M A S A D A

Masada, tragic fortress in the sky; For three brave years, the freedom fighters on this rocky plateau — known as the Zealots — managed to hold back 10,000 Roman troops armed with every contemporary siege weapon. Finally, a battering ram breached the wall.

When you glance at it from the highway, Masada looks much like any other mountain in the Judean desert. Yet it was on these heights, and in the middle of this dreary landscape, that King Herod the Great erected a luxurious desert fortress. And it was here, as well, that a group of besieged and desperate Jews fought the Romans with inhuman valor, then placed their belongings in a corner, set each pile afire, and committed a well-publicized mass suicide.

Declared a United Nations World Heritage Site in 2001, Masada National Park features a sand-colored Visitors’ Center which hugs the slopes, a fascinating, interactive museum, and a  thrilling audio-visual production. But the most exciting portion of a visit to Masada is a tour of the mountaintop — which is accessible by foot, for stalwart hikers, or by way of special, wheelchair-accessible cable cars.

According to Roman-era historian Josephus Flavius, Jews first fortified Masada during those often exhilarating decades after the Maccabees vanquished the Greeks and tossed them out of Israel. Indeed, coins discovered on the mountain date back to the days of Alexander Janneus (103-76 B.C.E.), one of the Hasmonean (Maccabee) kings.

King Herod, who ruled Israel on behalf of the Roman Empire at the end of the first century B.C.E., was the next to build up the mountain. A brutal ruler, justifiably paranoid, the king enlarged and beautified the Jerusalem Temple and built splendid cities, fortresses, and villas during his regime. As a result, he has gone down in history as Herod the Great.

He first put Masada to use soon after being appointed King of Judea by the Romans. Jerusalem was attacked by the Parthians and Herod fled to Petra, after first sending his family to hide out at Masada. It was only some years later that he began his massive construction on the mountain: two luxurious palaces, a swimming pool, several lavish bathhouses, and a giant water system that seemed to raise Masada out of the desert.

The largest building on Masada is the western palace, where Herod apparently conducted business. Remains of the elaborate bedrooms include some gorgeous mosaic floors with geometric shapes and fig and pomegranate decorations.

Near two of Herod’s bathtubs is an enclosure whose inside walls are dotted with square holes. Believe it or not, this was a large desert swimming pool and the holes were lockers for bathers’ clothes! To provide water for his pools, bathtubs, cisterns, and bathhouses Herod built an intricate system of aqueducts and reservoirs that utilized winter floodwaters sucked from the riverbeds and retained in mountainside reservoirs.

Herod’s sumptuous northern palace is located on the highest part of the mountain. Built on three levels along the northern edge of the cliff, it commanded magnificent views of the Dead Sea, the adjoining mountains, and the desert. A steep descent leads down the slopes while other stairs ascend to a tower.

An earthen ramp was erected by thousands of Jewish slaves whom the Romans brought to Masada especially for this purpose. They were sure that the Zealots would hesitate to shoot at their brethren and, in fact, they were right

The palace’s elaborate bathhouse is decorated with splendid frescoes, and its entrance included a covered, plastered pool with colored walls where people cleansed themselves before going into the sauna. They then entered — first the tepid room, then the hotter rooms.

Gazing down from a bridge on the mountaintop, you can clearly make out a donkey trail that leads to and from one of Herod’s huge reservoirs. Apparently people high on the mountain loaded donkeys with jugs, smacked the beasts on the behind, and sent them down to the reservoir. There, the jugs would be filled, the behinds whacked again, and up they would come with water.

Well below the mountain are remains of eight Roman military camps. Following Herod’s death, a garrison remained to guard Masada. At the beginning of the Great Revolt (67-73 C.E.), in which the Jews of Israel rose up against the Romans, a band of daring rebels overcame the mountain’s guards and took over Masada. They were known as the Sicarii because of the dagger, called a sica, which they carried on their bodies.

After the fall of Jerusalem, and destruction of the Holy Temple in 70 C.E., hundreds of Jews joined the Sicarii on the mountaintop. These brave men, women, and children, dedicated to the eradication of pagan rule in the Land of Israel, are known as Zealots. Their harrowing tale has become an eternal symbol of the Jewish fight for freedom.

Rolling stones, ammunition of the Zealots (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)

During those electrifying years, the Zealots lived inside the double walls, known as casement walls, with which Herod surrounded Masada. Among the findings in their simple lodgings were nutshells, eggshells, and other homely residue.

The synagogue on Masada is one of the oldest in Israel, and was probably used for worship by Herod’s family. During the Great Revolt, Masada’s defenders made a number of structural changes: using stones taken from the palaces, they added several columns, combined the entrance with the prayer hall, and added stone benches. Fortunately, for these extremely observant Jews, the house of worship already faced Jerusalem.

