Fraidees Mountain contains some incredible buildings and architecture that were built during the early Roman period. Most of the buildings were constructed during the reign of Herod the Great. There are many amazing ruins that have maintained the interest of archaeologists worldwide. The magnificent palace houses many rooms that leaves an explorer breathless. This site has seen revolts, crusaders, and other historical occasions. Click on to any of the following to learn more about this extraordinary site.

• Location
• History of the Site
• History of the archeological excavation
• Description of the site
• Actual situation of the site

Location:

The site of Herodion (or Arabic Jabal Al Fraidees) lies 10 kms. east of Bethlehem and 15 kms. south of Jerusalem. This location proved to be a blessing for its inhabitants when the Romans failed to conquer the mountain during the Jewish revolt of 60-70 AD.Herodion was conquered only after the capture of Jerusalem itself, and the defenders of the mountain chose to commit suicide collectively rather than surrender to the Romans, the same way their comrades did in Massadah and Mckarius.

History of the Site:

The mountain and most of the buildings at the site were constructed in the Early Roman Period, particularly during the reign of Herod the Great 37-4 BC. The work was completed around 20 BC and is the only work of Herod that bears his name. The palace was inherited by Herods' son Arkhilaous who governed Palestine between 4 BC and 6 AD. After his death, the place was turned to the Roman governors of Palestine. In the year 66 AD Jewish rebels, known as the Zealots, took over the mountain and kept it for 4 years until they were defeated by the Romans. The place was then abandoned until 132 AD until Jewish revolt broke up once more. This revolt was crushed by the Romans in 135 AD. Between the 4^th and the 7^th centuries AD, the place was occupied by a large group of Byzantine monks who inhabited the foot of the tell until the Muslim conquest. During the crusaders' era, a group of Franciscan crusaders occupied the hill before it was conquered again by the Muslims. It seems that the recent name of the locality has something to do with those Franciscans. The Arabic name is similar to the name used by some European travelers "Mountain of the Franks." Some interpret the name Fraidees to mean paradise from the Arabic ferdaous, a name designating the magnificent garden that was built by Herod in lower Herodion.

History of the archeological excavation on the site:

Although the site has attracted the attention of researchers very early on, organized archeological research at the top of the mountain did not start until 1962. The foot of the mountain was not excavated until 1972. In the period between 1962 and 1967, a mission guided by the father Van Gilio Corio from the Franciscan Custodia di Terra Santa in Jerusalem, lead an exploration at Herodion, and he discovered most of the buildings that are seen on the hill today. Most of the buildings were erected during the reign of Herod the Great, and some date to later eras till the Byzantine period. From 1972 to 1987 a mission from the Hebrew University, under the supervision of Ehoud Nizer, conducted ten seasons of excavation in Herodion, particularly at the foot of the hill.

Description of the Site:

The mountain has a conical shape cut from the top. It is composed of a natural hill to which an artificial one has been added. The site includes what could be considered the greatest architectural achievement of Herod. It was utilized as a summer palace, a shelter in times of danger, a regional capital, and a burial place for the king.

Yosefos, a contemporaneous historian to Herod, gave a magnificent description of the palace and of Herod's funeral ceremony, when his corpse was brought from his winter palace in Jericho to Herodion in 4 BC. However, the place of the his tomb has not yet been located.

According to Yosefos' narrative, the way to the top of the hill was through 200 white marble stairs in the northern side of it. Remnants of those stairs still exist. Today, the way to the summit is to zigzag from the south western side of the hill, and it takes fifteen minutes to climb.

Most of the grand buildings that were in existence at the time of Herod became ruins. However, archeological excavations have revealed the remnants of numerous buildings belonging to different eras which may have belonged on the hill or at its feet. The site can be divided into two main parts:

1. Upper Herodion: On the top of the hill, 60 meters above the level of the butte, there lies a circular building that represents the royal palace or the royal castle. This belongs to the Herodion era. The castle consists of two circular walls separated by a corridor with a width of 3.5 m. The diameter of the external wall is about 62 m. At the eastern part of the wall, stands a great cylindrical tower 18 meters in diameter and sixteen meters high. The wall is supported by other three semi-circular towers in the west, north, and south. The entrance of the castle is located to the north of eastern two, and it is 3.5 meters width and leads to a vault that ends at the palace garden.

