BLOOD, Field of

Name given to the field purchased with the “blood money” Judas accepted to betray Jesus (Mt 27:8; Acts 1:19). The field was purchased by the chief priests as a burial ground for strangers (formerly, the potter’s field). Judas hanged himself and his intestines burst open there. This account uses the Aramaic expression Akeldama (kjv “Aceldama”), translated “field of blood.” The Akeldama is situated on the southern slope of the valley of Hinnom near the Kidron Valley.