Thousands of years ago, Herodium stood tall and proud in the desert outside of Jerusalem. The thriving settlement was a magnificent sight as it had imposing walls structured all around it. The highly fortified Herodium was built for Judean King Herod the Great.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Rumor has it that Herodium was not only a palace and formidable fortress for Herod. It was said to also be Herod’s burial site. But this has not been proven for decades until a group of archaeologists made a remarkable discovery.
Moving the palace to the desert
Herodium was a thriving settlement that housed everything that a king would want at that time. There was a theater and Herod had his own ornate royal box. There was also a local bathhouse in case the king wanted to relax.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Herodium was Judea’s second city so it was easy for Herod to move government offices and residences there. But a lot of historians wondered, why did the great king move the center of his kingdom from Jerusalem to the desert?
A son’s tribute to his mother
It happened that Herod chose that area to build his fortress because this was the area where he thought he lost his mother. This happened when the Parthian Empire conquered Judea and Herod declared allegiance to Rome, fleeing Jerusalem in the middle of the night with his family and an army of men.
Source: Scientific Mirror
The area had a rocky terrain and the wagon that carried Herod’s mother overturned. Herod was on the verge of suicide after thinking that he had lost his mother but was grateful that she survived. In tribute to his mother’s survival, Herod vowed that he would be buried in that area when his time comes. But was he really buried in Herodium?
A king is crowned
Let’s start from the beginning. When Herod was fleeing Jerusalem with his family and men, he was the governor of Galilee back then. When he retreated to Rome, he used his father’s close relationship with the Roman Empire to kick start his political rise.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Herod had the favor of the imperial authorities – they liked him enough to be given the title King of Judea. With his new title and power, Herod stormed Jerusalem in 37 BC and took it back from the Perthians for the Roman Empire. With the Roman Empire backing him up, Herod easily expanded his kingdom and wealth.
Loyal to Rome
Since the Roman Empire was the one who crowned him king, Herod was naturally loyal to Rome. However, a large group of Judea’s people did not welcome their new king. Herod was Jewish but seemed to put power and money over his faith and the people.
Source: Scientific Mirror
When Herod installed a golden eagle at the Temple in Jerusalem, the people were angry. The eagle was a symbol of Rome and its presence on a sacred site was too much. A rebellion had followed after the eagle was installed, showing how the people felt about their new king.
The making of a tyrant
Herod was very aware of the unsatisfied masses but he did not give in to the rebellion of his people. Instead, he retaliated with mass executions. Everyone who was accused of being a threat to Herod’s power was killed off.
Source: Scientific Mirror
The mass executions earned Herod the reputation of being a tyrant. His fearsome reputation spread all over the land and to nearby kingdoms as even relatives of Herod were not spared from the executions.
Creating a big family tree
Herod was also known for taking in a lot of wives. In fact, he was married at least 10 times. All these unions produced a lot of children, some of which would be victims of Herod’s bloodthirst later on.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Although Herod had made a reputation of being a king that should be feared, he was also very paranoid. All throughout his reign, it felt like he was not able to trust anyone – not even his wives and heirs.
A fatal mistake
Herod’s bloodthirst was often not justified. He made the fatal mistake of executing Mariamne, his favorite wife. It all started when the king accused Mariamne of having an affair. The accusation had hurt Mariamne and caused her to withdraw her affections. The paranoid Herod took it as a sign of guilt and not as a reaction to his accusation.
Source: Scientific Mirror
This caused him to order Mariamne’s execution. By the time Herod discovered that Mariamne was telling the truth and she was never unfaithful, it was too late. She was already put to death. Instead of feeling regret, he also had his mother-in-law executed for taking his side over her daughter and backing up his decision to execute Mariamne.
Cutting off family
Herod also had a habit of dispatching his family as they had the closest chance to take his crown. He became more paranoid, killing off his brothers-in-law for perceived betrayals. His children were not even safe around Herod. Three of his sons were executed for alleged betrayals as well.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Eventually, King Herod’s habits of cutting off family ties literally has reached Rome. Emperor Augustus managed to joke about the gruesome news, saying that “It’s better to be Herod’s pig than his son.”
The prophecy
If Herod’s own children were not safe from his wrath, what more the children of others? Apparently even babies could not be spared. This proved to be true when a prophecy irked the king and put a lot of toddlers at risk.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Three wise men visited Judea looking for the King of the Jews – who we know was Jesus. They then spoke of the prophecy, which angered Herod. The king was threatened so much by an infant that could overthrow him someday. This caused the king to commit his most violent act.
