The following is a list of burial places attributed to Biblical personalities according to various religious and local traditions. In order to pay homage, celebrate, and commemorate great people of the Bible, tombs and monuments were established on locations where people believe that the person was buried. The locations listed are not based on factual evidence, but rather locations mentioned in the text of the Bible or oral traditions of indigenous peoples. Lebanon, Israel, the Palestinian territories, Iraq, Jordan and Iran have put monuments on the grave locations in an attempt to preserve them as holy sites. Many sites have been transmitted from generation to generation and there are historical accounts from travellers which state their existence. The scope of this article is limited to figures mentioned in the Old Testament.
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| Biblical figure | Place name and location | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam | Judaism: Midrash says Cave of the Patriarchs, Hebron, Judea/Samaria, Alternate name:West bank (pictured)
Sunni Islam: Kaaba, Mecca, Saudi Arabia |
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| Eve | Judaism: Cave of the Patriarchs, Hebron (pictured)
Islam: Tomb of Eve, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
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| Abel | Shia Islam: Nabi Habeel Mosque, Zabadani Valley, Syria | . | |
| Seth | In Judaism: Tiberias, Israel[1] In Islam: Al-Nabi Shayth, Lebanon |
. | . |
| Noah | Islam: Tomb of Noah, Nakhichevan, Disputed territory between Armenia and Azerbaijan
There is also another site for the Tomb of Noah in Cizre, Turkey Shia Islam: Imam Ali Mosque, Najaf, Iraq |
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| Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob, Esau and Leah | Judaism: Cave of the Patriarchs, Al Khalil Hebron, Judea/Samaria West Bank | According to Jewish tradition, only Esau's head is buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs. According to legends, Ishmael was buried here as well. | |
| Lot | Islam: Bani Na'im, near Hebron (2 miles away), West Bank, Judea and Samaria | Bani Na'im houses the tomb of the patriarch/prophet Lot in the center of the town. The tomb is located within rectangular mosque with an inner court and minaret. Lot's tomb is first mentioned by catholic scholar Saint Jerome of Jerusalem in the 4th century CE.
According to Muslim legend, Lot lived in Bani Na'im before moving to Sodom. The shrine encasing the tomb was restored in 1410 by the Mamluk sultan Nasir al-Faraj, son of Sultan Barquq. The restoration work was entrusted by him to Shams al-Din al-Ansari, a member of Ansari family which specialized in religious endowments ("waqf). The tomb of his daughters are on an opposite hill nearby. To the southeast of Bani Na'im is a shrine dedicated to Lot, known as Maqam an-Nabi Yatin ("Shrine of the Truthful Prophet"). Local legend claims Lot prayed at the site and imprints of his feet in a rock there are visible. According to Muslim legend and Catholic tradition, Bani Na'im is the place where the patriarch/prophet Abraham, after the departure of the angels, saw the smoke of Sodom and Gomorrah rising as the smoke of a furnace. |
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| Rachel | Rachel's Tomb, outside Bethlehem, | Rachel died on the eleventh day of the Hebrew month of Heshvan, and was buried by Jacob on the road to Efrat, just outside Bethlehem. Today Rachel's Tomb, located between Bethlehem and the Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo, is visited by tens of thousands of visitors each year. According to some scholars, Rachel was actually buried in Ramah further north of modern day Bethlehem. The structure was built in 1841 by Sir Moses Montifeore. This is a place where barren women would pray to have children. 11 Hesvan is the tradition date of Rachel's death. | |
| Zilpah and Bilhah | Tomb of the Matriarchs, Tiberias, Israel | . | . |
| Reuben | Nabi Rubin, Palmachim, Israel | During the Ottoman period Arabs would gather each year at the Mamluk-era structure. Nowadays, infrequent Jewish visitors come to pray at the site. | |
| Judah | Yehud, Israel[2] | . | . |
| Simeon | Kibbutz Eyal, Israel. Others says it is located at Kafr Manda or Kafr Katan, near Jenin, Judea Samaria/West Bank[2] | . | . |
| Asher | Nevei Ta'ari, near Kfar Sirkan, or Kafr Manda, or Tubas, or near Ain Al-Jadur, west of Salt, Jordan. | . | . |
| Gad | Nevei Ganda, in Rehovot, Israel, or Ain Al-Jadur, west of Salt, Jordan. | . | . |
| Dan | Beit Shemesh, Israel[3] | . | . |
| Zebulun | Tomb of Zebulun, Sidon, Lebanon | . | In the past, towards the end of Iyyar, Jews from the most distant parts of Palestine and the Jews who lived in Lebanon would make a pilgrimage to this tomb.[4] |
| Joseph | According to Jews: Joseph's Tomb, Nablus(Shchem), West Bank, Judea and Samaria, (pictured); According to Muslims: Cave of the Patriarchs, Hebron, West Bank, Judea and Samaria |
Some others consider Joseph to have been buried next to the Cave of the Patriarchs, where a mediaeval structure known as the kalah (castle) is now located.
