At the end of
February we spent about a week in Israel. We arrived in Tel-Aviv on Saturday
afternoon where Sigalit and Ophir greeted us at the airport. After checking into
our hotel we headed to Sigalit’s home for a family birthday celebration. On
Sunday morning Ryan headed off to class while Sig and I spent the day in Jaffa.
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| Tel-Aviv |
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Jaffa
Jaffa, called Yafo in Hebrew, is one of the oldest port cities in
the land of Israel and the Mediterranean. The city was named in honor of its
original founder Japhet (one of Noah’s 3 sons who founded the city after
escaping from the flood). The city is perched on top of a hill overlooking the sea with a natural harbor; ancient Jaffa was a strategic prize. It was
conquered and re-conquered countless times by Canaanites, Phoenicians, Pharaohs, King David, the Assyrians and more. While in Jaffa Sig and I spent the afternoon taking a city walking tour using an audio guide.
The first sight we came across on our walking tour was St. Peters
Franciscan Church. The bell tower of the church overlooks the sea and is an
icon of Jaffa. The church was built 360 years ago in honor of St. Peter, who
raised a disciple named Tabitha from the dead nearby. As opposed to most
churches, which face east, St. Peter’s faces west, towards the sea, where Peter’s
famous dream took place, and towards Rome where he was later sent. Like all
over Jaffa and Israel, the church is
built on top of layers of former churches. The original Byzantine church was
built in the 7th century, rebuilt by Louis the IX of France and the Crusaders
in the 1200s, destroyed by the Turkish Mamluks, and so on… The current church
was rebuilt in 1888.
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| St. Peters
Franciscan Church |
Our
walking tour led us to the harbor. Jaffa is one of the oldest functioning
harbors in the world. Today it harbors only small fishing boats, but this was once the
port to which Jonah came when fleeing from the Lord to Tarshish (Jonah 1:3).
For the construction of Solomon's Temple, cedars were floated from Phoenicia to
Jaffa and then transported to Jerusalem (2 Chr 2:16). Jaffa was the main port
of entry during the Turkish period and pilgrims and visitors would enter the
Holy Land here. Just beyond the port lies a rock outcropping where, according to
Greek mythology, a woman named Andromeda was chained and offered as a sacrifice
to an angry sea monster. But Perseus (son of Zeus), her future husband, rescued
her and killed the monster. The head of the monster fell into the water and
became the famous sea rocks of Jaffa.
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| Andromeda's Rock |
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| House of
Simon the Tanner |
We made a brief stop to hear the history of the house of
Simon the Tanner. This is the site
where Peter raised Tabitha from the dead and saw the vision in which he
was commanded to eat animals regarded as unclean in Jewish tradition. When he
refused, he heard a voice saying: “What God has cleansed you must not call
common” (Acts 10:15). Peter interpreted his vision as divine permission to
forgo the Jewish commandments and preach Christianity to Jews and pagans.
This was a historic turning point, in which Christianity evolved from what was
considered an obscure set of Judaism to a worldwide religion.
Slope Park is the first park of Old Jaffa. The park is
located entirely on the structures and foundations of destroyed houses. From
the park we were able to take in some amazing views of Tel-Aviv's shoreline,
the promenade, and hotels located along the beach. Cast iron shore batteries,
which were discovered in excavations of the Jaffa Harbor, are now located at the
upper entrance of the park, evidence of Jaffa's capture by Napoleon and his
army.
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| View of Tel-Aviv From Slope Park |
Jaffa's clock tower was built in 1901 in the center of the town square and another stop on our walking tour. The tower is one of seven built as a part of the modern reforms
guided by the sultan, in order to conduct the empire’s cities by accurate
Western timetables. According to the local tale, the tower was built at the
initiative of a wealthy Jew of Jaffa, who erected the clock tower in order to
save himself pestering by pedestrians who would come in to his shop to ask the
time on their way to the train station. Four clocks were installed in the tower
two of them showing the time in Europe, and two of them the time in Israel.
