Roman architecture in
Palestine
byHatoof al-Bawayah 1
Dr. Jawdat Goussous
The geographical location of alestine
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palestine is Located in the Middle East, between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan river, including ad joint lands, Palestine occupies the strategic geographical place and is a crossroad between three continents: Europe, Asia and Africa. It is the land where the three biggest monotheistic religions were born - the Islam, the Judaism and the Christianity.
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During its history, Palestine was under control by many civilizations and thus a crossroad of different religions and cultures. Some of the civilizations who left their inprint here had historical influence on the entire human history. Starting from the Canaanites, Amorites, Ancient Egyptians, Moabites, Ammonites, Tjeker, Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonias, Persians, ancient Greeks and
Romans from ancient
times and antiquity passing to the Byzantine Empire.
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The Roman period in Palestine began when the Roman General Pompey conquered the region in 63 BCE. According to Josephus, Pompey besieged the Temple in Jerusalem (Jewish Antiquities 14.58–67). After breaching its northern wall, he subdued the Judeans and pulled down Jerusalem’s city walls. There is no archaeological evidence of this siege, but this is to be expected.
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An inscription showing the Romans carrying the spoils they got from the Temple
Temple Destruction
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T
he Roman era of Palestine is typically divided into three periods, the Early Roman, Middle Roman, and Late Roman periods.
Early Roman civilization 63 B.C - 70 A.D
Among its events is that the Roman Emperor Trajan decided to rebuild Jerusalem in the Roman style It was named Aelia Capitolina. It has been conquered, destroyed and rebuilt many times and Hadrian played a significant role in Jerusalem’s physical development.
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The Late Roman period 70A.D-324A.D
The era named in the modern historical writings of the Roman Peace. Of construction projects in this period : Two public buildings for archiving, a theater, and a building with three domes, a huge public fountain consisting of four pools, and a building of an unidentified nature called a cadre in Greek. No one was able to locate the buildings. It was ordered to be built by Emperor Hadrian.
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Aelia Capitolina The urban layout of Aelia Capitolina was that of a typical Roman town; an orthogonal plan with a square grid of streets set at right angles. It was a military colony, a traditional and official settlement of veterans of the Tenth Fretensis Legion which had been in Jerusalem since the First Jewish Revolt and probably other Roman troops
Reconstruction drawing showing known monuments of Aelia Capitolina (the Eastern Cardo & Temple of Asclepius are missing)
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The Ecce Homo arch, a triple-arched gateway, built by Hadrian, as an entrance to the eastern Forum of Aelia Capitolina
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the cardos The cities of the Ancient Roman Empire had a special tradition of decorating main roads with spectacular stone columns. These streets were called “Cardo� and Jerusalem, just like any other Roman city, had a Cardo of its own. This ancient street originates at Damascus Gate in the north, running southwards through the Old City, terminating at Zion Gate Evidence for the existence of this ancient Cardo were first found on a mosaic map of Jerusalem. The map was discovered on the floor of a Byzantine church located in Midba town in Moav Mountains. This Midba map served as an ancient graphic source to teach the locals about Jerusalem.
Designing the construction of the city of Jerusalem on a networked system of cities or squares, which is called "hypodamic".
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Parts of the Cardo were exposed during excavation work between Habbad Street and Hayehudim Street inside the Jewish Quarter. The Cardo consisted of a central open-air passage for animals and carriages, as well as sidewalks for pedestrian use from both sides of the street. A few original stores located on the sidewalks were also found at several sections of the street.
Artist’s reconstruction of life in a Western Cardo of Jerusalem during the Aelia Capitolina period
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Reconstructed section of the Cardo Maximus of Aelia Capitolina
Reconstructed southern section of the Cardo Maximus of Aelia Capitolina
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One stone, just above the lintel of the arch, bears a battered Latin inscription with the city’s name under Roman rule, Aelia Capitolina.
The eastern arch of the Northern Gate of Aelia Capitolina beneath the Damascus Gate, built in 135 AD
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B
ab al-‘Amud is one of the prominent examples of architecture in the 10th Century Hijra/16th Century AD, not only in Jerusalem, but in all the towns and cities of Palestine. It is the most beautiful gate of the Jerusalem Wall and the richest in terms of architectural and decorative design, not to mention its size and expansive area.
