David and Pola Ben Gurion graves, Memorial garden and national park in Sde Boker, Israel
The graves of David and Paula Ben-Gurion are set on an open plateau at the edge of a cliff in Sde Boker, in the Negev desert of Israel, looking directly over Wadi Tzin. The site is part of a national park and includes a small garden of native plants and a visitor pavilion nearby.
David Ben-Gurion retired to Sde Boker in the 1950s and lived there until his death in 1973. Paula had died a few years earlier, and both were buried together on this cliff edge, a spot they had chosen themselves.
The gardens around the graves are planted with native Negev species, chosen to reflect the land itself rather than impose any formal style. Visitors can walk slowly along the edge of the cliff and look out over Wadi Tzin, the same view the couple saw from their home nearby.
The site is reached on foot from Midreshet Ben-Gurion along a short marked path, and the ground is mostly flat. Sun protection is important at any time of year since the plateau is fully exposed and there is little shade.
Nubian ibexes wander across the site regularly because Wadi Tzin below is one of their main habitats in the Negev. They are used to people and sometimes come within a few feet of visitors standing near the graves.
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