Some archaeologists believe that the site in Nablus is a few centuries old and could contain the remains of a Muslim sheikh named Yusef Al-Dwaik. |
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| Benjamin | Kfar Sava, Israel | Two structures 30 m away from each other are each claimed by Jews and Muslims as the authentic tomb. This site is questionable, however, because it is not located in the territory of the Tribe of Benjamin. | |
| Serah | Pir-i Bakran, near Esfahan, Iran[5] | . | . |
| Ephraim and Manasseh | Joseph's Tomb, Nablus, West Bank, Judea and Samaria | . | |
| Jochebed, Miriam, Zipporah and Elisheva | Tomb of the Matriarchs, Tiberias, Israel | . | . |
| Moses | Mount Nebo (Jordan) | According to the Bible, the exact place of Moses' grave remains unknown, in order to impede idolatry. | |
| Aaron | Tomb of Aaron: Mount Hor mentioned in the Bible is identified by some as Mount Harun (Aaron's Mountain) near Petra, Jordan. | At 1350 meters above sea-level, it is the highest peak in the area; it is believed to be the place where Aaron died and was buried. A 14th century mosque stands here with its white dome visible from most areas in and around Petra. | |
| Eleazar | Awarta, West Bank, Judea and Samaria[6] | . | Due to the uncertain security situation, the Israel Defence Forces limits visits by Jews to one annual night close to the 5th of Shevat on the Hebrew calendar (around January–February). |
| Ithamar | Awarta, West Bank, Judea and Samaria | . | Ibid. |
| Jethro | In Judaism and Druzism: Jethro's Tomb, Hittin, overlooking the Sea of Galilee; In Islam: Wadi Shoaib, just west of Mahis, Jordan, although Islam also attributes other sites located in the Sinai and in historical Palestine.[7] |
Each year on April 25, the Druze gather at the site to discuss community affairs.[8] | |
| Aholiab | Sujod, Southern Lebanon[9] | . | . |
| Biblical figure | Place name and location | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nun | Timnath-heres, attributed to Kifl Hares, Salfit Governorate, West Bank, Judea and Samaria, Israel | . | |
| Joshua | Timnath-heres, attributed to Kifl Hares, Salfit Governorate, West Bank, Judea and Samaria, Israel | Thousands make the pilgrimage to his tomb on the annual commemoration of his death, 26th of Nisan on the Hebrew calendar. | |
| Caleb | Timnath-heres, attributed to Kifl Hares, Salfit Governorate, West Bank, Judea and Samaria, Israel | . | |
| Othniel Ben Kenaz | Hebron, West Bank, Judea and Samaria, Israel [10] | . | . |
| Shamgar | Tebnine, Lebanon[11] | . | . |
| Deborah, Barak and Yael | Tel Kaddesh, Israel[12] | . | |
| Samson | Beit Shemesh, Israel[13] | . | . |
| Elkanah | Kedita, Upper Galilee, Israel[14] | . | . |
| Hannah and Samuel | Tomb of Samuel, West Bank, Judea and Samaria [15] (pictured). Other sources claim Samuel's tomb is located 30 km outside Saveh City, Iran. | Both Jewish and Muslim prayers are held at the tomb. Many religious Jews visit the tomb on the 28th of Iyar, the anniversary of Samuel the Prophet's death. | |
| Jesse and Ruth | Hebron, West Bank, Judea and Samaria, Israel | . | . |
| David | David's Tomb, Mount Zion, Jerusalem, Israel | . | |
| Absalom | Yad Avshalom, Mount of Olives, Jerusalem,Israel | Archaeologists have dated the 'tomb' to the first century CE. It is believed to be the 'tomb' of Absalom. It may contradict 2 Samuel 18:17 which says Absalom's body was covered over with stones in a pit in the forest of Ephraim. | |
| Abner ben Ner | Hebron, West Bank , Judea and Samaria, Israel[16] | . | |
| Isaiah | Esfahan, Iran[17] or Nahal Dishon, (Israel) | . | . |
| Hushai | Yirka, Israel | . | . |
| Iddo | Golan Heights,[18] | . | . |
| Jehoshaphat | Mount of Olives, Jerusalem, Israel[19] | . | . |