The northern façade of Bab Al-Amoud is monumental, extending nearly 41.85 meters and rising 16.80 meters until the beginning of the upper terraces of the Wall. The northern façade is comprised of two large towers that flank an entryway 19.95 meters long. The entryway recedes 6.15 meters on the western side and 6.27 meters on the eastern side, presenting the gate at its center. Both recessions lie at an obtuse angle of 110 degrees.
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Bab al-‘Amud is comprised of two sections: upper and lower. The lower section was built by Hadrian (117-138 AD) in 135 AD when he rebuilt the city of Jerusalem and named it Aelia Capitolina. The gate was a grand, memorial entrance comprising three arches, as well as the semi-circular arch that was uncovered by excavations and that can be seen nowadays slightly to the east, below the Ottoman doorway. The upper section was designed and built by the Ottomans.
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Bab al-Amud was known by many names throughout history, such as Bab Nablus (Nablus Gate), Bab Dimashq (Damascus Gate), and Bab al-Qiddis Stephan (St. Stephen’s Gate). The name Bab al-‘Amud, however, is the most wellknown and refers to the column [’amud] that used to stand in the inner courtyard of the gate, welcoming visitors, and featuring a statue of Emperor Hadrian, in keeping with the common practice of decorating Greek and Roman cities with statues of rulers and pagan gods.
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Bab Al-Amud Museum or the Roman Museum The museum is located five meters below bab al-amud.
The entrance to the museum is decorated with an arch that the Romans call the Arc de Triomphe
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The museum contains remains of pottery canals used to transport water to the city in the Roman period The museum also contains huge and pillars of the Roman period in Jerusalem
In the Roman era, the museum used olive presses
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The Antonia Fortress 35 B.C. King Herod rebuilt the Baris, named after Herod’s friend Marc Antony and another of Herod's landmarks. Herod built the fortress to protect the Temple It stood 115 feet high and was partly surrounded by a deep ravine 165 feet wide. It functioned as headquarters for the Roman soldiers, a palace and a barracks. Herod constructed a secret passage from the fortress to the Temple.
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Josephus wrote (War 5.238-246) that the Antonia Fortress was built on a rock that was 50 cubits (86 feet or 26.25m) high. The fortress had towers at its four corners. Its interior had apartments, cloisters, baths and courtyards, and looked like a palace
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The Antonia Fortress that stood at the northwest corner of the Herodian Temple Mount had four towers three of which were 50 he fourth, the southeast tower, 70 cubits
Model of the fortress and the Tedi Gate (small gate with triangular top)
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This schematic line ,the actual relationship between Fort Antonia and the Second Temple.
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the Western Wall
The Western Wall, or “Wailing Wall�, is the most religious site in the world for the Jewish people. Located in the Old City of Jerusalem, it is the western support wall of the Temple Mount. The wall is divided into two sections, one area for males and the other for females.
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The Western Wall in JerusalemKing Herod built the Western Wall in 20 BCE during an expansion of the Second Temple. It is the only remains of the Second Temple of Jerusalem, held to be uniquely holy by the ancient Jews and destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE.
Today, the part of the Wall visible from the plaza is 187 feet long. The entire length of the Western Wall, however, is actually 1,600 feet long. The northern portion of the Wall is still hidden by buildings in the adjacent Muslim Quarter.
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M a s a d a
The story of Masada begins with Herod the Great who built the fortress on an isolated hilltop in the Desert of Judea around 30 BC. in the classic style of the early Roman Empire.
Masada is a rugged natural fortress, of majestic beauty, in the Judaean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea.
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The town climbed on three different levels toward an overhanging area on the northern side of the cliff, where there were baths with a central furnace, underground storage halls and cisterns for collecting rainwater. The fortress became famous for the Roman army’s siege during the First Jewish War and its tragic conclusion.
It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2001.
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Remnants of Camp F, one of several legionary camps just outside the circumvallation wall around Masada
by the Roman Ramp — on the west side of the mountain. It is the shorter and steeper way up. It is the original ramp made by Romans during the Siege of Masada.
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T h e s w i m m i n g p o o l
. They made a water system consisting of many channels collecting the rainwater and transporting it to huge cisterns deep into the rocks. The reservoirs were so big that they could ensure water supply for a long time,
The edge of the Masada plateau
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A shelter for tourists at Masada fortress
View from Masada
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The Roman-style bath at Masada fortress
Palace of Herod the Great
The palace had 3 terraces, reception halls, bath house and a huge storage complex. On the upper level were the bedrooms of Herod and his family.
