The Jewish Cemetery on the Mount of Olives is the largest and most important cemetery of Judaism, covering about 70,000 graves. The necropolis lying on the slopes of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem remains a resting place for important figures: rabbis, Zionist activists, politicians and scholars from the Holy Land. The custom of burial on the Mount of Olives began about 3000 years ago during the first Jerusalem Temple and continues to this day.
The Jewish cemetery covers almost the entire slope of the Mount of Olives. Continuous use for several thousand years makes it the oldest cemetery that still fulfills its functions. Here is the tomb of Absalom, son of King David and the Tomb of Jehoshaphat, King of Judah of the Davidic dynasty. Nearby, you can also find the oldest tomb of the priesthood of Hezir in this group.
According to Jewish tradition, the cemetery on the Mount of Olives is a place where the end of the world begins and a true messiah will be revealed. He will enter through the Golden Gate and the Last Judgment will begin. The Golden Gate, walled up in 1530, leads to the Cedron Valley, where the living and the dead are waiting for judgment.
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