The promontory palace at Caesarea Maritima: preliminary evidence for Herod's <i>Praetorium</i>

Gleason, Kathryn; Burrell, Barbara; Netzer, Ehud; Taylor, Laurel; Williams, Jeff

doi:10.1017/s1047759400017189

Cited by 35 publications

(14 citation statements)

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“…Flavius Josephus (Jewish Antiquities 15.331) called it the "most magnificent palace". It was constructed on a promontory in two stages (Figures 2 and 3; Gleason et al 1998): the first phase ("Lower Palace") was built around a large rock-cut decorative pool, probably between 22 and 15 BCE (Levine & Netzer 1986). Netzer interpreted a series of small rectangular cuttings around the pool as evidence for planters between the columns (Levine & Netzer 1986), providing a garden effect.…”

Section: The Promontory Palace At Caesareamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Netzer interpreted a series of small rectangular cuttings around the pool as evidence for planters between the columns (Levine & Netzer 1986), providing a garden effect. The second phase À the "Upper Palace" À was built for the inaugural festivities of the city in 10 BCE (Gleason et al 1998). The latter integrated the Palace into the structure of the city, and was associated with the adjacent theater and stadium/hippodrome.…”

Section: The Promontory Palace At Caesareamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…74/73À4 BCE) in his palace in Caesarea, which was excavated under the name Promontory Palace by the team of Netzer, Gleason, and Burrell (Levine & Netzer 1986;Gleason et al 1998). The name was also adopted by Porath, who excavated part of the complex on behalf of the Israel Antiquity Authorities (IAA) (Porath 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Herod the Great was known as the greatest builder in ancient Jewish history and was responsible for several colossal building programs throughout his kingdom. Archaeological excavations have revealed the existence of gardens within and around Herod's palaces and monumental buildings in Caesarea, Jericho, Machaerus, and Herodium (Figure 1;Netzer 1981Netzer , 2001Netzer , 2008Gleason 1993Gleason , 2014Gleason et al 1998;Evyasaf 2010;Netzer et al 2010;Gleason & Bar-Nathan 2013). Several archaeobotanical studies have been performed at Herodian sites (Liphschitz & Lev-Yadun 1989;Weinstein-Evron et al 1989;Giorgi 1999;Liphschitz 2007;Lev-Yadun et al 2010;Ramsay 2010), yet none of these were directly linked to the gardens, or aimed to reconstruct the composition of the gardens' vegetation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

Langgut¹,

Gleason

Burrell

2015

Israel J Plant Sci

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This study is the first to successfully address the identification of the botanical components of a garden in the 2000-year-old palatial courtyard of Herod the Great's Promontory Palace in Caesarea Maritima. Based on the extraction and identification of fossil pollen grains, we were able to reconstruct at least part of the garden's flora, which, we argue, could only have grown within the confines of a garden of this splendid seaside palace which was protected architecturally from salty sea spray. The palynological spectrum included, among other taxa, high percentages of Cupressaceae pollen (cypress) as well as pollen of the non-local tree Corylus sp. (hazelnut), which was most probably introduced as an ornamental from the northeast Mediterranean or from Italy. These trees appear to have been accompanied by other ornamental plants (e.g. Salvia and various Rosaceae plants). The choice of flora to be planted in the garden is consistent with our knowledge of prestige Roman gardens dated to Herod's time. This exceptional and magnificent palace, with its luxurious architectural features and its impressive, well-maintained garden, symbolized the power and the abilities of King Herod, the greatest builder in ancient Jewish history.

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Section: The Promontory Palace At Caesareamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Promontory Palace At Caesareamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

Langgut¹,

Gleason

Burrell

2015

Israel J Plant Sci

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“…481-482, 647;2001: pp. 317-319;1999:102-103;Gleason, 1998, respectively. The Hasmonean gardens (Netzer, 2001: pp.…”

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confidence: 97%

The Hellenization of the Hasmoneans Revisited: The Archaeological Evidence

Regev¹

2017

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The archaeological excavations of the Hasmonean palaces in Jericho and the numismatic evidence on the Hasmoneans are examined in order to understand the Hasmonean rulers' approach to Hellenistic culture. They enable us to see not only the extent of Hellenistic influence, but also how and why Hellenistic markers were used. Hellenistic art, swimming pools, bathhouses, and symbols on the coins that represent victory, success, government and power, shaped Hasmonean cultural and political identity. At the same time, however, their scope, meaning, and use were limited by the observance of ritual purity and the maintenance of local ethnic identity. Certain Greek symbols were altered to reflect Jewish religious messages. Thus, the Hasmoneans' adoption of Hellenistic culture, while balanced, mainly served political ends.

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Evaluating ancient coastal wells as sea‐level indicators from the coast of Israel

et al. 2017

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This paper re‐evaluates previous records and adds new data to the relative sea level (RSL; namely the sea level related to the level of the national terrestrial datum) reconstruction in Israel from the last 2400 years based on ancient coastal water wells. Different methods for obtaining the most accurate modern offset between coastal groundwater level and mean sea level are also tested, since this is a crucial component for using wells as reliable sea‐level indicators in the Mediterranean and beyond. Very few, if any, sea‐level studies outside of Israel use coastal wells as RSL indicators; refinements to the methods associated with this indicator type will facilitate their use in other regions. Coastal wells in the study are located within 200 m of the present‐day coastline. The functional age range for the wells is based on site stratigraphy, artifacts, historical records, and the coastal water well typology. These archaeological indicators rely on finding the vertical offset between present‐day coastal groundwater and sea level, and applying it to ancient times. The current study explores two methods to calculate accurate vertical offsets: a) modern averages of the upper aquifer groundwater elevation in the vicinity of ancient wells, which are calculated from 60 years of measurements by the Israeli Hydrological Service; and b) a hydrological model where groundwater elevation is a function of distance from the modern coastline. The model uses a simulation of the coastal aquifer with a two‐dimensional, vertical cross‐section. The modeled approach is found to be preferable. The results show that sea level in Roman times (1st century CE) was similar to present‐day, slightly higher in the Byzantine period (4th to 7th centuries CE), and lower in part of the Early Islamic period (9th to 10th centuries CE). For the later Fatimid/Ayyubid and Crusader periods (11th to 13th centuries CE), RSL reaches its lowest elevations (of about −0.5 m) as previously found. Following these low levels, sea level rose going into the 18th and 19th centuries CE.

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The promontory palace at Caesarea Maritima: preliminary evidence for Herod's Praetorium

Cited by 35 publications

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Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

The Hellenization of the Hasmoneans Revisited: The Archaeological Evidence

Evaluating ancient coastal wells as sea‐level indicators from the coast of Israel

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The promontory palace at Caesarea Maritima: preliminary evidence for Herod's Praetorium

Cited by 35 publications

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Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

The Hellenization of the Hasmoneans Revisited: The Archaeological Evidence

Evaluating ancient coastal wells as sea‐level indicators from the coast of Israel

Contact Info

Product

Resources

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Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea

Pollen analysis as evidence for Herods Royal Garden at the Promontory Palace, Caesarea