Page 182 - DK Eyewitness Travel Guides - The World's Must-See Places

180 ASIA Masada

This isolated mountaintop fortress, around 1,300 ft
(440 m) above the banks of the Dead Sea, is
believed to be the location of the oldest synagogue
SEA in the world. Masada was fortified as early as the
Tel Aviv • •Jerusalem
1st or 2nd century BC and then enlarged and
reinforced by Herod the Great, who added two
luxurious palace complexes. On Herod's death,
EGYPT
the fortress passed into Roman hands, but it was
captured in AD 66 during the First Revolt by Jews
of the Zealot sect After the Romans crushed the
rebels in Jerusalem, Masada remained the last
INSIDE THE FORTRESS
The cliff-top plateau of Masada is surrounded Jewish stronghold. It was heroically defended for A Snake Path
by two walls, 4,593 ft (1,400 m) long and 13ft more than two years before the walls were As an alternative to the cable car, visitors
(4 m) wide. Within, King Herod built palaces, breached by the Romans in AD 73. can reach the fort by hiking up the steep
winding path on the mountain's east side.
barracks, and storehouses. His private retreat,
the splendid northern Hanging Palace,
extended over three terraces, cutinto the cliff
face and connected by steep staircases. The
rooms were lavishly decorated with mosaic
floors. Walls and ceilings were painted to
resemble stone and marble, and elegant ~ Snake Path
columns surrounded balconies and courtyards.
His other residence, the I arger Western Palace,
served as the administrative center and
Upper terrace
contained Herod's throne room and apartments.

THE ZEALOTS Middle terrace
Around the time of Herod's death in 4 BC, the
inhabitants of Masada became embroiled in a
rebellion against Rome. The uprising was led
lower terrace
by Judas of Galilee, founder of the Zealots, a
militant Jewish sect that vehemently opposed
the Romans because of their pagan beliefs.
The Romans crushed the rebellion and took
M a sad a. In AD 66, at the start of the First Jewish
Revolt, the Zealots regained the mountaintop.
They lived among the palaces, using the fortress
as a base to conduct raids against the Romans.
At the time of the Roman siege of Masada,
there were 1,000 inhabitants.

HEROD THE GREAT
Herod was born in 73 BC, the son of a Jewish
father, Anti pater, and an Arab mother, Cyprus.
Herod, like his father, was a practicing Jew
Antipater was the right-hand man of Hyrcanus,
King of Judaea (r 76-30 BC), and instrumental
in Herod's first appointment at the age of
~ Hanging Palace
16 as governor of Galilee. With cunning and Part of the large Northern
ruthlessness, Herod moved up the political Palace complex, this was
ladder. He married the king' s daughter, found Herod's private residence.
favor with his Roman overlords, and was It was built on three levels;
the middle terrace had
ultimately crowned king of Judaea himself in a d rcular ha II used for
37 BC. He embarked on a massive building entertaining, the lower ~ Calidarium WaterGate
program, which included a modern port, terrace had a bathhouse. Masada' shot baths are one This stands at the head of
of the best-preserved parts a winding path that I eads
C aesarea, fortresses such as Masada, and
of the fortress. The columns to the reservoirs below.
the grand reconstruction of the Tempi e in on wh i<h the original floor
Jerusalem. Orthodox Jews, however, considered was raised, to allow hot air to
him racially impure and were incensed by his circulate underneath and heat
the room, can still be seen.
tyrannical rule and his excessive taxes.