Sealing the Tomb
How did the Roman guards seal the tomb of Jesus?
When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. So Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock. He then rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb. The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, "Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, `After three days I will rise again.' Therefore command the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise his disciples may go and steal him away, and tell the people, `He has been raised from the dead,' and the last deception would be worse than the first." Pilate said to them, "You have a guard of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can." So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone. - Matthew 27:57-66
When we were in Jerusalem, we saw a tomb that had a small opening. It required a flat round stone no more than two feet in diameter to close it.
The stone would be rolled up a short ramp along the front of the tomb and would drop into place in a slot closing off the opening.
To open it, you would have to lift the stone and roll it over the upper edge of the ramp. Depending on the weight of the stone, that could be a challenge.
Sealing the tomb was an official act. It required a wax seal and cords be affixed to the stone, and stamped with the seal of the Emperor.
Removing the seal or opening the tomb would be considered a serious offense.
We don't know whether the opening to Joseph's tomb was large or small. The purpose of the tomb is to decompose the body in the front chamber, and then store the dried bones on one of the stone shelves in the wall behind.
The only reason the two Marys needed to go back to the tomb was they hadn't finished preparing the body.
If they had, Easter morning might have been very different.
More to come...