Jesus' tomb unveiled after $4m restoration, the guardian, Harriet Sherwood

restored tomb where Jesus' body is believed to have been kept will be unveiled

• most sacred monument in Christianity
• restoration by 50 experts from the National Technical University of Athens
• nine month restoration project
• conservators worked at night so pilgrims could visit during the day
• October, marble slab was lifted, restoration workers could look at rock shelf/"burial bed"
• team repaired and stabilized the shrine with titanium bolts and mortar, and cleaned thick layers of candle soot and pigeon droppings. The work involved the use of radar, laser scanners and drones
• Wednesday's ceremony to mark the completion of the restoration will be in the presence of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, and a representative of Pope Francis
• The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the heart of the Christian quarter of the walled Old City, covers the assumed site of Jesus's crucifixion, burial and resurrection. It is a huge attraction for pilgrims and tourists from all over the world, many weeping and clutching precious mementos or photographs of loved ones and forming long queues for the shrine
• Six denominations- Latin (Roman Catholic), Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Syrian Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox and Copts-share custodianship of the cavernous church.
• Bitter disputes over territories and responsibilities have erupted in the past, sometimes involving physical altercations
• Disputes between the denominations have help up restoration work for decades
• In a sign of the distrust between the different denominations, the keys to the church have been held by a Muslim family since the 12th century
• The shrine has been rebuilt four times in its history, most recently in 1810 after a fire
• The structure had been held in place for almost 70 years by iron girders erected on the instructions of a British governor who ruled Palestine in the Mandate era
• The $4m cost of the restoration came from contributions from six denominations which share custody of the church, King Abdullah of Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, and Mica Ertegun, the widow of Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun, who gave $1.3m