THE OLD CEMETERY
It is said that "twice as many Jews as in the Exodus from Egypt" are buried in Tzfat's old cemetery. Thousands of tombstones dot the hillside below the old Sephardi Jewish quarter. Most of the older tombs are eroded or ruined, but those of the Kabbalists are well-preserved and stand out from the rest in their bright blue color. Here are buried the Ari, Shlomo Alkabetz, Moshe Cordovero, Joseph Caro and Moshe Mitrani. The ancient burial caves found in the cemetery date from the Talmudic period (1st to 5th centuries A.D.). The more prominent ones are thought to be the tombs of Hoshea Ben Be'eri and Pinhas Ben Yair.