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| The Clock Tower |
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| Part of the Egyptian Gate Facade |
When the Egyptians invaded Canaan
in the 15th century BC, one of their prime targets was Jaffa. This
walled city with a maritime link to the main cities and access to the heart of
the land. Excavations in Jaffa have uncovered one of the largest late Bronze
Age assemblages of Egyptian ceramics excavated in Israel. In the 1990’s a
re-creation of the Egyptian gate façade of Ramesses II was built to illustrate
the location of the original gate. Excavations continue at the
site as Egyptian ceramics and artifacts belonging to earlier phases of Egypt’s
occupation of Jaffa are uncovered. The fragments discovered of
the monumental gate façade were inscribed with the name of Ramesses II. The
gate was the adorned entrance to the Late Bronze Age Egyptian fortress. We stopped on our walking tour to watch the excavations and hear of Egyptian history in Jaffa.
During our walking tour of Jaffa we also stopped to admire the
hanging orange tree, the new Saraya House, the Mahmoudia Mosque, the Jaffa Museum of Antiquities, and the
Zodiac Fountain in Old Jaffa. I had a wonderful time exploring Jaffa and learning of its vast history.
Caesarea
On Thursday afternoon Sig took us to the city of Caesarea. Caesarea
is a city Herod
the Great dedicated to Caesar Augustus more than 2,000 years ago. Once the site
of a Phoenician port, over the course of 12 years Herod built Caesarea into the
grandest city other than Jerusalem, with a deep sea harbor, aqueduct, hippodrome,
and amphitheater which remains standing today.
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| Remains of Crusader Fortifications |
The amphitheater is a spectacular Roman remnant, which today
serves as a modern venue for performances and concerts. The inside of the
theater is not only impressive as a remnant of the glory days of Rome, but for
its spectacular view of the Mediterranean. Inside the gate of the theater is a
plaque with a replica of the inscription found during excavations in 1959-1963
with the words "TIBERIVM" and "TIVS PILATUS," references to emperor Tiberius and Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea at the time of
Jesus. This was an important find because it is the only archaeological
evidence of Pilate's existence.
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| Amphitheater At Caesarea |
Caesarea is an important site in Christian history. It was the
place where Pontius Pilate governed during the time of Jesus. This was where
Simon Peter converted the Roman, Cornelius, the first non-Jew to believe in
Jesus. Paul was also imprisoned here for two years. In 640 CE, Caesarea was the
last Palestinian city to fall to the Muslim invaders. In 1101, the Crusaders captured
the city, only to lose it in 1187 to Saladin. Under the Crusader rule,
the Jewish community of Caesaria dwindled until in 1170 only 20 Jews remained.
From 1251-1252, the city was entirely reconstructed by Louis IX. In
1265, Caesarea fell to Baybars, the Mamluk sultan of Egypt, who destroyed the
city, which remained in ruins until 1884. In 1884, Muslim refugees from Bosnia
established a small fishing village on the remains of Caesarea.
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| Ruins of Herod's Palace at Caesarea |
In 21 BCE, Herod the Great built a massive, two-part harbor, an
inner and outer harbor, at Caesarea. The all-weather harbor was constructed by
using hydraulic concrete to create breakwaters in the sea. The harbor took
twelve years to construct. Herod named the harbor Sebastos, in honor of Emperor
Augustus. Archeological evidence suggests the outer harbor had serious
structural problems by the end of the 1st century CE. Today the Herodian
breakwaters are submerged 5m below the water surface.
The hippodrome built by Herod also is still identifiable.
Considerably smaller than the great Circus Maximus in Rome, Herod's arena still
held 20,000 spectators for chariot races. Remnants of the fortress walls built
by the Crusaders are monuments to yet another fascinating period in Israel's
history. King Louis IX of France embellished the Crusader fortifications in
1251.
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| Falafels |
We ended out visit to Caesarea with some tasty
falafels. A falafel is a deep friend ball or patty made from ground
chickpeas, fava beans, or both. Falafel is a traditional Middle Eastern food,
usually served in a pita.
Following our visit to Caesarea we stopped to see the ruins of a Roman aqueduct. Caesarea required a steady
flow of running water. Initially its waters came from the local wells.
However, as the population grew to several hundred thousand people, a
large-scale aqueduct was required to bring the water from a distance. The
aqueduct was built in several phases, starting from King Herod. Herod built the aqueduct at the time the new
city was founded and dedicated to the Roman Caesar, Augustus. The aqueduct
brought the water from the southern side of Mount Carmel to the north east of
the city. The water flowed 10 kilometers on a single raised canal. The aqueduct
continued to supply water for 1,200 years.