In 73 C.E., after the Great Revolt had been savagely subdued, the Romans decided to put an end to the last pocket of resistance: the freedom fighters of Masada. For three years, the Zealots had managed to keep the Romans off the mountain. Now, however, nearly 10,000 troops tried starving the Jewish rebels — and when that didn’t work they utilized every conceivable kind of contemporary siege weapon in an effort to break through the seemingly impregnable fortress. Finally, they breached the wall.

Visitors can look down from the peak to view the embankment that the Romans built in order to wheel a battering ram up to the wall. And – yes – you are looking at a battering ram! This one, however, was used in a 20th^-century cinematic epic calledMasada starring Peter O’Toole as Silva.

The embankment, an earthen ramp, was apparently erected by thousands of Jewish slaves whom the Romans brought to Masada especially for this purpose. They were sure that the Zealots would hesitate to shoot at their brethren and, in fact, they were right.

When it became clear that the end was near, Zealot leader Elazar Ben-Yair called his people – 967 men, women, and children – together. He reminded them that they had long ago resolved to serve God only, and not the Romans nor any other master. He called upon them to die as free men and women, rather than face capture and slavery by the pagan conquerors.

His heartrending and moving speech persuaded the Zealots to commit suicide before the expected dawn attack by the Romans. They burned their belongings and their weapons, leaving food so that the Romans would know that they had died of their own free will and had not perished of hunger.

Lots were drawn and 10 men were chosen as executioners:  the rest lay side by side and bared their necks. At the end, one Zealot killed the other nine and then took his own life. It was the first day of Passover, the holiday in which the Jews celebrate their freedom from bondage.

Masada rainbow (photo credit: Shmuel Bar-Am)

In an historic find during excavations on the mountain, 11 pottery shards were discovered in a room nearby. Each fragment bore a name, including that of “Ben-Yair,” the Zealots’ leader.

Note: Masada is a National Park that opens at 8:00 and closes at 17:00; last entrance at 16:00. There is an entrance fee. Much of the site is wheelchair accessible and there are wheelchairs available in the Visitors’ Center.

Second note: a fabulous exhibit on Herod just opened up at the Israel Museum.

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This article is adapted from a chapter in Aviva Bar-Am’s book: Israel Travels from Metulla to Eilat.

Shmuel Bar-Am conducts private, customized tours of Israel – seehttp://www.israeltravels.com.

Masada the Movie with Peter O’toole

Masada/מצדה

CARMEN AT MASADA IN ISRAEL

MASADA, Israel. Opera lovers have until this coming Sunday to go see Bizet's masterpiece in a very special venue in Israel, out in the open, in the desert, at the foot of the historic fortress of Masada. The Israeli Opera and its philharmonic orchestra are giving their interpretation of Carmen. Close to 50 000 visitors are expected to attend. Our reporter filmed the very last rehearsal before the curtain officially goes up.

Masada National Park: A World Heritage Site Breathtaking Masada, located on an isolated mesa in the Judean Desert, is one the most dramatic historic sites in Israel.

Masada is located on an isolated mesa in the Judean Desert, the steep and erect slopes to which rise to a height of more than 400 meters above the Dead Sea. The combination of cliffs and escarpments in a desert region has given the place a natural defense system.
Despite its natural fortification, King Herod encircled the flat top of Masada with a strong wall (which was made up of two parallel walls). This is not a trivial task, as the length of the peak of Masada is about 600 meters and its width, at the center, is 300 meters.
Masada was not just built by Herod as a fort, but a royal castle with large palaces, a sophisticated bath house and smaller palaces which were intended to serve Herod’s family.
The top level had four bedrooms and a semicircular balcony, from which there was a spectacular view of the Dead Sea, Ein Gedi, and the Moab Mountains. A sophisticated and hidden staircase led to a middle level in which a large hall was built, surrounded by a veranda whose poles were placed at the edge of the cliff. The staircase went down to the bottom level, in which a large hall surrounded by vestibules was established. The walls of the hall were decorated with spectacular frescoes. A private bathhouse was built adjacent to the hall for the occupants of the northern palace.
At the peak were 29 large warehouses, each one 27 meters long. Excavations of the site found hundreds of pottery vessels in which huge amounts of food were stored. Thus, using a rare combination of natural conditions and human endeavors, Masada became a cliff that was almost impossible to conquer.
The great halls of the palaces were unsuitable for housing families, and thus became headquarters and public buildings.
The building near the north wall, which served as a stable in the days of Herod, was later turned into a synagogue. This is one of the Jewish people’s most ancient synagogues, known to be in use during the period of the second Holy Temple in Jerusalem, an unusual occurrence as synagogues became the accepted place to pray only after the destruction of the second Temple.
The Masada defenders also built two halakhic ritual baths, which conform to present day halakha. Since they date from the period before the Oral Law was written down in the Mishna, this is an indication of halakhic accuracy and continuity.
Most people lived in the wall’s casements and in little buildings constructed next to it. This can be seen by the convection ovens and food storage alcoves. In the rooms that had not been burned by the Romans were found personal effects such as clothing, leather tools, baskets, and houseware. Many of the items were found in piles of ashes, indicating that they were burned on purpose by their owners so as not to fall into enemy hands.
At the beginning of Judea's Great Revolt against Rome in the year 68 BCE, the site was taken over by Jewish zealots, and it became their last stronghold.  They held out for three years, but in the year 72 the Romans besieged Massada and succeeded in reaching the steep fortress aftes constructing a huge earthen ramp on its western side, which still exists today.  In the year 73, according to Josephus Flavius'  account of the Jewish Wars, the 960 Jewish zealots living at the top of Massada chose to commit suicide by killing one another rather than to fall into the hands of the Romans alive. Two women were supposed to have survived. Their deeds left behind a saga of courage, heroism, and martyrdom.
The IDF conducts ceremonies for recruits at Massada in the spirit of  the motto of the pre-state Jewish defense force, the Hagana, that   "Massada will not fall again."
More than 5,000 coins were discovered in Masada, most of which were minted during the period of the revolt. Particularly exciting are silver coins with Hebrew inscriptions such as “Israeli Shekel” and “Holy Jerusalem”.
The Israel Nature and Parks Authority invests considerable resources in the preservation of Masada, and is assisted in this by some of the world’s best professionals. By rebuilding the walls that collapsed and completing destroyed buildings, Masada’s original look is recreated. The conservation and recovery are done using materials with the same composition as materials used in ancient times. This form of recovery is important especially when treating frescoes, murals, mosaics and other artistic elements.
Today religious ceremonies such as Bar Mitzvah ceremonies are held in the synagogue. During these ceremonies a Sefer Torah is brought up the mountain and is read from on Mondays, Thursdays and Chol Hamoed.

