Image Details

BOAZ ZISSU, BAR-ILAN UNIVERSITY

SALOME’S FAMILY ESTATE. Atop the hill above the entrance to the Horvat Qasra cave complex are the remains of a Judean family estate built in the first century BCE. The main residence featured a substantial building protected by a massive tower and a surrounding revetment wall (visible where person is standing in photo). The large agricultural compound also included a variety of additional facilities cut into the hill’s soft limestone, such as quarries, cisterns, and columbaria (dovecotes). One such installation may have been a ritual immersion pool (mikveh).