Herod's tomb again

HEROD'S TOMB and his building projects are discussed in an article in Jewish Ideas Daily:

Digging King Herod
By Aryeh Tepper

King Herod was a Jew of doubtful origin who ruled Israel in the years 40-4 B.C.E. During this same period, the Roman republic was being replaced by the Roman Empire with its vast expansionist aims. Relying on Roman support for his power, Herod was, in effect, Israel's little Roman emperor. And he played the part, bringing administrative order and economic prosperity to the country and creating hugely ambitious architectural projects. In the Roman way, he was also cruel, paranoid, and thorough, killing his wife, three sons, and an assortment of other relatives and confidants.

The extent of Herod's failure came to light in 2007 thanks to one of the most electrifying archeological finds in recent times: the discovery of his tomb at Herodion.

[...]

Last I'd heard, there was still uncertainty whether this tomb at Herodion was actually Herod's.

From the conclusion:

... The figure with whom today's Israeli Jews can identify is the other side of Herod: the visionary builder. While his moral life remains repulsive, not to say incomprehensible, the mini-emperor can be invoked as a standard against whom to measure the achievements of other, modern builders in the land of Israel.

Two-thousand years after his death, it appears that Herod is finally earning the acceptance he so deeply craved, finding a home in a reborn Jewish state that is working its way through the ancient question of what Rome has to do with Jerusalem.

For more some thoughts on Herod and his background, see here.