Massacre of the innocents
As we have heard the Bible stories, King Herod tried to stop the prophecy by giving out an order that all male children under the age of three in Bethlehem should be killed. No questions asked.
Source: Scientific Mirror
It was said that more than 14,000 children were slaughtered under Herod’s command. The number was not that accurate though but even if it was just a handful of babies, it did not make Herod’s cruel command less horrifying.
Herod’s karma
It turns out that the cruel king had his just desserts towards the end of his reign. Herod became very ill. The ruler suffered from shortness of breath, palpitations, and abdominal pain. The team who looked over the king’s well-being was unsure of what to do.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Back then, medicinal knowledge was very limited. The ruler’s team bathed him in boiling oil as an attempt to cure him but of course, this only made things worse for Herod. As a result, Herod became temporarily blind.
Modern diagnosis
In a 2006 conference, doctors from the University of Maryland were challenged to give King Herod a diagnosis based on the symptoms he had, which were recorded in ancient texts. If modern medicine knowledge was available at that time, what could have been the king’s diagnosis?
Source: Scientific Mirror
The Maryland conference declared that King Herod was suffering from kidney failure. All but one of his symptoms fit the description. But it was also noted that the symptom that stood out may point to a more unpleasant sickness. This diagnosis is not pretty.
Herod’s demise
It seemed that Herod was in a lot of pain months before his death in 4 B.C. The ancient texts had claimed that Herod had gangrene in his genitals. In fact, the area had maggots feeding on the dying tissue.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Turns out this is actually possible and there is a diagnosis for it. Today, this thankfully rare condition is known as Fournier’s gangrene. This was a very painful condition, which meant Herod had his karma in the end.
Ambitious construction projects
Although Herod the Great was known for his paranoia and cruelty, his reign was also decorated by complex construction projects that stood out at his time. His projects were mostly ambitious for that time period but they were delivered and the results were amazing.
Source: Scientific Mirror
During the early years of his reign, Judean territory expanded and had a lot of civil engineering successes. Some of these buildings built by Herod are still around to this day, declared as heritage sites. You can take a day tour in most of these sites too!
Masada
Herod created the fortress, Masada. The fortress had a Herodian castle with cisterns, storerooms, and a large wall for its perimeters. Herod built Masada as a winter escape. Recognizing, its defensive advantages, it also became a haven where he can hide from enemies.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Masada is an ancient fortress found in the Judean Desert. It sits on a huge plateau that overlooked the Dead Sea. Today, the ancient fortress is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is said that it takes about an hour or more to climb all the way up to the fortress and less than an hour to go down.
Herod’s third palace
Herod’s third palace was considered to be one of the most magnificent structures built under his reign. It was said that the builders came from Italy, making the palace stand out from the rest of Herod’s palaces.
Source: Scientific Mirror
The third palace of Herod housed a sunken garden, a big pool, a bathhouse, and an actual river. The gardens of the palace were said to be the best among the world. Today, you can still visit its ruins in Biblical Jericho.
Caesarea
Herod was also responsible for building the port town Caesarea, which took 12 years to complete. Caesarea had its own aqueduct, amphitheater, deep dock, and chariot racing stadium. The town was named after Augustus Caesar, who gave the land to King Herod.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Today, you can visit the ruins of the port town since the site was turned into a national park. All the ancient facilities are still there. The site is declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Aside from the ruins in the area, tourists love to snorkel and dive in Caesarea too.
Herodium
But the most ambitious construction project of King Herod was Herodium, also known as Herodion. The compound was enormous enough to be declared as Herod’s biggest project and it was the most lavish one.
Source: Scientific Mirror
As mentioned earlier, the town was created to uphold King Herod’s oath – to be buried where his mother had survived an accident. And so, King Herod concentrated on creating an elaborate tomb during the final decade of his life.
The enormous feat
Herod had not thought of the fact that the site he vowed to be buried in was almost 10 miles away from Jerusalem. However, he stayed true to his word. When he was crowned King of Judea, workers in the region went to the desert to start building Herodium.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Given its distance from Jerusalem, an aqueduct had to be constructed to keep the toiling workers alive in the heat. The project was indeed a monumental feat that would befit a great king.
Making his own mountain
The mountain where Herodium sat was actually man-made. Workers were able to create the mountain by moving a lot of soil until it formed a foundation that was strong enough to support his palace.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Herod had his palace built at the summit of the mountain, giving Herod an impressive view of his kingdom. At this position, the palace can also be seen from miles away in all directions.
