Jason was a High Priest in the Second Temple during the second century BC. He was instated in 175 BC by Antiochus Epiphanes after the latter ascended the throne of the Seleucid Empire and Jason offered to pay him for the appointment. Three years later, Jason’s term ended when his rival, Melenaus, “outbid” him for the position. Jason was forced to flee.
His tomb was discovered on Alfasi Street in the Rehavia neighborhood in 1956 when a charge was detonated in order to clear away rocks for a new apartment building. The structure comprises a courtyard and a burial chamber, decorated by a Doric column. The walls are adorned with charcoal drawings and carved inscriptions in Aramaic and Greek including one that bemoans Jason’s passing: “A powerful lament make for Jason, son of P...(my brother) peace ... who hast built thyself a tomb, Elder rest in peace.” During the excavations, archaeologists also unearthed various coins from the Hasmonean and Roman periods.
