Khirbet Midras church to be covered over

KHIRBET MIDRAS (Hirbet Madras), the excavation of the ancient church where it is speculated the tomb of a prophet Zechariah may be, is being covered over again due to lack of funding. Jerusalem Post:

Unfortunately, no inscriptions were recovered, and so the cultural and religious context of the church is not completely clear. Behind the apse, an empty crypt was discovered, which may have been used for burial or related to the veneration of relics.

Some scholars suggested the church was related to the memorial of Zacharia, but with the lack of an inscription, this possibility remains as an educated guess.

An agonizing issue, says [archaeologist] Danny [Herman], is that with the lack of budget to prepare the site for visits and tourism, next week the Israel Antiquities Authority plans to cover the whole building, in order to protect its remains.

Therefore, this weekend is probably the last chance to see the church, including its extraordinary mosaic floors, before they are concealed.

Background here.