate]], [https://vulgate.org/nt/gospel/john_19.htm Ioannem 19:17]. (Latin)</ref> Versions of these names have been used in English since at least the [[10th century]],<ref name=dhg/> a tradition shared with most European languages including [[French language|French]] ({{lang|fr|Calvaire}}), [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Italian language|Italian]] ({{lang|es|Calvario}}), pre-[[Martin Luther|Luther]]an [[German language|German]] ({{lang|de|Calvarie}}),<ref>Cf. Bavarian State Library MS. Rar. 880 (1494), [https://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/0002/bsb00025548/images/index.html?id=00025548&groesser=&fip=193.174.98.30&no=&seite=863 Lucas 23:33]. (German)</ref><ref>After [[Martin Luther]]'s 1522 [[Luther Bible|translation]], it has been more common to translate the meaning of the Greek name directly into German as {{lang|de|Schädelstätte}}, equivalent to "Skullplace".</ref> [[Polish language|Polish]] ({{lang|pl|Kalwaria}}), and [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]] ({{lang|lt|Kalvarijos}}). The 1611 [[King James Version]] [[loanword|borrowed]] the Latin forms directly,<ref>[[King James Version|KJV]], [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Matthew-Chapter-27/#33 Matthew 27:33], [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Mark-Chapter-15/#22 Marke 15:22], [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Luke-Chapter-23/#33 Luke 23:33], [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_John-Chapter-19/#17 John 19:17]. (1611 ed.)</ref> while [[John Wycliffe|Wycliffe]] and other translators [[anglicization|anglicized]] them in forms like ''Caluarie'',<ref name=dhg>[[Đa Halgan Godspel on Englisc|Đa Halgan Godspel]], [https://archive.org/details/dahalgangodspelo00thor/page/n183/mode/2up?view=theater Lucas 23:33]. ([[Benjamin Thorpe|Thorpe]] ed.)</ref> ''Caluerie'',<ref>[[Wycliffe's Bible|Wycliffe]], [https://textusreceptusbibles.com/Wycliffe/40/27 Maþeu 23:33], [https://textusreceptusbibles.com/Wycliffe/42/23 Luke 23:33], [https://textusreceptusbibles.com/Wycliffe/43/19 Joon 19:17].</ref> and ''Calueri''<ref>[[Wycliffe's Bible|Wycliffe]], [https://textusreceptusbibles.com/Wycliffe/41/15 Mark 15:22].</ref> which were later [[English-language spelling reform|standardized]] as ''Calvary''.<ref>[[Tyndale Bible|Tyndale]], [https://www.biblestudytools.com/tyn/luke/23.html#33 Luke 23:33].</ref> While the [[Gospels]] merely identify Golgotha as a "place", [[Christian folklore|Christian tradition]] has described the location as a [[hill]] or [[mountain]] since at least the 6th century. It has thus often been referenced as {{nowrap|'''Mount Calvary'''}} in [[List of English-language hymnals by denomination|English hymns]] and [[English literature|literature]].<ref name="ce">{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Mount Calvary|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03191a.htm|encyclopedia=[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]|volume=III|location=New York|publisher=Robert Appleton Company|year=1908}}</ref>

In the 1769 [[King James Version]], the relevant [[biblical verse|verses]] of the [[New Testament]] are:
* And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots...<ref>[[King James Version|KJV]], {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:33-35|KJV}}. (1769 ed.)</ref>
* And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.<ref>[[King James Version|KJV]], {{bibleverse|Mark|15:22-24|KJV}}. (1769 ed.)</ref>
* And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.<ref>[[King James Version|KJV]], {{bibleverse|Luke|23:33|KJV}}. (1769 ed.)</ref>
* And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.<ref>[[King James Version|KJV]], {{bibleverse|John|19:17-18|KJV}}. (1769 ed.)</ref>