Herod’s death
When Herod died in 4 B.C., it was said that the king had an extravagant ceremony in Herodium and that he was eventually laid to rest somewhere in the fortress. As far as everyone knew, Herod’s remains stayed there.
Source: Scientific Mirror
After the death of Herod, Herodium was abandoned over the years and fell to ruin. Eventually, the mighty fortress was claimed by the sands of the desert and the fortress was forgotten. Herodium wouldn’t be rediscovered until the 19th century.
Herodium unearthed
When Herodium was identified and found in the early 19th century, several archeological teams came to uncover the impressive facilities that Herod built. The cisterns, tunnels, and pipe systems were found. So were the ruins of the palace and bathhouses.
Source: Scientific Mirror
But none of the teams who have come and gone could find Herod’s tomb. The search for Herod’s tomb became an archaeologic puzzle. They started to question if Herod, was indeed buried in Herodium.
Where was Herod?
Judging from the ancient text and the accounts of historians who have witnessed Herod’s burial, you would think that the king’s tomb would be easy to find. The fact that numerous teams have come and go but still could not find the tomb was puzzling.
Source: Scientific Mirror
The search for Herod’s remains became a desirable quest for archaeologists from around the world. The discovery would be a big deal for their careers. Multiple digs were happening at the summit and the base of the mountain to find the tomb of the Biblical tyrant. But no one could find a clue as to where the remains are.
Meet Ehud Netzer
Ehud Netzer was just one of the many archaeologists who were looking for Herod’s tomb. Netzer was an Israeli architect, educator, and archaeologist who was quite known for his extensive excavations at Herodium.
Source: Wikipedia
Netzer first started digging at the foot of the mountain, where he believed he could find the tomb. By 2005, it had been 30 years since he first started excavating at Nerodium only to find nothing. So that year, he decided to change his strategy.
Change of plans
In 2005, Netzer decided to start a new dig in the mid-way point of the mountain. This was when Netzer noticed a wall section that looked odd from the rest of the walls that had been already uncovered in Herodium.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Netzer and his team started excavating on their new site. A year had passed and they found nothing. Instead of letting the disappointment get to the best of them, Netzer encouraged his team to push on.
Hope uncovered
It was not until 2007 that Netzer and his team started to see their perseverance pay off. The team hit on fragments of pink limestone. It was also noted that the slabs were heavily decorated, suggesting that something special was nearby.
Source: Scientific Mirror
Netzer and the team got excited at what they found. They sifted through the soil and started digging more carefully. And as expected, Netzer’s years of efforts in Herodium were finally rewarded.
Sarcophagus unearthed
Netzer and his team found a lavish sarcophagus in their dig. The sarcophagus was heavily decorated that Netzer thought it was a tomb worthy for a king. This could be the archaeological find that he has been working hard to find for almost four decades!
Source: Scientific Mirror
Once the sarcophagus was found, further discoveries were also unearthed. It was found that there were other sarcophagi in the area though they were less lavish. There was also a huge reception area and an enormous set of stairs.
Is it Herod?
Netzer’s team made a huge discovery in Herodium but doubts have been made whether the lavish sarcophagus really held King Herod’s remains. There were no goods around the grave that referred to Herod and the sarcophagus was unmarked.
Source: Scientific Mirror
However, experts stood by Netzer and agreed that King Herod’s remains may never be found, thanks to his loyalty to Rome. In fact, 60 years after Herod’s death, it was recorded that Jewish rebels had raided Herod’s tomb and destroyed it, scattering his bones as a strong message of defiance against Rome.
No identifiable markings
The sarcophagus and the burial site that Netzer and his team discovered had no identification or markings that indicated anything about King Herod. Some would even argue that the sarcophagus was not that lavishly designed enough to befit a great king.
Source: Scientific Mirror
The absence of an inscription means that the sarcophagus could belong to any wealthy, high-status individual during Herod’s time. Netzer’s claims were challenged by other archaeologists.
Netzer’s defense
Netzer defended his claim by pointing out that at the time of Herod’s death, the Jews do not add any inscriptions to their burial caskets. This could easily explain the lack of markings on the sarcophagus.
Source: Scientific Mirror
If King Herod was really the owner of that sarcophagus, we will never know. The discovery has been challenged even after Netzer’s death. The team leaders who took over Netzer’s project still stands by Netzer’s claim that the sarcophagus is Herod’s tomb. But no matter what, there is no denying that Netzer and his team had unearthed precious ruins and evidence from an ancient time.