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| Roman Aqueduct of Caesarea |
Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee
On Friday we took a tour visiting the Holy sites around the Sea of
Galilee with Sig and her wonderful children. Our first stop was Mount Tabor, a steep round hill on the northeast side of the Yizreel valley.
The hill is strategically located on the main north-south ancient road, and for
most Christians it is a Holy mountain. “The mount of Transfiguration.” The Transfiguration of Jesus takes place in the
New Testament. Jesus is transfigured or metamorphosed and begins to shine with
bright rays of light. According to Catholic tradition Mt. Precipice is the site
where Jesus leaped from the hill after chased away from the synagogue.
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| Mount Tabor |
After enjoying the views from
the top of Mount Precipice we headed into Nazareth. The city of Nazareth is the
largest Arab city in Israel, with a population of 60,000. The city was once
split evenly between Christians and Muslims, but no nearly two-thirds Muslim.
Nazareth is important in Christian history, as it is the place where Jesus
spent much of his life.
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| The City of Nazareth |
Our first stop in Nazareth was the Church of the Annunciation. The Church of the Annunciation is
located over the site that was believed to be the house of Mary, where the
angel Gabriel appeared and announced to Mary she was about to give birth to
Jesus. Four earlier churches were built on the same location and archeological
excavations in this site revealed early Roman settlements. The current church
is a two-story building constructed in 1969 over the site of an earlier
Crusader-era church. Inside, the lower level contains the Grotto of the
Annunciation, believed by Christians to be the remains of the original
childhood home of Mary. Some of the ruins from the Crusader-era church are
visible in the construction of the current Church of the Annunciation.
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| The Church of the Annunciation |
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| Inside The Church of the Annunciation |
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| St. Joseph's Church |
Our next stop was St. Joseph's Church which was walking distance from The Church of the Annunciation. St. Joseph’s Church is a Roman
Catholic Church, which was built in 1914 over the remains of a 12th
century church. The caves, granaries, and wells in the lower level were used by
the early dwellers of Nazareth. Later, Christians turned the site into a
worship place. Travelers who had visited the place in the 7th
century pointed out that this had been the location of the “Carpentry Shop of
Joseph”. Later traditions identify the place as being “The House of Joseph”.
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| Nazareth Synagogue |
Before making our last stop we made a short visit to the Nazareth Synagogue. According to the tradition, the
Nazareth Synagogue where Jesus preached stood on this spot (Luke 4:16). From
the late twelfth century onwards, pilgrims reported visiting a church on the
site in Nazareth. Adjacent to the Synagogue Church, is the parish church of
Nazareth’s Greek Catholic community, which was built in 1887.
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| Baklava |
Our last stop in Nazareth was a bakery where we sampled some fresh made Baklava. Baklava is a sweet pastry filled
with nuts (often pistachios) or fruit and sweetened with honey or another type
of syrup.
After visiting Nazareth we headed
toward the Sea of Galilee, the largest freshwater lake in Israel. The Sea of
Galilee is approximately 33 miles in circumference, 13 miles long, and 7 miles
wide. The lake is approximately 150 feet deep. At levels between 705 feet and
686 feet below sea level the Sea of Galilee is the lowest freshwater lake on
Earth and the second-lowest lake overall (after the Dead Sea).
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| The Sea of Galilee |
Our first stop before we reached the Sea of Galilee was the Jordan River Baptismal. Yardenit or “little Jordan” is a
popular baptism site. At Yardenit the water flows from the Sea of Galilee into
the Jordan River, and eventually runs into the Dead Sea. This site is believed
to be the actual site Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist (Matthew 3:13). Many Christian pilgrims stop at Yardenit and
perform baptism ceremonies, typically in small groups accompanied by the group’s
pastor.
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| Jordan River Baptismal |
The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes is a
Roman Catholic Church on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. The current
church was built in 1982 and sits on the site of two earlier churches. The interior of the Church of the Multiplication has a
central nave and two aisles. An apse backs the sanctuary with transepts on
either side. The 5th century mosaics found within the church are the
earliest known examples of figured pavement in Christian art in the Holy Land.
The mosaics depict plants and animals from the Galilee. In the front of the church and under the altar,
is a rock. This rock is believed to be the place on which Jesus laid the 5
loaves when he fed the 5,000. The old church was actually built around this
rock. Mosaics
found in front of the altar depict two fish flanking a basket containing loaves
of bread.