In the standard [[Koine Greek]] texts of the [[New Testament]], the relevant terms appear as ''Golgothâ'' ({{lang|grc|Γολγοθᾶ}}),<ref name=maththlab>[https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/ Nestle], [https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/mat/27#33 Maththaion 27:33]. (Greek)</ref><ref name=yohoho>[https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/john/19#17 Iōanēn 19:17]. (Greek)</ref> ''Golgathân'' ({{lang|grc|Γολγοθᾶν}}),<ref name=polo>[https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/ Nestle], [https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/mark/15#22 Markon 15:22]. (Greek)</ref> ''kraníou tópos'' ({{lang|grc|κρανίου τόπος}}),<ref name=maththlab/> ''Kraníou tópos'' ({{lang|grc|Κρανίου τόπος}}),<ref name=polo/> ''Kraníon'' ({{lang|grc|Κρανίον}}),<ref name=mynameis>[https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/ Nestle], [https://sites.google.com/site/nestle1904/luke/23 Loukan 23:33]. (Greek)</ref> and ''Kraníou tópon'' ({{lang|grc|Κρανίου τόπον}}).<ref name=yohoho/> Golgotha's [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] equivalent would be ''Gulgōleṯ'' ({{lang|he|גֻּלְגֹּלֶת}}, "skull"),<ref name=heb>{{cite book |last=Lande |first=George M. |title=Building Your Biblical Hebrew Vocabulary Learning Words by Frequency and Cognate |url=http://www.sbl-site.org/publications/ICI_Resources_Biblical_study.aspx |series=Resources for Biblical Study 41 |publisher=Society of Biblical Literature |location=Atlanta |year=2001 |orig-year= 1961| isbn= 1-58983-003-2|page=115 |via=sbl-site.org}}</ref><ref name=stroheb>{{cite web |title=H1538 - gulgoleth - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (KJV) |url=https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H1538&t=KJV |publisher=blueletterbible.org |language=en}}</ref> ultimately from the verb ''galal'' ({{lang|he|גלל}}) meaning "to roll".<ref name=twobeesforaquarter>{{cite web |url=https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Golgotha.html |title=The Name Golgotha |publisher=Abarim Publications }}.</ref> The form preserved in the Greek text, however, is actually closer to [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] ''Golgolta'',<ref>{{citation |last=Alexander |first=Joseph Addison |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=qi1OAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA420 420] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qi1OAQAAMAAJ |title=The Gospel According to Mark |edition=3rd |date=1863 |publisher=Charles Scribner |location=New York }}.</ref> which also appears in reference to a head count in the [[Samaritan Pentateuch|Samaritan version]] of [[Numbers 1]]:18,<ref name=gordo>{{citation |last=Lightfoot |first=John |authorlink=John Lightfoot |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rBQwAAAAYAAJ |title=The Harmony, Chronicle, and Order of the New Testament... |editor=John Rogers Pitman |display-editors=0 |date=1822 |location=London |publisher=J.F. Dove |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=rBQwAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA164 164] }}.</ref><ref>{{citation |last=Louw |first=J.P. |author2=E.A. Nida |display-authors=1 |title=Greek{{ndash}}English Lexicon of the New Testament |location= |publisher=United Bible Societies |date=1996 |page=834 }}.</ref> although the term is traditionally considered to derive from [[Syriac language|Syriac]] ''Gāgūlṯā'' ({{lang|syr|ܓܓܘܠܬܐ}}) instead.<ref>{{cite book| last= Schultens| first=Albert| author-link= Albert Schultens| title= Institutiones ad fundamenta linguæ Hebrææ: quibus via panditur ad ejusdem analogiam restituendam, et vindicandam: in usum collegii domestici| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=2ANZAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA334| year= 1737 |publisher=Johannes Luzac |language= la| page=334}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last= Thrupp |first= Joseph Francis| author-link=Joseph Francis Thrupp |title=Ancient Jerusalem: A New Investigation Into the History, Topography and Plan of the City, Environs, and Temple, Designed Principally to Illustrate the Records and Prophecies of Scripture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=apJHAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA272 |year=1855 |publisher=Macmillan & Company| page= 272}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| editor-first= Toma | editor-last= Audo| title= Treasure of the Syriac Language: A Dictionary of Classical Syriac | place= Mosul; Piscataway, New Jersey| publisher= Imprimerie des pères dominicains| orig-year= 1897-[1901]| year= 2008| volume= 1| page= 117 |url= https://www.dukhrana.com/lexicon/TomaAudo/page.php?p=117| via= dukhrana.com| access-date= }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |first=Robert |last=Payne Smith |title=Golgotha |encyclopedia=Thesaurus Syriacus |place=Oxford |publisher=The Calerndon Press |year=1879 |volume= 1 |page=324 |url=https://www.dukhrana.com/lexicon/RPayneSmith/page.php?p=649 |via=dukhrana.com |access-date= }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Payne Smith |first=J. (Mrs. Margoliouth) |title=Golgotha |encyclopedia=A Compendious Syriac Dictionary |place= Oxford |publisher=The Clarendon Press |year=1903 |page=60 |url=https://www.dukhrana.com/lexicon/PayneSmith/page.php?p=60 |via=dukhrana.com |access-date= }}</ref> Although Latin {{lang|la|calvaria}} can mean either "a skull" or "the skull" depending on context and numerous [[Bible translations into English|English translations]] render the relevant passages {{nowrap|"'''place of the skull'''"}} or "Place of the Skull",<ref>Cf. e.g., the [https://biblehub.com/matthew/27-33.htm various translations of Matthew 27:33 at Biblehub.com].</ref> the Greek forms of the name grammatically refer to the place of ''a'' skull and a place named Skull.<ref name=twobeesforaquarter/> (The Greek word {{lang|grc|{{linktext|κρᾱνῐ́ον}}}} does more specifically mean the [[cranium]], the upper part of the skull, but it has been used [[metonymy|metonymously]] since antiquity to refer to skulls and heads more generally.)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/morph?l=%CE%BA%CF%81%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%AF%CE%BF%CE%BD&la=greek#lexicon |title=κρανίον, τό |publisher=Perseus Project }}</ref>

