For the first time in at least two centuries, preservation experts have opened what Christians believed to be Jesus' tomb inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
Gali Gabon, an AFP photographer had witnessed some of the historic work. He captured images of the site believed to contain the rock upon which Jesus was laid in around 33 AD as it was uncovered as part of ongoing restoration at the site.
Experts on the scene said a marble slab covering the site, among the holiest in Christianity, was pulled back for three days as part of both restoration work and archaeological analysis.
On the marble slab where it was removed, a painting of Jesus can be seen in the narrow area. Debris and material were found beneath the marble was being further studied.
National Geographic has been documenting the restoration work which is being carried out by a team of Greek specialists.
It reported that "the exposure of the burial bed is giving researchers an unprecedented opportunity to study the original surface of what is considered the most sacred site in Christianity".
Earlier this year, a major restoration project began on the site, surrounded by a structure called an edicule and located at the centre of the church in Jerusalem's Old City, underneath its dome.
The project required the agreement of the various Christian denominations that share the church, which also contains the area where Jesus is believed to have been crucified and his body anointed.
The restoration project is expected to be completed around March 2017. Its marble slabs have weakened over the years, caused in part by the thousands of people who visit daily.
The work is being funded by the three main Christian denominations of the Holy Sepulchre - Greek Orthodox, Franciscans and Armenians - and by public and private contributions.
David Grenier, secretary of a group that oversees Roman Catholic church properties in the Holy Land, stood with a few other Franciscan friars, watching the work crew in awe.
Source: SCMP
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