The Church of the Holy Sepulchre stands as arguably the holiest site in Christianity. Built over Golgotha – the site of Jesus’s crucifixion – and his burial tomb, it attracts millions of pilgrims on an annual basis, from all corners of the world. To its east lies the Russian Orthodox Church of Alexander Nevsky, named after the revered medieval Russian figure.

In 1883, excavations at the foundations of Alexander Nevsky Chapel revealed several architectural features, most notably the foundations of a 10-meter-long wall adorned with pilasters. A local tradition emerged claiming that this wall and an accompanying arched passage were part of Jerusalem’s first-century city walls and gate. Moreover, labeled as “the threshold of the Jusgment Gate”, it was claimed to be the gate through which Jesus passed en route to his crucifixion site.

The Perplexing Architectural Style of the Pilaster Wall

While scholars unanimously reject the wall and arch’s attribution to Jesus’s time or any city gate, the structure’s actual dating remains contentious. The pilaster wall is particularly intriguing as its design bears striking similarities to the retaining wall foundations of Herod’s Temple in Jerusalem. Yet there is no historical or archaeological evidence indicates any Herodian public building in this area of the city.

Several scholars have proposed different theories to explain this architectural mystery. Corbo suggested the wall was part of Hadrian’s temple complex built during the later Roman period. Patrich also attributed the pilaster wall to Hadrian’s era but proposed the stone blocks were repurposed from demolished Herodian buildings. G. Stiebel hypothesized the stones were recycled specifically from Herod’s Temple.

In 2024, Gibson offered a novel interpretation: the wall was actually part of Constantine’s 4th-century Holy Sepulchre complex, deliberately designed to mimic Herod’s Temple walls. This unique strategy has also confused modern scholars.

Some Final Thoughts

However, Gibson’s creative proposal faces two significant challenges: there are no known parallels for such architectural imitation in this period, and the wall’s alignment differs from Constantine’s 4th-century church (the “Martyrium”). On the other hand, I do agree that the pilaster wall remains were incorporated into 4th-century martyrium complex, serving as part of the entrance.

It’s worth noting that despite detailed accounts of Jerusalem by first-century historian Flavius Josephus, gaps exist in our understanding of the city. Just as Josephus omitted mention of the Praetorium (Jesus’s trial site) and the Golgotha (his execution site), he may have similarly overlooked this grand Herodian structure.

Bibliography

Gibson D. 2024. The Date of the Pilaster Wall in the Chapel of St. Alexander Nevsky. In Vieweger D. and Gibson Sh. (eds). The Archaeology and History of the Church of the Redeemer and the Muristan in Jerusalem. Archaeopress Publishing LTD, Oxford. Pp. 177-190.