The Torah tells us, in Genesis 23, that Sarah died at the age of 127 in Kiryat Arba, today Hebron. Upon her death, Abraham spoke to the sons of Heth to ask for a place to bury her. He wanted the Cave of Machpelah, which belonged to one of them, Efron son of Zohar. He sold it to Abraham for 400 shekels of silver. Genesis tells us in 25:9 that Abraham was buried next to his wife, and in 49:31, Jacob, on his deathbed, tells his sons that he had buried his parents Isaac and Rebekah and his wife Leah in that cave. Jacob was also buried there by his sons. Many years later, to gain the support of the Jews, Herod the Great (second half of the 1st century BCE) built a rectangular enclosure to surround the Cave of Machpelah, which is one of the few Herodian structures preserved from the time of Hellenistic Judaism. Herod’s building, with 6-foot-thick stone walls, had no roof. Archaeologists are unsure where the original entrance to the enclosure was located or even if there was one.

During the Byzantine Empire, a Christian basilica was built at the southeast end of the building, and the enclosure was roofed everywhere except in the center. The Pilgrim Piacenza (c. 570) reports that Jews and Christians shared possession of the site. In 614, the Persians conquered the area and destroyed the basilica, leaving it in ruins.

In 637, the area came under Arab control, and the building was rebuilt as a roofed mosque. In 1100, after the area was captured by the Crusaders, the compound once again became a church, and Muslims were no longer allowed to enter. During this period, the building was given a new gabled roof, windows, and a vault.

Toward the end of the Crusader period, in 1166, Maimonides visited Hebron and wrote: «On Sunday, the 9th of Marheshvan, I left Jerusalem to go to Hebron to kiss the graves of my ancestors in the cave. I was in the cave and prayed, praise be to God, in gratitude for everything.» In 1170, Benjamin of Tudela visited the site. He wrote: «Here is the great church called St. Abram, and this was a Jewish place of worship during the time of Muslim rule, but the Gentiles have erected six monuments, respectively named those of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob and Leah.»

In 1188, Saladin conquered the area, converting the compound into a mosque but allowing Christians to continue worshipping there. At the end of the 14th century, the Mamluks banned Jews and Christians from entering the site. They added two minarets, wall decorations, and a marble facade. The ban on access to Jews and Christians lasted 700 years, until 1967.

For Judaism, the Tomb of the Patriarchs is the second holiest site, after the Western Wall in Jerusalem. More than 300,000 people visit it annually. The structure is divided into three halls: Ohel Abraham, Ohel Yitzhak, and Ohel Yaakov. Currently, Jews are not allowed access to Ohel Yitzhak, the largest hall, except for 10 days a year. No one is allowed access to the cave itself. The troubled history of the Cave of Machpelah reflects the problematic relationship that exists to this day between the three religions that trace their origins to the patriarch Abraham. Unfortunately, the site could have become the best example of the three religions’ coexistence.

By Marcos Gojman.

Bibliography: Encyclopaedia Judaica and other sources.