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to ensure the flawless life in Masada for a long time Herod built a huge storage complex. Near it is the Commandant’s house
The storage complex of Masada
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cave p of a t the r i a r c h s 34
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Cave of the Patriarchs (also known as the cave of machpelah ) Machpelah means “doubled� in Hebrew. One reason given is that four prestigious couples are buried there: Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah.
The cave is now covered by a huge building dating back to Herodian times (about 100 B.C.E.). This building was, in turn, a Jewish Mausoleum, a Byzantine Christian Basilica, a mosque, a Christian basilica again, this time under crusader rule, and then for more than six centuries, a Moslem mosque called Haram el Ibrahimi.
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located in the heart of the Old City of Hebron ( al-khalil) in the southern West Bank(palestine)
The reputed entrance to the cave
The double cave, a mystery of thousands of years, was uncovered several years ago beneath the massive building, revealing artifacts from the Early Israelite Period (some 30 centuries ago).
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An aerial view of the Haram al-Ibrahimi complex. The Arabic name of the complex reflects the prominence given to Abraham in Islam.
The Cave of the Patriarchs as it appeared in 1906.
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One account, by Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela dating from 1163 CE, states that after passing through an iron door, and descending, the caves would be encountered. According to Benjamin of Tudela, there was a sequence of three caves, the first two of which were empty; in the third cave were six tombs, arranged to be opposite to one another.
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sebastia
Sebastia (Sabastiya) is located around ten kilometers northwest of Nablus at the junction of two main historical routes, the northern Nablus-Jenin route and the western route from the Jordan Valley to the Mediterranean coast. The site offers a magnificent view of the surrounding farmland.
Sebastia history Sebastia flourished during the Iron Age II as a regional capital t was captured by the Assyrians in 722 BC during the reign of Sargun II and became the center of the Assyrian province in Palestine. In 332 BC, the city was captured by Alexander the Great. Then, in 63 BC, the city became part of the province of Syria. Emperor Augustus later gave it to Herod, who renamed it Sebaste (in Greek Sebastos is Augustus) in honor of the emperor Severus gave it the name Colonia in 299 AD.
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A large building program was carried out during the Roman period, including the city wall, a gate, a colonnaded street with 600 columns, the basilica, the forum, a theatre, a temple for Augustus, a stadium, an aqueduct, and cemeteries.
Sebastia, which is located on a hilltop that is 440 meters high (one-quarter of a mile), north of Nablus city, is known as the Palestinian capital of Romans, as it is famous for Greek and Roman anti
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The Roman Theater The Theater was constructed in the 2nd century AD on the slopes of Mount Gerizim, and it figures in the famous Madaba Map in Jordan. Its diameter is 110m and used to seat up to 7,000 people.
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View from the top of the theatre
Roman Theatre, with Hellenistic Defensive Tower outside of Sebastia
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Sebastia’s Roman colonnaded street most likely returns to the period (2nd-3rd century AD)
the baptized street starts from the western door with of 12.5 meters , decreasing slightly as we head east . The street extends for a distance of 800 m and ends at the eastern door and public square .
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on the sides of the street is about 600 stone pillars , the lenght of the each with a crown of 5.5 m these pillars carried beautiful corinthian crowns and a ceiling one day , but none of them remained until today .
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Roman Cemetery
it is a cemetery that was established in the first century AD and reused in the second and third century AD.
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Roman graves were built of stone and decorated with animal drawings and plants
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Jerusalem Castle The first building was in the Roman era, but the current construction of the castle in the majority of Islam dates back to the Ayyubids, Mameluk and Ottoman. It was believed that the first to be build it is Herod Al-Edomi in 4-38 BC Located on the western side of the Old Town From the names of the castle: The castle of Jerusalem has many names: “Herod’s castle”, “the castle of Bab al-Khalil”, “the castle of Jerusalem” And the “Tower of David” and this last name used wrongly “to this day and used by Israeli institutions.
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History of the castle: The Romans built the castle of Jerusalem to be a castle of the city protected from any sudden invasion, the construction of the castle was at the weakest point in the Old City of Jerusalem in terms of fortifications compared to its other borders. Since the western part of the city is located in a high area and not surrounded by mountains, the castle is located on one of the four hills on which Jerusalem located.