The [[Fathers of the Church]] offered various interpretations of the name and its origin. [[Jerome]] considered it a place of execution by beheading ({{lang|la|locum decollatorum}}),<ref name="ce"/> [[Pseudo-Tertullian]] describes it as a place resembling a head,<ref>''Five Books in Reply to Marcion'', Book 2, ''Ante-Nicene Fathers'', Vol. 4, p. 276.</ref> and [[Origen]] associated it with legends concerning the skull of [[Adam and Eve|Adam]].<ref name="ce"/> This buried skull of Adam appears in [[apocrypha|noncanonical]] medieval legends, including the [[Arabic Apocalypse of Peter|''Book of the Rolls'']], the ''[[Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan]]'', the ''[[Cave of Treasures]]'', and the works of [[Patriarch Eutychius of Alexandria|Eutychius]], the 9th-century patriarch of Alexandria. The usual form of the legend is that [[Shem]] and [[Melchizedek]] retrieved the body of Adam from the resting place of [[Noah]]'s [[Noah's Ark|ark]] on [[Mount Ararat]] and were led by [[Christian angelology|angels]] to Golgotha, a skull-shaped hill at the [[axis mundi|center of the earth]] where Adam had previously crushed the [[serpents in the Bible|serpent's head]] following the [[Fall of Man]].<ref name="ce"/>

In the 19th century, Wilhelm Ludwig Krafft proposed an alternative derivation of these names, suggesting that the place had actually been known as "Gol Goatha"{{mdash}}which he interpreted to mean "heap of death" or "hill of execution"{{mdash}}and had become associated with the similar sounding [[Semitic languages|Semitic]] words for "skull" in [[folk etymologies]].<ref name=cheezits>{{citation |last=Krafft |first=Wilhelm Ludwig |title=Die Topographie Jerusalems ''[''The Topography of Jerusalem'']'' |date=1846 |publisher= |location=Bonn }}. (German)</ref> [[James Fergusson (architect)|James Fergusson]] identified this "Goatha" with the ''Goʿah'' ({{lang|he|גֹּעָה}})<ref>{{citation |title=Strong's Concordance |contribution-url=https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H1601&t=KJV |contribution=H1601: Goah }}.</ref> mentioned in [[Jeremiah 31]]:39 as a place near Jerusalem,<ref>{{citation |last=Fergusson |first=James |authorlink=James Fergusson (architect) |title=An Essay on the Ancient Topography of Jerusalem |date=1847 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Jh2N93EjjFsC&pg=PA80 80-81] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jh2N93EjjFsC |location= |publisher= J. Weale|isbn=9780524050347 }}.</ref> although Krafft himself identified that location with the separate ''Gennáth'' ({{lang|grc|Γεννάθ}}) of [[Josephus]], the "Garden Gate" west of the [[Temple Mount]].<ref name=cheezits/>

==Location==
There is no consensus as to the location of the site. [[Gospel of John|John]] {{Bibleverse-nb|John|19:20|KJV}} describes the crucifixion site as being "near the city". According to [[Epistle to the Hebrews|Hebrews]] {{Bibleverse-nb|Hebrews|13:12|KJV}}, it was  "outside the city gate". {{bibleverse|Matthew|27:39|KJV}} and {{bibleverse|Mark|15:29|KJV}} both note that the location would have been accessible to "passers-by". Thus, locating the crucifixion site involves identifying a site that, in the city of Jerusalem some four decades before [[Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE)|its destruction]] in AD{{nbsp}}70, would have been outside a major gate near enough to the city that the passers-by could not only see him, but also read the inscription 'Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews'.<ref>{{bibleverse||John|19:20|KJV}}</ref>

===Church of the Holy Sepulchre===
Christian tradition since the fourth century has favoured a location now within the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]]. This places it well within today's [[walls of Jerusalem]], which surround the [[Old City (Jerusalem)|Old City]] and were rebuilt in the 16th century by the [[Ottoman Empire]]. Proponents of the traditional Holy Sepulchre location point to the fact that first-century Jerusalem had a different shape and size from the 16th-century city, leaving the church's site outside the pre-AD 70 city walls.<ref name="Vieweger">{{cite book |title=Archäologie in Jerusalem: Die Ausgrabungen des Deutschen Evangelischen Instituts für Altertumswissenschaft des Heiligen Landes zwischen 2009 und 2023 |last=Vieweger |first=Dieter |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |year=2024 |isbn=978-3-11-149866-9 |pages=53–54 |language=de |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N1wpEQAAQBAJ&pg=PA53}}</ref>

