1913 – 1914

1923 – 1924

Raymond Weill (1874-1950), a French-Jewish archaeologist, came to Jerusalem twice to excavate in the City of David at the beginning of the twentieth century, from 1913-1914 and from 1923-1924. He was sent by Baron Rothschild to excavate in the area purchased on the Hill of the City of David.

He dug south of the hill, and uncovered a large quarry in the south of the City of David that destroyed two rock-hewn caves. In his opinion, these caves were the burial place of the dynasty of kings from the time of David onwards, although this opinion is not accepted among researchers nowadays. In the same excavation area, he found a Greek inscription from the time of the Second Temple documenting the establishment of a synagogue by a priest named Theodotus. Later in his life, he was one of the founders of the Beirut Archaeological Museum.

  • Raymond Weill