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The archeological king of the state of Palestine under the Romans, “Herod� the actual founder of the castle of Jerusalem, Although the castle built before he took over the city, he added new additions, including three towers (Fasayel, Hibikos, Maryam), and remained firmly entrenched.
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Herodion the castle and tomb of King Herod
Herod the Great built this monumental fortress and palace on the highest hill in the Judean desert, 15KM south of Jerusalem. Herod was buried in the site which bore his name.
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The plan of the fortress is seen in the illustration below. It is built entirely with hewn (smoothed) stones, and has a unique design: the structure is circular, with four round towers on each direction. Three of the towers stick out of the external wall, and are divided into rooms and levels. The double wall is 63 M in diameter, 35M deep, and looks like a crater inside a volcano since the external walls are hidden behind earth fill.
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The fortress is located on the trimmed-cone hill, and rises 30M (five levels) above the natural stone level. The builders of the fortress used the soil from the lower hill on the north side to cover the fortress with dirt along the side of its walls.
Jebel Fureidis – The mountain is a truncated cone 400 feet high, 290 feet diameter at the top, with sides artificially scarped at an angle of about 35°.
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A view of the top of the hill is seen below, above the entrance to the fortress. On the left side is the eastern tower; in the center is the large courtyard. In the background is the south tower and walls, while the western tower is seen on the upper right side.
the structures inside the top of the hill.
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A view of the south tower is seen in the photo below, where the group is standing. Below is the south portico ( a roofed entrance that is supported by columns and walls).
Below is the north portico, which is located between the bathhouse on the left and the entrance on the right.
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A view of the eastern tower is seen below. It is the largest of the four towers: 18M diameter verses 14M . The tower is different from the other three towers – it expands into the inner section, its base is blocked, and it used to stand high above the fortress. Originally, the tower was built 16M above its base, with 5 floors inside.
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This photo shows the western tower.
Below the western tower are the living quarters, where Herod resided while staying in this summer palace.
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Synagogue and Mikveh When Herod built the fortress, a public structure was built on the south-western side which was used as a reception hall. Years later, during the great revolt (66AD-70AD) the structure was converted to a synagogue, It is composed of a wide room, with benches on three sides, and columns that supported the roof.
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On the north-eastern side of the fortress is the stairway that connects the lower city to the main entrance of the fortress.
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in 2007 a monumental structure was discovered. According to the findings its was initially concluded that this was the tomb of Herod, which was smashed by the Zealots who resented the late King Herod. This exciting finding made worldwide news headlines. However, the archaeologists realized later that the body of the King was located in another chamber, and this structure was only a part of the burial complex. So they kept on looking‌.
In the 2008 season a section on the west side of the stairway was excavated. Perhaps it is the actual burial chamber of King Herod?..
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A Roman bathhouse complex is located on the north-west side. It is composed of several rooms – a cold, warm and hot baths, waiting and entrance room.
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Lower city The lower city is located on the north-west foothills of the fortress. The lower city structures contained offices of the district capital, palace rooms for the visitors and family, Roman garden, and a lake. It extended beyond the modern road, and include another bathhouse and other structures.
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hurch of the Holy Sepulchre Completed in 1149
Considered to be Golgotha, the place of Jesus’s crucifixion as well as his burial, the first church on this site in the present-day Christian Quarter is believed to have been built by Emperor Constantine I in approximately 325 CE. Constantine was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity
It has undergone destructions, reconstructions, and renovations throughout the centuries, but the Church of the Holy Sepulchre that stands today is mainly from the Crusaders’ reconstruction in 1149 CE. pilgrims have travelled far to worship here.
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Plan of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Even today, most popular guidebooks have plans that pre-date the excavation of the quarry and the chapel in 1970-71.
Chapel of Saint Helena
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A mosaic depiction of Christ's body being prepared after his death, opposite the Stone of Anointing
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The Dome of the Anastasis above the aedicule
Tourists, pilgrims and locals at one of the two access gates to the Holy Sepulchre courtyard, photo by Bonfils, 1870s
The main dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, c. 1905, view from the north-east with the bell-tower to
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Front view of the Aedicule
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Roman ruins in Palestine are many and in different regions there. Most of them have been mentioned in history and have been found or remains of them, and most have not been found, as they may have been destroyed by earthquakes, wars, or intentional destruction. I talked about many of them.
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