The circular planning of the Upper Herodion was not common in ancient architecture; therefore, Herodion represents a unique archeological site.

There were many other discoveries made at the Herodion site: there was a developed water system, composed of a number of wells. The wells have a depth of about 15 meters and are connected to the palace by stairs scraped in the rock. There is also a big water basin, to which water was brought on the backs of animals from the foot of the hill. Secret tunnels, used for escape in case of danger, were also found in the hill. Temples and big halls used for celebrations were also discovered. Complete bathrooms, churches, buildings, and other archeological things belonging to Roman time and the successive eras, particularly to the Byzantine era, were also discovered. The palace can be distinguished into two major parts:

Eastern part: This represents the first half of the palace and contains a garden (12.5 x 33 m) surrounded by pillars from three sides and a wall from the fourth (eastern) side. To the south and north of the garden, there are two crooks with two pillars at the entrance of each. To the south of these crooks, there exists two rooms leading to the palace. The palace has two other entrances to the east of the side crooks.

Western part: This is divided into two parts by a grand cross shaped hall, where the Roman bath occupies the Northern part of the parts. The bath is considered as the most beautiful part of the palace. It is adorned in a magnificent way and contains a mosaic covered floor. by. It includes a warm room (Tepedarium) with a circular shape and is 4.15 m in diameter. This is covered by a dome of 5 m in height. There is also another hot room (Caldarium) and cold room (Frigidarium). The southern part is rectangular in shape (10.6 x 15.15 m) and contains 4 pillars for supporting the ceiling. There is a northern entrance that contains two windows. It has additional doors in the northern and southern walls that lead to other rooms in the palace. In these rooms there exists some indications of a second floor that furnished living rooms and bathrooms. There are signs pointing to the existence of a third floor in the corridor found between the walls and the northern tower.

2. Lower Herodion: The Lower Herodion is found at the foot of the mountain. The excavations have revealed the existence of several buildings and constructions. In Roman time, it seems that the Lower Herodion was a big city with a surface area of about 60 dunums. Herod built a grand Roman garden, 110 x 145m in dimensions. The center of the garden is occupied by a big pool (70 x45 m) that provides stairs in the 4 corners leading to the floor of the pool. Water used to be brought to the pool through a canal from Irtas springs, Solomon's pools, to the South of Bethlehem. It is believed that the pool was used for swimming, for the sailing of small boats, and a strategic storage of water. In the center of the pool there is a cylindrical building of 13.5 m in diameter. This was probably used for rest and pleasure. Out of the prominent discoveries in this part is a number of palaces and their annexes, most of them concentrated around the pool. These belonged to Herod's family, his friends, and the employees of the administration. The most important of these discoveries are: a bathroom, one of the biggest Herodion bathrooms; big magazines of 130 x 55 m dimensions. Recently, a theater was discovered near the pool, and to the south of it there was a square building that was used as a center for the palace. At the peripheries of this building there is a road of 350 m in length; archeologists think that it was built purposely for the funeral ceremony of Herod. To the western side of the road existed ruins of other buildings. It is believed that these are some way connected to the tomb of Herod. However, the tomb itself has not been discovered yet.

Most of the discoveries in the site belong to the Herodion era. Very few additions were added in the proceeding eras. Out of these additions: a Jewish temple (synagogue), purgatories, and about 300 tunnels in the hill were built during the Zealots and Parkokhian eras. In the Lower Herodion , the Byzantine built three or four churches and other buildings.

Actual Situation of the Site:

At the foot of the Fraidees Mountain stands a small Arabic village called Za'tareh. On the land of this village, a military Jewish settlement, Takou', was built. The site is protected is under the authority of the Natural Reserve Authority. Tourists are permitted to visit the hill and the tunnels during specified hours, and the visitors have to pay fees of about four dollars. However, the situation of the Lower Herodion is worse, even though free visits are permitted. Until now, the responsibility of the site has not been transferred to the National Authority because it is found in Zone C where