Caesarea National Park, A work in Progress

Caesarea National Park:  A Work in Progress

April 30,2017

Caesarea National Park is a remarkable archeological site with ruins of multiple Roman, Byzantine, and Crusader structures, many of which are built on top of their predecessors.  Many have been prepared for public visits, others are undergoing current work, some are just bits and pieces, and many are projects for the future.  I will deal with those we actually visited.

Let's start with one of the bits and pieces.  Irene is shown below with the foot of what must have been a huge statue.  One can only guess at its height, perhaps fifty feet (no pun intended).

At the south end of the complex is the oldest ancient theatre in Israel. It would seat 4000 spectators. Toward the end of the Byzantine period it was converted into a castle.  The current layout would require a drone to capture the grand scope of the theatre.

Just west of the theatre one can see the excavated remains of what was once an impressive palace with a rectangular pool.  Archaeologists believe that the pool may have later served as a fish market.

It may have looked something like this:

A 250 meter long amphitheater was built by King Herod to seat up to 10,000 spectators for chariot races and other sporting events.  The view below from the south end is right where the chariots would make a tight turn and head back north.  The would often perform 20 laps around the amphitheater in a single race.

There is a prominently displayed modern artistic rendition of a chariot.

A luxurious public bathhouse was built over part of the spectator seating after Herod's amphitheater ceased to function.

At the north end of the amphitheater are several long parallel vaults which served as the substructure of a palace built later for the Roman financial procurator.

 Next we see a project underway

and one for the future:

Herod built a large artificial harbor with a 400 meter long breakwater, as shown in the illustration below.  The harbor was the cornerstone of Caearea's commercial success.  An earthquake and numerous storms damaged the harbor repeatedly. Eventually, it filled with silt and became a residential area.

The Romans built an aqueduct to bring water from the nearby hills.  The water sources was so low that it was engineered with a gradient of only 20 co per kilometer.

These aquaduct arches sit right on the beach.

  

The Park was also home to beautiful spring flowers.