Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 27:33

"And they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, The place of a skull," — Matthew 27:33 (ASV)

A place called Golgotha — The other Gospels give the name with the definite article, as if it were a well-known locality. However, it is not mentioned by any Jewish writer, and its position is a matter of conjecture. It was “near the city” (John 19:20) and therefore outside the walls . There was a garden in it (John 19:41), and in the garden a tomb, which was the property of Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:60).

A tradition traceable to the fourth century has identified the spot with the building known as the Church of the Sepulchre. One eminent archaeologist of our own time, Mr. James Fergusson, identifies it with the Dome of the Rock in the Mosque of El Aksa. Both sites were then outside the city but were later enclosed by the third wall, built by Agrippa II.

The name has been supposed by some to point to its being a common place of execution. However, it is not probable that the skulls of criminals would have been left unburied, nor that a wealthy Jew would have chosen such a spot for a garden and a burial place. The facts instead lead to the following conclusions:

1. The name indicated the round, bare, skull-like character of the hill.
2. The location may have been chosen by the priests as a deliberate insult to the member of their council, Joseph of Arimathea, who had refused to support their plan, was at least suspected of being a disciple, and whose garden and rock-hewn tomb were nearby (Mark 15:43; Luke 23:51; John 19:38).

A later legend saw in the name a token that the bones of Adam were buried there. According to this tradition, as the blood from the sacred wounds flowed onto his skull, his soul was transported to Paradise.

The more familiar name of Calvary (Luke 23:35) has its origin in the Vulgate rendering (Calvarium, meaning skull) of the Greek word Kranion, or Cranium, which the Evangelist actually uses.