Defenders of the traditional site have argued that the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was only brought within the city limits by [[Herod Agrippa]] (41–44), who built the so-called Third Wall around a newly settled northern district, while at the time of Jesus' crucifixion around AD 30 it would still have been just outside the city.<ref name="Vieweger" />

[[Henry Chadwick (theologian)|Henry Chadwick]] (2003) argued that when Hadrian's builders replanned the old city, they "incidentally confirm[ed] the bringing of Golgotha inside a new town wall."<ref name="Chadwick 2003">{{Cite book|last=Chadwick|first=H.|title=The Church in Ancient Society: From Galilee to Gregory the Great|location=Oxford|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2003|page=21|isbn=0-19-926577-1}}</ref>

In 2007 [[Dan Bahat]], the former City Archaeologist of Jerusalem and Professor of Land of Israel Studies at [[Bar-Ilan University]], stated that "Six graves from the first century were found on the area of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. That means, this place [was] outside of the city, without any doubt…".<ref name="ZDF">Dan Bahat [https://web.archive.org/web/20071022135746/http://zdf.de/ZDFde/inhalt/17/0%2C1872%2C5262833%2C00.html in German television ZDF, April 11, 2007]<!--Professor Dan Bahat: "Auf dem Gelände der Grabeskirche wurden sechs Gräber aus der Jesuszeit gefunden. Sechs Gräber aus dem ersten Jahrhundert. Das bedeutet, dieser Ort hier lag außerhalb der Stadt, mit Sicherheit, und ist der mögliche Ort für das Jesusgrab"--></ref>

==Church of the Holy Sepulchre==
{{multiple image
| align = right
| image1 = Jerusalem Holy Sepulchre BW 4.JPG
| width1 = 140
| alt1 = 
| caption1 = Pilgrims queue to touch the rock of Calvary in Chapel of the Crucifixion
| image2 = 5208-20080122-1255UTC--jerusalem-calvary.jpg
| width2 = 140
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = Disc marking traditional place, under the altar, where Jesus' cross stood. 
| footer = 
}}
[[File:Jerusalem Christian Quarter.jpg|thumb|The Holy Sepulchre (1) in the [[Christian Quarter]] of [[Jerusalem]]]]

The traditional location of Golgotha derives from its identification by [[Helena, mother of Constantine I|Queen Mother Helena]], mother of [[Constantine the Great]], in 325. Less than {{convert|45|m|ft|-1|sp=us}} away, Helena also identified the location of the tomb of Jesus and claimed to have discovered the [[True Cross]]; her son, Constantine, then built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre around the whole site. In 333, the author of the ''[[Itinerarium Burdigalense]]'', entering from the east, described the result:

{{Blockquote|On the left hand is the little hill of Golgotha where the Lord was crucified. About a stone's throw from thence is a vault [crypta] wherein his body was laid, and rose again on the third day. There, at present, by the command of the Emperor Constantine, has been built a [[basilica]]; that is to say, a church of wondrous beauty.<ref>''[[Itinerarium Burdigalense]]'', pp. 593, 594</ref>}}

Various archeologists have proposed alternative sites within the Church as locations of the crucifixion. Nazénie Garibian de Vartavan argued that the now-buried Constantinian basilica's altar was built over the site.<ref name="Garibian de Vartavan 2008">{{Cite book|last=Garibian de Vartavan|first=N.|title=La Jérusalem Nouvelle et les premiers sanctuaires chrétiens de l'Arménie. Méthode pour l'étude de l'église comme temple de Dieu|location=London|publisher=Isis Pharia|year=2008|isbn=978-0-9527827-7-3}}</ref>

===Temple to Aphrodite===
[[File:Roman Jerusalem.PNG|thumb|left|Jerusalem after being rebuilt by [[Hadrian]]: Two main east–west roads were built, as well as two main north–south roads.]]

Prior to Helena's identification, the site had been a [[temple]] to [[Aphrodite]]. Constantine's construction took over most of the site of the earlier temple enclosure, and the ''Rotunda'' and [[cloister]] (which was replaced after the 12th century by the present ''[[Katholikon|Catholicon]]'' and ''Calvary chapel'') roughly overlap with the temple building itself; the [[basilica]] church Constantine built over the remainder of the enclosure was destroyed at the turn of the 11th century, and has not been replaced. [[Sacred Tradition|Christian tradition]] claims that the location had originally been a Christian place of veneration, but that Hadrian had deliberately buried these Christian sites and built his own temple on top, on account of his alleged hatred for Christianity.<ref>[[Eusebius]], ''Life of Constantine'', 3:26</ref>

There is certainly evidence that {{circa|160}}, at least as early as 30 years after [[Aelia Capitolina|Hadrian's temple]] had been built, Christians associated it with the site of ''Golgotha''; [[Melito of Sardis]], an influential mid-2nd century bishop in the region, described the location as "in the middle of the street, in the middle of the city",<ref>Melito of Sardis, ''On Easter''</ref> which matches the position of Hadrian's temple within the mid-2nd century city.

