Medieval knight left graffiti on King David’s tomb 500 years ago, experts in Israel say
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Pilgrims to the Holy Land have been visiting King David’s tomb — a site in Jerusalem associated with the biblical king — for centuries, according to experts in Israel.
This led researchers at the iconic complex on Mount Zion to ask a new question, the Israel Antiquities Authority said in an Oct. 20 news release: “If walls could talk, what would they say?”
Researchers began documenting graffiti and other inscriptions left on the walls of the complex. The walls had a lot to say. They found more than 40 inscriptions in multiple languages.
One “unique” name stood out to researchers: Knight Adrian von Bubenberg.
The charcoal graffiti had the medieval knight’s name and family emblem, the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority said in a news release.
Von Bubenberg was a politician and soldier from Switzerland during the mid-1400s, according to Britannica. He became a national hero and popular figure after defending Switzerland’s independence and helping the country’s army gain a reputation as one of Europe’s strongest armies, researchers told the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
A statue of von Bubenberg still stands prominently in Bern, Switzerland, researchers said.
Both von Bubenberg and his son, Adrian von Bubenberg II, traveled over 1,700 miles to visit Jerusalem in the late-1400s, experts said. At the time, King David’s Tomb complex was a monastery for monks and a hostel for pilgrims.
Archaeologists believe the 500-plus-year-old graffiti belongs to one of them. The graffiti is evidence of medieval connections between Jerusalem and Switzerland, researchers said.
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