Bocelli at Masada

"It was almost as complex as building a new town, but we succeeded in bringing Bocelli to Masada"

After establishing six new towns and building the National Information & Relocation Center for populating the Negev & Galilee, bringing Professor Nouriel Roubini to lecture during the 2009 sub-prime economic crisis and producing Broadway shows supporting the Negev & Galilee; OR Movement marked up another achievement: A concert saluting the Negev & Galilee featuring legendary opera tenor Andrea Bocelli

Advancing the populating of the Negev & Galilee is not just establishing new towns or developing the area; to the OR Movement, the change includes a complete switch in the national thought process. 

A year and a half ago Professor Nouriel Roubini arrived to lecture at the economic conference in Israel as an honored guest and friend of the OR Movement, during the 2009 sub-prime economic crisis.  Since then, the organization has produced two separate fundraising events on Broadway for the Negev & Galilee, an international photography competition about the Negev, and on a daily basis, leads visitations from Knesset members, ministers, businessmen/women, artists and actors throughout the peripheral regions in Israel.

At last Sunday night, the NGO marked up another achievement, thanks to a partnership with the Israeli Opera and the Tamar Regional Council. This concert, saluting the Negev and Galilee at Masada features opera legend Andrea Bocelli, in which proceeds will go towards the completion of the first and only Negev Visitor Center to be opening next year in the Bloomfield Family Gateway to the Negev, in the heart of the old city of Be'er Sheva.

From left: Veronica Berti, Roni Flamer, President Shimon Peres, Andrea Bocelli, Dov Litvinoff and Ofir Fisher

Renewing values of old, with a modern touch

"The idea of bringing Andrea Bocelli to perform in Israel began three years ago during a conversation with one of our donors, Karen Abramson. We then decided to start talks with his people, while seeking sponsors for the event.  At a certain point we understood that this task may be a bit too big for us alone", explains VP and Co-Founder Ofir Fisher.  "Karen Abramson told the CEO of the Israeli Opera Hanna Munitz about the idea, which as it turned out was shared by all of us including Esther Mor from Hadassah WIZO.  She then turned to the Italian Ambassador in Israel Luigi Mattiolo.  It was through the Ambassador, a proposal was sent to Bocelli, who agreed to come to perform in Israel, and the rest is history".

"More often than not, people ask us about the connection between these events and these famous people coming to the Negev and Galilee", relates CEO of OR, Roni Flamer.  "People ask us what is the connection between OR and Professor Roubini and the economic conference?  What is our connection to the site visits with Governor of the Bank of Israel Stanley Fischer?  What is our connection with Ambassadors from foreign countries, movie makers and incredible artists like Andrea Bocelli?

"The answer is, we want to connect as many people as we can to the Israeli, Jewish, Zionist mission", Flamer explains.  "To renew old values with a modern touch; to speak in the language of young adults our age willing to take part in this mission on the tough issue of populating the Negev and the Galilee. We need to aim high and connect anyone we possibly can to this mission, anyway at all and in every corner of the world".