A New Discovery at Machaerus Shines Light on Herod’s Temple

Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology & Heritage Studies, 2021

Excavations conducted in the first half of the twentieth century at Samaria-Sebaste uncovered an Augusteum, surrounded by additional Roman-period structures. A compelling hypothesis is that these buildings served as a royal compound belonging to Herod himself, although until now archaeological remains connecting the structures specifically to Herod have been lacking. Here I will examine the function and historical significance of eight stepped pools discovered throughout this compound. I will argue that these pools should be regarded as Jewish ritual immersion pools that date to the time of Herod the Great or his successors. This suggestion will lead us to explore the obvious question: How could Jewish ritual baths have coexisted in such close quarters with a pagan temple? I will suggest that this ostensibly surprising juxtaposition of ritual structures has much to teach us about the pervasiveness and tenacity of Jewish adherence to Torah Law at this time.

Three stepped water installations were discovered within the grounds of the Beth She‘arim necropolis during excavations at the site in the 1940’s and 1950’s. A reexamination of these installations on-site has revealed that these in fact served as ancient ritual baths (miqwa’ot) which functioned as an integral part of the 3rd–4th century CE Jewish cemetery. This revaluation was aided by an inspection of the original excavations plans, published here for the first time. The practice of situating ritual baths adjacent to tombs, which prima facie would appear to stand at odds with standard halakhic norms, is in fact a practice well grounded in the halakhic tradition reflected in the Talmudic literature.

B. Zissu*, D. Amit** *Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel **Israel Antiquities Authority Jerusalem, Israel A CLASSIFICATION OF THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD' JUDEAN MIQWA’OT (RITUAL IMMERSION BATHS)

This study surveys the archaeological evidence of Jewish ritual baths (miqwa’ot) built adjacent to tombs, dating variously from the late Second Temple period through the 3rd – 4th centuries C.E., and analyses this evidence in light of the halakhic sources. At first glance, this archaeological phenomenon would seem to stand at odds with normative halakhah, which mandates miqweh ablutions for corpse-impurity only at the end of a seven-day purification process. A careful reading of the scriptural and rabbinic sources, however, reveals that while a seven-day purification process is required for one who has contracted impurity directly from a corpse or a grave, impurity conveyed through an intermediary source (i.e. physical contact with one who has contracted direct corpse-impurity) may be purged through ablutions on the same day that the impurity was incurred. This study suggests that miqwa’ot adjacent to tombs were utilized at the conclusion burial ceremonies by funeral participants had contracted such “second-degree” impurity.

BYU Studies Quarterly, 1996

Benjamin Mazar's excavations near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem uncovered a great number of ritual baths (miqwaof). These have been mentioned in Mazar's reports, as well as by Reich (1990: 87-93, 218-230).1 The functional use of these miqwaot, however, has generally been taken for granted and was not examined in light of the historical and halakhic sources. Here it will be suggested that their proximity to the Temple and their possible use according to rabbinical and early Christian sources was associated with a special purity practice related to the Temple cult: an extra-purification of an already ritually pure person, before the entrance to the sacred domains of the Temple. The Public Ritual Baths near the Temple Mount2 Two small baths were located near the southern wall of the Temple Mount, between the two so-called Huldah gates (dimensions: 3x4.8 m.; 1.4x4 m.; see Mazar 1975: 146; Reich 1990: 220, nos. 17 y and 18 y). Another bath was built close to them. South of the staircase leading to the Huldah gates yet another bath was found. Another bath was found beneath the eastern (Triple') Huldah gate, probably built prior to the Herodian extension of the Temple Mount to the south, and Reich has suggested that it was still in use during the Herodian period as an underground bath.3 Near the southwestern corner of the Temple Mount, in the vicinity of Robinson's Arch, five ritual baths were excavated in the spaces beneath the monumental staircase.4 An additional seven baths were located in its closest proximity, but may have been connected to private houses (Reich 1990: 224, nos. 3-7, 11 d>). Another one, underneath 'the House of the Menorot', was 1 The full report of Mazar's excavations is still unpublished. 2 Ritual baths that may have been used in private houses, especially those located over 50 m. south of the Temple Mount, are not included in this survey. A huge bath surrounded by staircases, which was probably used for immersing large objects (Reich 1990: 92), is also irrelevant to our discussion.

'Atiqot 113, 2023

Excavations at the southern tip of the ancient city of Jerusalem uncovered four pools from the Early Roman period: two, Silwan Pool and Birkat el-Ḥamra, within the city walls, and two smaller pools on the outskirts of the city. This paper provides archaeological data that supports the identification of Birkat el-Ḥamra with Solomon’s Pool and the Silwan Pool with the Siloam Pool, both of which are mentioned in contemporary historical sources. Furthermore, the function of the pools is discussed: the larger, Solomon’s Pool, seems to have been an open swimming pool, while the Siloam Pool was used for ceremonies and ritual immersion of pilgrims arriving at the city in the late Second Temple period.

Levant, 1997

Palestine Exploration Quarterly, 2017

A significant number of water pools existed in Jerusalem in the Late Hellenistic and Early Roman periods. The pools constitute an archaeological phenomenon that should be analysed in its own right. No other city in the region had so many stand-alone large pools in its urban landscape. This paper offers an explanation of this phenomenon based on its cultural, historical, and archaeological context. The article discusses the corpus of pools, including the dating, the methods of later collection and their possible use in light of similar water installations that were common in this period. In the analysis of the pools’ appearance in Jerusalem, the paper examines the broader context of the phenomenon—water utilisation by Jewish society in the time of the Second Temple before 70 AD. The conclusion drawn is that the pools are a manifestation of the wide-scale pilgrimage movement to Jerusalem that emerged in the Late Second Temple.