This small stone bench is now part of a small elaborate shrine, called the Aedicule or the Edicula. The stone bench is now enclosed inside marble slabs and is not directly visible, from with in the chamber. Although part of the actual rock is visible from the chapel located directly behind the Aedicule.

The tomb consists of a lower parts of a cave-tomb hewn directly from local limestone-bed-rock, measuring approximately 2 meters in length and 1 meter in width, with a low stone bench positioned along its rear wall for the placement of a body. The interior is enclosed by a marble and masonry structure that forms the aedicule, which protects the burial chamber while allowing access to pilgrims. Archaeological and historical studies suggest that the tomb exhibits characteristics consistent with Jewish burial practices of the Second Temple period, including rock-cut architecture and a single burial bench, known as a kokh. The tomb is set within the larger rotunda of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, yet retains a distinct architectural and devotional identity, separate from the surrounding chapels and ambulatory spaces.

Originally this area may have looked something like the The Garden Tomb Burial Cave.

circa 10 BCE

The earliest historical reference to the tomb within Christian tradition is found in the writings of Eusebius of Caesarea, who documents the discovery of the site by Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine, during her pilgrimage to Jerusalem circa 326 CE. According to contemporary accounts, Helena identified the location of Golgotha and the tomb based on local tradition and the remains of a first-century rock-cut cave. Constantine commissioned the construction of a basilica to enclose the tomb, completed around 335 CE, which integrated the chamber into a monumental Christian sanctuary. Throughout the Byzantine empire period, the tomb remained a focal point of pilgrimage, as recorded by pilgrims such as the Piacenza Pilgrim in the 6th century CE.

The tomb suffered extensive damage during the Persian sack of Jerusalem in 614 CE. In the 11th century, the Fatimid destruction and subsequent Crusader-period reconstruction further altered the enclosing structures while retaining the original burial chamber. The Crusaders rebuilt the aedicule in the 12th century CE, installing the marble and masonry features that largely define its current appearance, while preserving the underlying limestone bench. Scholarly studies, including those by archaeologist Virgilio Corbo and the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, confirm that the burial bench and chamber correspond to a genuine Second Temple period tomb, though the enclosing structure reflects layered architectural interventions.

circa 10 BCE

The Tomb of Jesus has undergone several significant modern restorations aimed at stabilizing the structure and conserving both its archaeological and devotional elements. In 1810, Ottoman restorations reinforced the aedicule, followed by further structural support in the late 19th century CE. The most comprehensive modern intervention occurred in 2016–2017, when a multi-denominational restoration team dismantled the aedicule to assess and repair internal iron supports, consolidate marble panels, and clean centuries of soot accumulation from votive candles. These efforts revealed original mortar layers and preserved stonework consistent with 4th- and 12th-century construction phases, confirming the tomb’s historical continuity while ensuring its structural stability for continued liturgical use and pilgrimage.