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| The Rock Where Jesus Fed the 5,000 |
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| Inside The Church of the Multiplication |
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| Inside The Church of the Multiplication |
Out
next stop while visiting the holy places around the Sea of Galilee was the Church of
the Twelve Apostles, which is located in the northwestern corner of Capernaum.
This Greek Orthodox Church was built in 1931 and forms the shape of a cross. The small, red-domed Greek
Orthodox Church of the Seven Apostles marks the site to which the village of
Capernaum was relocated following the earthquake in 746. Beautiful frescos of scenes taken from the
New Testament fill the interior walls of the church.
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| Church of
the Twelve Apostles |
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| Beautiful Dome Inside the Church of
the Twelve Apostles |
Our last stop for the day was the
Mount of Beatitudes. The Mount of Beatitudes refers to a hill in northern
Israel where Jesus is believed to have delivered his important Sermon on the
Mount. A church, monastery, hostel, gardens, and farm are located on the hill.
The current Basilica of the Church of Mount of Beatitudes was built around
1936. The verses and symbols
related to the sermons are written on mosaics on the floor of the church and
around the altar. The ceiling walls have the shape of an octagon and on each
side there is a window with one of the verses of the beatitudes (i.e.-blessed
are the poor in spirit). The church is Byzantine in style with a marble veneer
casing the lower walls and gold mosaic in the dome. In front of the church are
mosaic symbols on the pavement representing Justice, Prudence, Fortitude,
Temperance, Faith, Hope, and Charity.
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| Church of Mount of Beatitudes |
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| Dome Inside the Church of Mount of Beatitudes |
Jerusalem
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| A Rooftop View of Jerusalem |
On Saturday our guide took us to Jerusalem. Our first stop was
the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives is an important location to several
faiths. As for the Christian faith, there were several important events in the
life of Jesus that occurred in various locations on the Mount of Olives. For
instance it is believed Jesus taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer at Pater
Noster Church and he was historically betrayed and arrested at the Garden of
Gethsemane. On the northern end of the Mount of Olives is where the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem is located on an area called Mount Scopus. The Jewish
faith has acquired a large portion of the mountain and uses it as a burial
ground (approximately 150,000 are buried throughout the Mount). They believe
the Messiah will come from the Golden Gate and will arrive facing the Mount of
Olives. Thus, he will arrive facing the Mount of Olives and anyone buried there
will be the first ones to greet the Messiah.
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| The Many Graves Along the Mount of Olives |
The Golden gate is located on the
east walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, leading to the temple mount. The
Ottomans built the present walls of Jerusalem in 1540. The gate was sealed in
1541 AD in order to prevent the Messiah’s entrance, which according to the
Jewish tradition will enter this gate. According to Christian religion, Jesus
is the Messiah; according to tradition, he entered through the Golden gate on
the Sunday before Passover ("Palm Sunday") riding on a donkey.
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| The Golden Gate |
The temple mount is the place where the Biblical temples were
built, starting with King Solomon almost 3,000 years ago. The temple was built
in 3 phases (Solomon, Zerubbabel, and Herod) and was destroyed by the Romans.
The temple was never rebuilt again by the Jews, but was replaced by Muslim
shrines in the 8th C AD which stand there today over the ruins of the base of
the Roman period temple. The dome of the rock shrine with its large golden dome
and an octagon structure was built in 691 AD. The rock, according to Muslim
tradition, is the spot where prophet Mohamed ascended to heaven. The shrine
is located in the center of a raised platform which itself is in the center of
the temple mount.
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| Old Jerusalem and the Dome of the Rock |
The Basilica of Agony (Church of all Nations) is a Catholic
Franciscan church, built in 1924 by donations from many nations. A large
mosaic picture covers the front of the church facing the temple mount. The
colorful mosaic depicts the story of Gethsemane, showing Jesus in
the center weeping over the future fate of Jerusalem - the destruction of the
city by the Romans (which actually happened 40 years later). Before the church
is the grove of the ancient olive trees. The entrance to the complex is on the
north side, which opens to the north garden. The title reads "Hortus
Gethsemane" or the garden of Gethsemane. According to the New Testament,
this place was the site where Jesus had his last prayer before he was betrayed
and arrested by the Romans. Its name (Gat Shemanim - means in Hebrew: oil
press) came from the olive press that was used to process the olives. The
Basilica's roof has 12 grey capes. In the ceiling these capes, are dedicated to
one of the 12 nations that contributed to its construction. Their seals
are located on the corners of the capes.
