This article explores the relationship between politics of belonging, narratives and place. We do this through a case study of the contested neighbourhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem, partly appropriated by an archaeological excavation site. Three conflicting narratives that make claims to the place are identified. They are geographically anchored, (re)produced in and through the material form of the place, and symbolically retold through social and moral meaning-making activities. Such an emplaced reading makes it possible to understand how divergent narratives produce insecurity and violence when enacted in and through materially and geographically contested sites.