It wasn’t the gaunt, majesty beauty of this remote mountain location that elevated this desert fortress to mythical proportions; nor the fact that the archaeological ruins we were touring, once part of Herod the Great’s elegant mountain-top stronghold, included one of the oldest synagogues in the history of mankind.
 Talk about a room with a view! |  It took about 30 years to complete construction of King Herod's mountain-top retreat. |
Masada, Israel’s number one tourist attraction, includes a narrative of epic proportions that, according to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, makes this Dead Sea Judaean desert mesa, “a symbol both of Jewish cultural identity and, more universally, of the human struggle between oppression and liberty.”
Masada exuded a haunting reminder of the siege that some suggest figures prominently in the Israeli psyche today,
Where did everybody go?
a siege artfully portrayed in the short film presented in the Visitor’s Center
Catch the 1981 ABC "Masada" miniseries starring Peter O'Toole courtesy of Netflix.
prior to our 1300 foot ascent to the top of this rocky plateau via cable car.
For the more adventurous souls, a hike up "the Snake", a long, winding path, takes you to the top.
It was classic history with just enough mystery to keep me wondering to this day: was it really mass suicide?
Most historical information about Masada comes from the 1st-century Jewish Roman historian Flavius Josephus. According to Josephus the site was first fortified by Alexander Jannaeus, who lived sometime between 106-75 BCE. The second occupant, Herod the Great, arrived at Masada with his family in 40 BCE following a power-struggle that resulted from the death of his father, Antipater. Herod left his family, his brother Joseph, and 800 men at Masada to defend it against a siege made by Antigonus while he made his way to Petra.
Whoa! Jimmy and I made our way to Petra also while we were in the neighborhood! You don't want to miss this stunning red-rock Nabataean wonder. Now, back to King Herod.
With the threat diminished, Herod spent years transforming Masada into a luxurious fortress. Seems Herod was a bit paranoid when it came to his throne and his safety; he even had several of his own family members killed.
According to Josephus, “Herod furnished this fortress as a refuge for himself, suspecting a twofold of danger: peril on the one hand from the Jewish people, lest they should depose him and restore their former dynasty to power; the greater and more serious from Cleopatra, queen of Egypt”. And you thought all the tensions in the Middle East were a new phenomenon.
We toured the archeological remains of King Herod’s fortress, which provided evidence his palace once included a Roman style bathhouse,
Most historical information about Masada comes from the 1st-century Jewish Roman historian Flavius Josephus. According to Josephus the site was first fortified by Alexander Jannaeus, who lived sometime between 106-75 BCE. The second occupant, Herod the Great, arrived at Masada with his family in 40 BCE following a power-struggle that resulted from the death of his father, Antipater. Herod left his family, his brother Joseph, and 800 men at Masada to defend it against a siege made by Antigonus while he made his way to Petra.
Whoa! Jimmy and I made our way to Petra also while we were in the neighborhood! You don't want to miss this stunning red-rock Nabataean wonder. Now, back to King Herod.
With the threat diminished, Herod spent years transforming Masada into a luxurious fortress. Seems Herod was a bit paranoid when it came to his throne and his safety; he even had several of his own family members killed.
According to Josephus, “Herod furnished this fortress as a refuge for himself, suspecting a twofold of danger: peril on the one hand from the Jewish people, lest they should depose him and restore their former dynasty to power; the greater and more serious from Cleopatra, queen of Egypt”. And you thought all the tensions in the Middle East were a new phenomenon.
We toured the archeological remains of King Herod’s fortress, which provided evidence his palace once included a Roman style bathhouse,
 Beautiful frescoes were part of King Herod's baths. |  Special heat conducting columns were the secret to the warm, Roman baths. |
70 different administrative buildings,
It was obviously a rocky road when it came to constructing King Herod's desert palace.
8 miles of casement walls along the perimeter,
The third and final building phase at Masada in 15 BCE involved construction of a double casement wall.
30 defensive structures,
Can't have enough defensive structures with paranoia part of the picture.
a synagogue,
Below the black line, fact; above the black line, fiction. Somewhere in between, history.