| Elisha | Elisha's Tomb. Disputed between: near Mt. Carmel, West Bank, Judea and Samaria or Kfar Yassif near Acre, Israel | . | . |
| Huldah | Mount of Olives, Jerusalem, Israel. Other sources place it adjacent to the Huldah Gates[20] | . | . |
| Zedekiah | Cave of Zedekiah, Old City of Jerusalem, Israel[21] | . | . |
| Ezekiel | Ezekiel's Tomb, Al Kifl, Iraq | Up till the mid-20th century, up to 5,000 Jews used to come to the tomb during Passover.[22] Muslims believe this tomb to be that of an unspecified personality named Dhul-Kifl. (For an image of the tomb, see:[23]) This site was protected under the control of Saddam Hussein. | |
| Baruch ben Neriah | Al Kifl, Iraq | . | His tomb is located about 1-mile (1.6 km) away from Ezekiel's Tomb |
| Hosea | Ancient Jewish cemetery of Safed[24] | . | |
| Amittai (father of Jonah) | Islam: Beit Ummar, near Hebron, West Bank, Judea and Samaria | . | Mosque of Nabi Matta: The main mosque in Beit Ummar housing the tomb of Nabi Matta or Amittai, father of Jonah. Mujir ad-Din writes that Matta was "a holy man from the people of the house of the prophecy." Nearby Halhul houses the tomb of Jonah with the inscription reading "Yunus ibn Matta" or "Jonah son of Amittai", confirming that Matta is indeed the Arabic name for Amittai and the Beit Ummar tomb is dedicated to Amittai. In 1226, the Ayyubid sultan al-Mu'azzam built a mosque with a minaret under the supervision of Jerusalem governor Rashid ad-Din al-Mu'azzami. The Mamluks constructed some additions to the mosque and engraved several inscriptions on its surface.[7] |
| Jonah | Judaism: Mashhad, Israel. Islam: Halhul, near Beit Ummar, Hebron. There is however another famous site for the tomb of Jonah, Mosque of the Prophet Yunus, Mosul, Iraq. | . | . |
| Micah | Kabul, Israel[25] | . | . |
| Nahum | Al Qush, south of Dahuk, Iraq. There are however two other sites mentioned in historical accounts: Elkesi, near Ramah in the Galilee and Elcesei in the West Bank , Judea and Samaria.[26] | . | . |
| Habakkuk | Some locate it at Hokuk, others at Kadarim, Israel.[27][28] Others at Toyserkan, Iran.[29] (pictured) | . | |
| Zephaniah | En-Nabi Safi, Southern Lebanon[30] | . | . |
| Haggai and Malachi | Tomb of the Prophets, Mount of Olives, Jerusalem[31] | . | . |
| Zechariah | In Druzism: Abu Sinan, Israel | . | . |
| Biblical figure | Place name and location | Image | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Job | In Druzism: Chouf District, Lebanon (pictured). Yaqut al-Hamawi recorded that it was located in Nawa, Syria, while another tradition locates it at Salalah, Oman | . | ||
| Jesse and Ruth | Hebron, West Bank, Judea and Samaria,Israel | . | This location is in a cave. Today it is surrounded by IDF security and visitors usually light candles there and read passages from Psalms in their memories. | |
| Mordecai and Esther | Tomb of Esther and Mordechai, Hamedan, Iran | Persian Jews still make annual pilgrimage in honor of the Purim festival. | ||
| Daniel | Tomb of Daniel, Susa, Iran (pictured). There are however six other traditional sites including Kirkuk in Iraq and Samarkand in Uzbekistan | At the site in Kirkuk, the locales claim that Hananiah, Mishael, and Azaria are buried alongside Daniel. | ||
| Ezra | Ezra's Tomb, Al-'Uzayr, near Basra, Iraq | Preserved by Jewish caretakers until the middle of the 20th century. From that point, a local Muslim Iraqi took the responsibility of preserving the location. The area surrounding the tomb is used today as a place of Muslim worship although Hebrew inscriptions are still present in the room. Located where Tigris and Euphrates meet. | . | |
| Lamech | Islam: Tomb of Lamech, Mihtarlam, Afghanistan | . | . | |
| Zechariah ben Jehoiada | Tomb of Zechariah, Mount of Olives, Jerusalem, Israel | . |
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