Herod is most widely known for killing Bethlehem’s baby boys in an attempt to eliminate Jesus Christ.

He also murdered his wife out of jealousy and three sons for fear they’d usurp his throne.

Despite all that, he is known as “Herod the Great”.

As a tribute to the king many refer to as a mad man, the Israel Museum in Jerusalem is exhibiting King Herod’s tomb remains to showcase what has been coined a unique kind of imperial rule that connected Rome with Jerusalem.

James Snyder, director of Israel Museum, said, "A lot of it is from Herodium. I think in the end we brought thirty tons of material here but we also have material here that’s from Jerusalem, from Jericho, from Cesarea representing different dimensions of Herod’s achievement as ruler in the region."

Herodium refers to the burial site Herod built for himself outside Bethlehem. The king was a renowned architect who built Jerusalem’s 2nd Temple, the city of Cesearea, palaces, fortresses and aqueducts.

The location of the king’s tomb was somewhat of a mystery but one Israeli archeologist, following early Roman historian Josephus Flavius’ directions, discovered it after searching for thirty five years.

The exhibit is a celebration of those findings. Frescos and the tomb itself were recreated by painstakingly piecing together thousands of stucco fragments discovered in landfill during a 4-year period.

But as the case often is in this part of the world, controversy shrouds the exhibit opening. Palestinian archaeologists say Israel removed tomb remains from the West Bank to benefit at their expense.

Dr. Hamdan Taha, director of Palestinian Antiquities Authority, said, "Archeology, unfortunately, has been used as a means to justify Israeli settlement policy in the Palestinian areas and we think that the exhibition that opened two days ago is part of that policy."

Back at the museum, that claim is disputed.

Snyder said, "The Oslo agreement in 1993 actually provides that Israel is responsible for the care, safekeeping and custodianship of archeology in the west bank until there is a final settlement. We take this responsibility very seriously."

Museum officials say the remains will be returned to the Palestinian antiquities authority in 10 months when the exhibit is dismantled.

Reporter: "Whether King Herod was a great or terrible historical figure is debatable. But the fact that he was a prolific builder is not. Which is why the chapter in history when he ruled this region is termed the Herodian Dynasty. It’s also why one archeologist spent 35 years searching for King Herod’s tomb.”