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| Garden of Gethsemane |
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| Church of all Nations |
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| Inside the Church of all Nations |
The Via Dolorosa or “Way of Grief” is a street
within the Old City of Jerusalem believed to be the path Jesus walked carrying
his cross on the way to his crucifixion. Station number 5 Simon of Cyrene
carries the cross. According to Christian tradition this hollow was an imprint
made when Jesus stumbled and rested his hand upon the wall to keep his balance,
and the touch of centuries of pilgrims has smoothed out the stone and made the
depression deeper.
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| Station Number Five |
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is
a church within the Christian Quarter of the walled Old City of Jerusalem. The
12th century structure is located on the traditional site of
Golgotha (the Hill of Calvary), the crucifixion and burial site of Jesus. The
courtyard on the south side of the church is where the main door is located.
There is a pair of doors, but the right door is blocked off. On the right side
are stairs, which lead to the Catholic’s Chapel of the Franks, the 10th
station on Via Dolorosa or “Way of Greif” (stripping off Jesus garments). Just
inside the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is the Stone of
Anointing. According to tradition this is the spot where Jesus’ body was
prepared for burial. The stone of anointing welcomes visitors, who kneel, pray
and kiss the stone. Above the stone are lamps, each donated by
one of the denominations. Inside the Holy Sepulchre, the Rock of Cavalry
lies beneath the Altar of the Crucifixion. A long line of people wait for their
turn to touch the site where the cross was erected and Jesus died. We chose not
to wait, but to view the Rock of Calvary through the glass cases on either side
of the altar. The Rotunda is located beneath the larger of the church’s two
domes. In the center of the Rotunda is the chapel call the Aedicule, which
contains the Holy Sepulchre. The Aedicule has two rooms, the first holding the
Angel’s Stone, which is believed to be a fragment of the large stone that
sealed the tomb and the second is the tomb itself. Due to the fact that
pilgrims lay their hands on the tomb, it was placed in the fourteenth century a
marble plaque on the tomb to prevent further damage to the tomb.
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| Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre | | | | | | |
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| The Entrance to the Holy Sepulchre |
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| Crosses Carved in the Wall by Crusaders |
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| The Aedicule and the Holy Sepulchre |
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| The Rock of Cavalry
lies and the Altar of the Crucifixion |
The Abbey of the Dormition is an abbey located on top of Mount
Zion commemorating the memory of Virgin Mary, in the traditional site of her
death. The complex was built in the beginning of the 20th century
over the ruins of a Byzantine church. It was on the spot near the site of the
last supper that the Virgin Mary died.
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| The Abbey of the Dormition |
The Last Supper Room is a second-story room in Jerusalem, which
commemorates the “Upper Room” in which Jesus shared the Last Supper with the
disciples. The room is located directly above the Tomb of David and near the
Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion. The present room was built in the 12th
century, but it is believed it stands over or near the original site of the Last
Supper. The original church was destroyed by fire in 614. The Last Supper Room is a mostly empty, rectangular room with pillars and a groin-vaulted
ceiling. The capitals on the pillars are mainly 12th-century and Gothic in
style. There are traces of 14th-century paint on the wall just inside to the
right of the door.
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| The Ceiling of The Last Supper Room |
Bethlehem, Jericho, The Dead Sea, and Masada
Our last full day in Israel started with a drive to the city of
Bethlehem or “House of Bread”. A Palestinian city located in the central West
Bank, neighboring south Jerusalem, with a population of about 25,000. The
Hebrew Bible identifies Bethlehem as the city of David and the New Testament
identifies Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus.
The main attraction in Bethlehem is the Church of the Nativity. This basilica was originally commissioned
in 327 AD by Constantine and his mother over the site traditionally considered
to be located over the cave that marks the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth. The Church of the Nativity is the oldest standing church in the
Holy Land. Underneath
the present floor are beautiful mosaics of the earlier church. The church built
at the direction of Constantine’s mother was octagonal in shape, typical of
Byzantine memorial churches. The Church of the Nativity is designed like a
typical Roman basilica, with five aisles formed by Corinthian columns and an
apse in the eastern end, where the sanctuary is. The church features golden
mosaics covering the sidewalls, which are now largely decayed. The church also
features a large gilded iconostasis and complex array of lamps throughout the
entire building.