The Romans typically built a city according to a [[Hippodamus|Hippodamian]] [[grid plan]]&nbsp;– a north–south [[arterial road]], the [[Cardo]] (which is now the Suq Khan-ez-Zeit), and an east–west arterial road, the [[Decumanus Maximus]] (which is now the [[Via Dolorosa]]).<ref name="Warwick Ball">{{Cite book|last=Ball|first=Warwick|title=Rome in the East: The Transformation of an Empire|page=294}}</ref> The [[Forum (Roman)|forum]] would traditionally be located on the intersection of the two roads, with the main temples adjacent.<ref name="Warwick Ball" /> However, due to the obstruction posed by the Temple Mount, as well as the [[Legio X Fretensis|Tenth Legion]] encampment on the Western Hill, Hadrian's city had two ''Cardo'', two ''Decumanus Maximus'', two forums,<ref name="Warwick Ball" /> and several temples. The Western Forum (now the [[Muristan]]) is located on the crossroads of the West Cardo and what is now El-Bazar/David Street, with the Temple of Aphrodite adjacent, on the intersection of the Western Cardo and the [[Via Dolorosa]]. The Northern Forum is located north of the Temple Mount, on the junction of the Via Dolorosa and the Eastern Cardo (the [[Tyropoeon Valley|Tyropoeon]]), adjacent to the Temple of [[Jupiter Capitolinus]], intentionally built atop the Temple Mount.<ref name="Clermont-Ganneau I">{{Cite book|last=Clermont-Ganneau|first=Charles|title=Archaeological researches in Palestine during the years 1873–1874}}</ref> Another popular holy site that Hadrian converted to a pagan temple was the [[Pool of Bethesda]], possibly referenced to in the fifth chapter of the Gospel of John,<ref>{{bibleverse||John|5:1–18|}}</ref><ref name="MurphyOConnor">[[Jerome Murphy-O'Connor]], ''The Holy Land'', (2008), p. 29</ref> on which was built the Temple of [[Asclepius]] and [[Serapis]]. While the positioning of the Temple of Aphrodite may be, in light of the common [[Colonia (Roman)|Colonia]] layout, entirely unintentional, Hadrian is known to have concurrently built pagan temples on top of other holy sites in Jerusalem as part of an overall "[[Romanization (cultural)|Romanization]]" policy.<ref name="Schäfer2003">{{cite book|author=Peter Schäfer|title=The Bar Kokhba war reconsidered: new perspectives on the second Jewish revolt against Rome|url={{Google books |id=1TA-Fg4wBnUC |page=36 |plainurl=yes }} |access-date=4 December 2011|year=2003|publisher=Mohr Siebeck|isbn=978-3-16-148076-8|pages=36–}}</ref><ref name="erp-places">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.usd.edu/erp/Palestine/history.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080310053428/http://www.usd.edu/erp/Palestine/history.htm|archive-date=10 March 2008|title=Palestine: History|access-date=18 April 2007|date=22 February 2007|last=Lehmann|first=Clayton Miles|encyclopedia=The On-line Encyclopedia of the Roman Provinces|publisher=The University of South Dakota}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Cohen|first=Shaye J. D.|chapter=Judaism to Mishnah: 135–220 C.E|title=Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism: A Parallel History of their Origins and Early Development|editor=Hershel Shanks|year=1996|location=Washington DC|page=196|publisher=Biblical Archaeology Society}}</ref><ref>Emily Jane Hunt, {{Google books |id=Dn5ERgK0djMC |page=7 |title=Christianity in the second century: the case of Tatian}}, Psychology Press, 2003, p. 7</ref><ref>E. Mary Smallwood {{Google books |id=nw0VAAAAIAAJ |page=460 |title=The Jews under Roman rule: from Pompey to Diocletian, a study in political relations}} Brill, 1981, p. 460.</ref>

Archaeological excavations under the Church of the Holy Sepulchre have revealed Christian pilgrims' graffiti, dating from the period that the Temple of Aphrodite was still present, of a ship, a common early Christian symbol<ref name=newadvent>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10724a.htm Nave] ''New Advent encyclopedia'', accessed 25 March 2014.</ref><ref>[http://www.jesuswalk.com/christian-symbols/ship.htm Ship as a Symbol of the Church (Bark of St. Peter)] Jesus Walk, accessed 11 February 2015.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sidneyherald.com/archives/ship-hangs-in-balance-at-pella-evangelical-lutheran-church/article_9485d09f-e314-5f3e-b071-0cf8b2059dd7.html|title=Ship hangs in balance at Pella Evangelical Lutheran Church|date=10 June 2008|work=Sidney ([[Montana]]) Herald|access-date=3 January 2016}}</ref> and the etching "DOMINVS IVIMVS", meaning "Lord, we went",<ref name="Clermont-Ganneau II">{{Cite book|last=Clermont-Ganneau|first=Charles|title=Archaeological researches in Palestine during the years 1873–1874|page=103}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://followinghadrian.com/2014/11/05/exploring-aelia-capitolina-hadrians-jerusalem/|title=Exploring Aelia Capitolina, Hadrian's Jerusalem|last=followinghadrian|date=5 November 2014|access-date=28 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170218124758/https://followinghadrian.com/2014/11/05/exploring-aelia-capitolina-hadrians-jerusalem/|archive-date=18 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> lending possible support to the statement by Melito of Sardis' asserting that early Christians identified Golgotha as being in the middle of Hadrian's city, rather than outside.

