Largely untouched for two thousand years, this photograph shows the original Roman access road to Masada, which can still be traveled on foot by visitors. On the western side, this “ramp” was constructed by the Romans as a way to penetrate the…
Mosaic in King Herod’s Palace at Masada. Despite it’s remote location, excavations at Masada have revealed beautiful tiles and mosaics, and balconies with beautiful views of the surrounding country. Masada was taken in A.D. 66 by Jewish rebels who…
Masada, once a fortress in the last Jewish holdout against the Romans, represents bravery and self sacrifice to modern Jews, which ended in the mass suicide of nine hundred rebels. It is now reached by cable car for visitors. In the twentieth…
Masada is a natural fortress which was used by Jews during rebellion against the Romans. It is located near the Dead Sea and some biblical fragments, pieces of the Dead Sea Scrolls, have been located here. In AD 73/74 nine hundred Jewish rebels…
In 1947 a group of Bedouin shepherds happened upon what would be known as the Dead Sea Scrolls. Between 1947 and 1956 both the Bedouin and archaeologists performed a comprehensive search of eleven caves in Qumran, which resulted in the recovery of…
Discovered in August of 1952, Cave 4 is located just a couple hundred feet from the ruins at Khirbet Qumran. It was discovered by a Ta’amireh Bedouin tribesman pursuing a partridge. Cave 4 has been the location for the greatest number scroll…
This photograph was taken in Qumran, the area where in 1947 (or late 1946) the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered by three Bedouin shepherds. The caves are located about eight miles south of Jericho, in present day Israel. In this picture a sign can…
A detail of the Phasael Tower photographed in 1980. Archaeological expeditions have revealed that the tower, built by Herod between 37-4 B.C.E., was incorporated into the First Wall. Three towers were built by Herod, they were razed in A.D. 70. What…
The Phasael Tower is the last extant tower built by Herod during his rule from 37 to 4 B.C.E.. Originally three towers were built on the north-west angle of the First Wall, each equipped with battlements and turrets. The surving section of the…