While for the last 1500 years, tradition identifies Kever David on Har Tzion, the implication of the pesukim is that David HaMelech was buried within his city, Ir David. It is clear that Har Tzion was outside the walls of Ir David. The “first Jewish excavations in Israel” (the excavations took place in Ir David, were funded by the Rothschild family, and the head archeologist was Raymond Weil, a French Jew) uncovered remains which may be the actual Kever David. Unfortunately, the area was used as a quarry during the Roman and Byzantine periods, and it is impossible to know with certainty what was there at the time of David HaMelech. However, the advantage of this suggestion is that it locates Kever David within Ir David in accordance with the “peshat” (simple meaning) of the pesukim. Today, it is possible to see these remains while touring Ir David.