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| Inside the Church of the Nativity |
The adjoining Church of St. Catherine is a Roman Catholic
Church, built in a more modern Gothic revival style. This is the church where
the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem celebrates Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. The
Grotto of the Nativity is an underground cave located beneath the church enshrining
the believed site of the birth of Jesus. The exact spot is marked beneath an
altar by a 14-pointed Silver Star set into the marble floor and surrounded by
silver lamps. The altar in the Grotto, marks the site where it is believed Mary
laid her newborn Baby in the manger.
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| Church of St. Catherine |
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| The Alter in the Grotto of the Nativity |
After leaving Bethlehem our next stop was the Mount of Temptation. The Mount of Temptation is traditionally regarded as the mountain
on which Christ was tempted by the devil during his 40-day fast (Matthew 4:8).
Mount Quarantania is a mountain approximately 1,200 feet high located about 7
miles northwest of Jericho. Atop the Mount of Temptation is the Greek Orthodox
Monastery of the Temptation. A 4th-century Byzantine monastery was
built on the ruins of a Hasmonean-Herodian fortress. The present Monastery of
the Temptation was reconstructed at the end of the 19th century. In
the valley of The Mount of Temptation, Jewish priests and Levites traveled the
winding road from Jericho to Jerusalem when it was their turn to minister in
the Temple. In the time of Jesus, approximately 12,000 priests and Levites
lived in Jericho.
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| Mount of Temptation |
After our history lesson at the Mount of Temptation our guide took us to the city of Jericho. Jericho
is believed to be one of, if not the oldest cities in the world. Archaeologists
have unearthed the remains of more than 20 successive settlements in Jericho,
the first of which dates back 11,000 years (9000 BC). Jericho is described in
the Hebrew Bible as the “City of Palm Trees”. It is known in Judeo-Christian
tradition as the place of the decisive Battle of Jericho, which secured the
Israelites, return to the Promised Land from bondage in Egypt. Nearby is the
Spring of Elisha, or Sultan's spring, where the prophet sweetened the water (2 Kings 2). This is the source of
water for the oasis. The oasis of Jericho is about 390 meters below sea
level and has warm and pleasant winters. It was because of its warm winters,
Jericho was chosen as the site for the winter palaces of the kings of the Hasmonean
dynasty, and of King Herod.
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| Spring of Elisha |
After leaving Jericho we headed to the Dead Sea for a relaxing afternoon float. The
Dead Sea or “Sea of Salt” is a salt lake. The surface and shores of the Dead
Sea are 1,401 feet below sea level and the Earth’s lowest elevation. The
Dead Sea is 1,237 feet deep making it the deepest hyper saline lake in the
world. A hyper saline lake is a landlocked body of water that contains significant
concentrations of sodium chloride or other mineral salts, with saline levels
surpassing that of ocean water. The Dead Sea is roughly 8.6 times saltier than
the ocean. This salinity makes for a harsh environment in which animals cannot
flourish (hence its name).
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| The Shore of the Dead Sea |
The Dead Sea is 42 miles long and 11 miles wide at
its widest point. The unusually high salt concentration means that people can
easily float in the Dead Sea due to natural buoyancy. The Dead Sea has
attracted visitors from around the Mediterranean basin for thousands of years.
Biblically, it was a place of refuge for King David and one of the world’s
first health resorts for Herod the Great. Daily 7 million tons
of water evaporates but the minerals remain, causing the salt content to
increase and the Dead Sea is shrinking. Because of the dropping level of the
Dead Sea, the southern end is no longer under water, except for that which is
channeled by aqueducts for the purpose of extracting minerals.
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| Floating in the Dead Sea |
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| Floating in the Dead Sea |
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| Rock Covered in Salt Along the Shore of the Dead Sea |
Our last stop of the day was Masada. An ancient fortification situated on top of an isolated rock plateau. It was
the last and most important fortress of the great Jewish rebellion against Rome
(66-73 AD). Masada is located on a diamond-shaped flat plateau. The hill is
surrounded by deep gorges, at a height of roughly 440 meters above the Dead Sea
level. Herod the Great built palaces for himself on the mountain and fortified
Masada between 37 and 31 BC.
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| Masada |