===Rockface===
[[File:Golgotha Stone Chapel of Adam.jpg|thumb|Natural stone of Golgotha in the Chapel of Adam below site]]

During 1973–1978 restoration works and excavations inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and under the nearby [[Muristan]], it was found that the area was originally a quarry, from which white Meleke [[limestone]] was struck;<ref name="Hesemann170">{{Cite book|title=Die Jesus-Tafel|last=Hesemann|first=Michael|publisher=Freiburg|year=1999|isbn=3-451-27092-7|page=170|language=de|author-link=Michael Hesemann}}</ref> surviving parts of the quarry to the north-east of the chapel of St. Helena are now accessible from within the chapel (by permission). Inside the church is a rock, about 7&nbsp;m long by 3&nbsp;m wide by 4.8&nbsp;m high,<ref name="Hesemann170"/> that is traditionally believed to be all that now remains visible of ''Golgotha''; the design of the church means that the ''Calvary Chapel'' contains the upper foot or so of the rock, while the remainder is in the chapel beneath it (known as the ''tomb of Adam''). [[Virgilio Canio Corbo|Virgilio Corbo]], a [[Franciscan]] priest and archaeologist, present at the excavations, suggested that from the city the little hill (which still exists) could have looked like a skull.<ref name="HesemannHill">Hesemann 1999, p. 170: "Von der Stadt aus muß er tatsächlich wie eine Schädelkuppe ausgesehen haben," and p. 190: a sketch; and p. 172: a sketch of the geological findings by C. Katsimbinis, 1976: "der Felsblock ist zu 1/8 unterhalb des Kirchenbodens, verbreitert sich dort auf etwa 6,40 Meter und verläuft weiter in die Tiefe"; and p. 192, a sketch by Corbo, 1980: Golgotha is distant 10 meters outside from the southwest corner of the Martyrion-basilica</ref>

During a 1986 repair to the floor of the ''Calvary Chapel'' by the art historian George Lavas and architect Theo Mitropoulos, a round slot of {{convert|11.5|cm|1|abbr=on}} diameter was discovered in the rock, partly open on one side (Lavas attributes the open side to accidental damage during his repairs);<ref name="Lavas">George Lavas, ''The Rock of Calvary'', published (1996) in ''The Real and Ideal Jerusalem in Jewish, Christian and Islamic Art'' (proceedings of the 5th International Seminar in Jewish Art), pp. 147–150</ref> although the dating of the slot is uncertain, and could date to Hadrian's temple of Aphrodite, Lavas suggested that it could have been the site of the crucifixion, as it would be strong enough to hold in place a wooden trunk of up to {{convert|2.5|m}} in height (among other things).<ref>Hesemann 1999, pp. 171–172: "....Georg Lavas and ... Theo Mitropoulos, ... cleaned off a thick layer of rubble and building material from one to 45<!--sic!--> cm thick that covered the actual limestone. The experts still argue whether this was the work of the architects of Hadrian, who aimed thereby to adapt the rock better to the temple plan, or whether it comes from 7th century cleaning....When the restorers progressed to the lime layer and the actual rock....they found they had removed <!--sic--> a circular slot of 11.5&nbsp;cm diameter".</ref><ref>Vatican-magazin.com, Vatican 3/2007, pp. 12/13; [https://web.archive.org/web/20110717185434/http://www.vatican-magazin.com/archiv/2007/03-2007/titel.pdf Vatican 3/2007, p. 11, here p. 3 photo No. 4, quite right], photo by Paul Badde: der steinere Ring auf dem Golgothafelsen.<!--see also here page 4 (=Vatican 3/2007, pp.12-13): "Dr. Mitropoulos: Als wir den Gipfel des Golgatha freilegten ... hatte den Ort schon seit achthundert Jahren kein Auge mehr gesehen; er war ganz mit Schutt bedeckt und darüber mit Marmor. ... und zeigte auf einen zerbrochenen steinernen Ring in einer Mulde des Felsblocks aus aschgrauem Kalkstein"--></ref> The same restoration work also revealed a crack running across the surface of the rock, which continues down to the ''Chapel of Adam'';<ref name="Lavas"/> the crack is thought by archaeologists to have been a result of the quarry workmen encountering a flaw in the rock.{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