3 columbarium towers,
All those little cubby holes were for the birds, more specifically doves.
and 12 cisterns, each with a capacity of 140,000 cubic feet. Open channels carried water to the cisterns from two dams that held rainwater from the wadis west of Masada. These guys really knew how to tap into the desert resources.
Plenty of water to go around, even in the desert.
But it was after King Herod’s death in 4 BCE when the real mystery surrounding Masada’s history unfolded, during the Great Jewish Revolt (66-73 CE). During the early years of the Jewish Revolt, the Roman garrison serving at Masada was overthrown by a group of Jewish rebels, the Sicarii, followers of Judas of Galilee. They were so named for the dagger, a sica, they carried on their bodies and used to target other Romans as well as Jews considered to be either collaborators or quiescent in the face of Roman rule.
No, not Sicarii rebels; just a few of my rebel tourist buddies.
By 70 CE, hundreds of Sicarii men and their families, led by Eliezar Ben Yair, made themselves comfortable in King Herod’s old digs. Talk about a room with a view!
Masada sits on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea.
After the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of The Second Temple (the very same Temple King Herod had restored during his reign 74 years earlier and whose ruins Jimmy and I visited) the Romans felt it important to put an end to this last outpost of rebellion.
It took Roman General Flavius Silva three months, 10,000 soldiers, thousands of Jewish prisoners of war, and a gigantic assault ramp on the western face of the mountain to breech the walls of the fortress following a deluge of flaming torches and missile-throwing machines called ballistae.
It took Roman General Flavius Silva three months, 10,000 soldiers, thousands of Jewish prisoners of war, and a gigantic assault ramp on the western face of the mountain to breech the walls of the fortress following a deluge of flaming torches and missile-throwing machines called ballistae.
This is what remains of the assault ramp built to breech Masada.
Only, as the story goes, when the soldiers entered the casement walls early on the morning of April 15, 73 CE, they were met with an eerie silence, the hilltop a “citadel of death” amid the burning buildings.
All but the buildings housing food were burned; the defenders wanted their captures to know they had chosen death, declaring “a glorious death . . . preferable to a life of infamy” as slaves to an oppressive empire.
Historian Josephus also wrote of Eliezar’s stirring speech to the defenders with the end in sight; and of the ten men, chosen by lot, destined to kill all the others; of one of the ten destined to kill the other nine, and then himself.
Despite Josephus attributing his historical account to two women who survived the mass suicide by hiding with five children in the underground aqueducts, archaeological evidence contradicts his version of history. Therein lies the mystery.
Historian Josephus also wrote of Eliezar’s stirring speech to the defenders with the end in sight; and of the ten men, chosen by lot, destined to kill all the others; of one of the ten destined to kill the other nine, and then himself.
Despite Josephus attributing his historical account to two women who survived the mass suicide by hiding with five children in the underground aqueducts, archaeological evidence contradicts his version of history. Therein lies the mystery.
This isn't the aqueduct; more along the lines of a guard house (maybe).
Is Masada the early 20th century story of mythical, heroic Jews perpetuated during the Zionist movement as inspiration for the pioneers forging a future in what was then Palestine? Or were they simply a band of rebels who fell victim to a Roman campaign to squash the last outpost of rebellion?
The only other inhabitants of Masada were Byzantine monks during the fifth or sixth century, CE (Current Era). Thereafter, Masada was forgotten, until two American travelers identified the desert fortress in 1838. The first complete, organized archaeological excavation was conducted by Yigael Yadin in the 1960s.
The only other inhabitants of Masada were Byzantine monks during the fifth or sixth century, CE (Current Era). Thereafter, Masada was forgotten, until two American travelers identified the desert fortress in 1838. The first complete, organized archaeological excavation was conducted by Yigael Yadin in the 1960s.
I'm always amazed at what archaeologists can glean from a pile of rocks and debris.
Suffice it to say, I’m haunted by the history and mystery of Masada, haunted by those 960 inhabitants who lost/took their lives atop this mountain; and always inspired by stories of courage, be it fact or fiction, when it comes to the human spirit in the face of oppression.
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