Ard-al-Moharbeen necropolis

The Ard-al-Moharbeen necropolis was a Roman cemetery in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. It is the largest cemetery to have been discovered in Gaza and is thought to have been in use from the 1st century BC to the 2nd century AD. The necropolis was discovered in 2022 and excavated in 2023 and damaged during the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Ard-al-Moharbeen necropolis

Shown within State of Palestine
Location	Jabaliya, Gaza Strip, Palestine
Coordinates	31°32′55.4″N 34°27′58.6″E
Type	Inhumation cemetery
Area	4,000 square metres (43,000 sq ft) (estimated)[1]
History
Periods	Roman
Site notes
Discovered	2022
Excavation dates	2023
Archaeologists	René Elter[2]

Discovery and investigation

The cemetery was discovered in February 2022 during construction work for a housing project in Jabaliya.^[2] Archaeologists began excavations in July 2023,^[3] and by the time the discovery was announced later that year they had found 125 tombs in an area of 4,000 square metres (43,000 sq ft).^[4][5] Première Urgence and the École Biblique led the investigation, with the involvement of 30 graduates from the University of Palestine and the Islamic University of Gaza.^[6] The team had recently been training to investigate the Saint Hilarion Monastery as part of a long-term archaeological project.^[7]

The Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip beginning in October 2023 led to hundreds of heritage sites being damaged.^[8] In November that year, Jehad Yasin of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities reported that the cemetery was "almost completely destroyed".^[9] UNESCO conducted remote monitoring of cultural heritage sites in the Gaza Strip and confirmed damage to the cemetery in its January 2024 assessment.^{[10][note 1]} A 2025 report by the Centre for Cultural Heritage Preservation judged the site to be severely damaged, with a combination of bomb and bulldozer damage, while the demolition of nearby structures is expected to have left additional debris at the cemetery.^[12]

Cemetery features

The Ard-al-Moharbeen necropolis is the largest cemetery discovered in Gaza and 135 graves have been identified.^[2] Most of the graves still contained human remains. Some of the graves contained objects buried with the dead (grave goods); the objects include clay pots,^[4] perfume bottles,^[13] and some skeletons were found with coins in their mouths. The latter was a Greco-Roman practice and was intended to secure the deceased's entry to the underworld.^[6][14]

Amongst the burials were two lead sarcophagi, the first to be discovered in Gaza.^[4] One of the sarcophagi was taken to Qasr al-Basha, a museum in Gaza, for display to the public.^[15] It is thought that some of the burials are of high-status Roman officials.^[5] The burials are thought to date from the 1st century BC to the 2nd century AD.^[16]

See also

• Anthedon – a nearby harbour active around the same time
• Blakhiya Byzantine cemetery
• Roman funerary practices
• Destruction of cultural heritage during the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
• Israeli razing of cemeteries and necroviolence against Palestinians

Notes

1. Qasr al-Basha was also damaged by Israeli bombardment.^[11]