Based on the late 20th century excavations of the site, there have been a number of attempted reconstructions of the profile of the cliff face. These often attempt to show the site as it would have appeared to Constantine. However, as the ground level in Roman times was about {{convert|4|–|5|ft}} lower and the site housed Hadrian's temple to Aphrodite, much of the surrounding rocky slope must have been removed long before Constantine built the church on the site. The height of the ''Golgotha'' rock itself would have caused it to jut through the platform level of the Aphrodite temple, where it would be clearly visible. The reason for Hadrian not cutting the rock down is uncertain, but Virgilio Corbo suggested that a statue, probably of Aphrodite, was placed on it,<ref>Virgilio Corbo, ''The Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem'' (1981)</ref> a suggestion also made by [[Jerome]]. Some archaeologists have suggested that prior to Hadrian's use, the rock outcrop had been a ''nefesh'' – a Jewish funeral monument, equivalent to the [[stele]].<ref>Dan Bahat, ''Does the Holy Sepulchre Church Mark the Burial of Jesus?'', in ''[[Biblical Archaeology Review]]'' May/June 1986</ref>

===Pilgrimages to Constantine's Church===
[[File:Jesus in Golgotha by Theophanes the Cretan.jpg|thumb|left|[[Icon]] of Jesus being led to Golgotha, 16th century, [[Theophanes the Cretan]] ([[Stavronikita]] [[Monastery]], [[Mount Athos]])]]
The [[Itinerarium Burdigalense]] speaks of Golgotha in 333: "... On the left hand is the little hill of Golgotha where the Lord was crucified. About a stone's throw from thence<!--!!--> is a vault (crypta) wherein His body was laid, and rose again on the third day. There, at present, by the command of the Emperor Constantine, has been built a basilica, that is to say, a church of wondrous beauty",<!-- Latin original: A sinistra autem parte est monticulus golgotha, ubi dominus crucifixus est. Inde quasi ad lapidem missum est cripta, ubi corpus eius positum fuit et tertia die resurrexit; ibidem modo iussu constantini imperatoris basilica facta est, id est dominicum, mirae pulchritudinis habens.  --><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/pilgr/bord/10Bord07bJerus.html#Golgotha|title=Bordeaux Pilgrim – Text 7b: Jerusalem (second part)|access-date=2011-10-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513215942/http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/pilgr/bord/10Bord07bJerus.html#Golgotha|archive-date=2016-05-13|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Cyril of Jerusalem]], a distinguished theologian of the early Church, and eyewitness to the early days of Constantine's edifice, speaks of Golgotha in eight separate passages, sometimes as near to the church where he and his listeners assembled:<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pravoslavnaolomouc.cz/ZIP/OTCO/PNC/PN7.PDF |title=St. Cyril of Jerusalem| page =51, note 313 |access-date=2007-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616164151/http://www.pravoslavnaolomouc.cz/ZIP/OTCO/PNC/PN7.PDF |archive-date=2007-06-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref> "Golgotha, the holy hill standing above us here, bears witness to our sight: the Holy Sepulchre bears witness, and the stone which lies there to this day."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pravoslavnaolomouc.cz/ZIP/OTCO/PNC/PN7.PDF |title=Cyril, Catechetical Lectures, year 347, lecture X|page=160, note 1221 |access-date=2007-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616164151/http://www.pravoslavnaolomouc.cz/ZIP/OTCO/PNC/PN7.PDF |archive-date=2007-06-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref> And just in such a way the [[Egeria (pilgrim)|pilgrim Egeria]] often reported in 383: "… the church, built by Constantine, which is situated in Golgotha…"<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/m/mcclure/etheria/etheria.htm ''Iteneraria Egeriae''], ccel.org. Accessed February 25, 2024.</ref> and also bishop [[Eucherius of Lyon]] wrote to the island presbyter Faustus in 440: "Golgotha is in the middle between the Anastasis and the Martyrium, the place of the Lord's passion, in which still appears that rock which once endured the very cross on which the Lord was."<ref>[http://homepages.luc.edu/~avande1/jerusalem/sources/eucherius.htm Letter To The Presbyter Faustus] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080613200112/http://homepages.luc.edu/~avande1/jerusalem/sources/eucherius.htm |date=2008-06-13 }}, by Eucherius. "What is reported, about the site of the city Jerusalem and also of Judaea"; ''Epistola Ad Faustum Presbyterum.'' "Eucherii, Quae fertur, de situ Hierusolimitanae urbis atque ipsius Iudaeae." ''Corpus Scriptorum Eccles. Latinorum'' XXXIX Itinera Hierosolymitana, Saeculi IIII–VIII, P. Geyer, 1898</ref> ''[[Breviarius de Hierosolyma]]'' reports in 530: "From there (the middle of the basilica), you enter into Golgotha, where there is a large court. Here the Lord was crucified. All around that hill, there are silver screens."<ref><!--Requires some navigation. Type in google: jerusalem breviary brevarius-->Whalen, Brett Edward, Pilgrimage in the Middle Ages, p. 40, University of Toronto Press,  2011; {{ISBN|978-1-4426-0199-4}}; Iteneraria et alia geographica, Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, vol. 175 (Turnhout, [[Brepols]] 1965), pp. 109–112</ref> (See also: [[Eusebius of Caesarea|Eusebius]] in 338.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf201.iv.vi.iii.xxxv.html|title=NPNF2-01. Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine – Christian Classics Ethereal Library}}</ref>)
{{Clear}}

==Gordon's Calvary==
{{Main|Gordon's Calvary}}
[[File:Golgotha photo.JPG|thumb|right|Rocky escarpment resembling a skull, located northwest of the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]], near the [[Garden Tomb]] with c. 1900s picture posted on pole for comparison]]

In 1842, [[Otto Thenius]], a theologian and biblical scholar from [[Dresden]], [[Germany]], was the first to publish a proposal that the rocky knoll north of Damascus Gate was the biblical ''Golgotha''.<ref name="Golgotha and The Holy Sepulchre">{{cite book| first= Charles W. |last= Wilson| url= https://archive.org/stream/golgothaandholy00wilsgoog/golgothaandholy00wilsgoog_djvu.txt |title= Golgotha and The Holy Sepulchre| via= archive.org| year= 1906| publisher= The Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund| pages= 103–20| access-date= }}</ref><ref name= Thenius>{{cite journal| first= Otto |last= Thenius| title= Golgatha et Sanctum Sepulchrum| language= de| url= https://archive.org/details/zeitschriftfurd04illggoog |journal= Zeitschrift für die historische Theologie| year= 1842| via= archive.org| access-date= }}</ref> He relied heavily on the research of [[Edward Robinson (scholar)|Edward Robinson]].<ref name= Thenius /> In 1882–83, Major-General [[Charles George Gordon]] endorsed this view; subsequently the site has sometimes been known as [[Gordon's Calvary]]. The location, usually referred to today as ''[[Skull Hill]]'', is beneath a cliff that contains two large sunken holes, which Gordon regarded as resembling the eyes of a skull. He and a few others before him <!-- see article on Garden Tomb for citations, which it would be excessive to repeat here--> believed that the skull-like appearance would have caused the location to be known as Golgotha.<ref>{{cite book| first= Bill |last= White| title= A Special Place: The Story of the Garden Tomb| year= 1989| publisher= | isbn= }}</ref>

Nearby is an ancient rock-cut tomb known today as [[the Garden Tomb]], which Gordon proposed as the tomb of Jesus. The Garden Tomb contains several ancient burial places, although the archaeologist [[Gabriel Barkay]] has proposed that the tomb dates to the 7th century BC and that the site may have been abandoned by the 1st century.<ref>{{cite magazine| first= Gabriel |last= Barkay| title= The Garden Tomb| magazine= [[Biblical Archaeology Review]]| date= March–April 1986| url= }}</ref>

[[Eusebius]] comments that Golgotha was in his day (the 4th century) pointed out ''north of Mount Zion''.<ref name=Onomasticon>Eusebius, ''[[Eusebius' Onomasticon|Onomasticon]]'', 365</ref> While ''Mount Zion'' was used previously in reference to the Temple Mount itself, [[Josephus]], the first-century AD historian who knew the city as it was before the [[Siege of Jerusalem (AD 70)|Roman destruction of Jerusalem]], identified Mount Zion as being the Western Hill (the current Mount Zion),<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url= https://www.britannica.com/place/Zion-hill-Jerusalem |title=Zion| encyclopedia= [[Encyclopædia Britannica]] | via= britannica.com| date= | access-date= November 19, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url= http://jbq.jewishbible.org/assets/Uploads/303/303_zion303a.pdf |title= The Unknown Mount Zion| via= jewishbible.org| first= Walter | last= Zanger| publisher= | access-date= November 19, 2021}}</ref> which is south of both the Garden Tomb and the Holy Sepulchre. Eusebius' comment therefore offers no additional argument for either location.

==See also==
* [[Crucifixion of Jesus]]
* [[Kalvary Mount]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Golgotha}}
* [http://www.golgotha.eu/ Golgotha Rediscovered] – proposes that Golgotha was outside [[Lions' Gate]]
* [https://culture.pl/en/article/polish-calvaries-architecture-as-a-stage-for-the-passion-of-christ Polish Calvaries: Architecture as a Stage for the Passion of Christ]
*{{Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Congregations of Mount Calvary}}

{{New Testament places associated with Jesus}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|31|46|43|N|35|13|46|E|source:kolossus-jawiki_type:landmark|display=title}}

[[Category:Calvary| ]]
[[Category:Crucifixion of Jesus]]
[[Category:New Testament places]]