The Synagogue at Meroth: Does It Fix Israel’s Northern Border in Second Temple Times?

Home > Magazines > BAR > March/April 1989

Remains from more than a dozen ancient synagogues dot the landscape of Galilee. What makes the ancient synagogue at Meroth (May-ROTE) unusual is not only the rich finds uncovered in its excavation, but the face that so much about this synagogue seems to fly in the face of widely accepted scholarly generalizations. Until recently, no one even knew about the existence of the Meroth synagogue. Usually, ancient sites are discovered either by accident—someone unexpectedly stumbles on remains—or as a result of a systematic search in the course of an archaeological survey. The site of Meroth, however, was discovered in […]

Please join the BAS Library or become an All Access member of BAS to gain full access to this article and so much more.

Join the BAS Library!

Already a library member? Log in here.

Institution user? Log in with your IP address or Username

Footnotes

“Genizah Collection at Cambridge University Preserves 2,000 Years of History,” BAR 08:05. See also, Raphael Levy, “First ‘Dead Sea Scroll’ Found in Egypt Fifty Years Before Qumran Discoveries,” BAR 08:05.

Since this paragraph was written, Meyers has changed his mind and now accepts our view—as we will elaborate below—relating to the location of Josephus’s Meroth.

James F. Strange and Hershel Shanks, “Synagogue Where Jesus Preached Found at Capernaum,” BAR 09:06.

Ze’ev Yeivin, “Has Another Lost Ark Been Found?” BAR 09:01; “Ancient Chorazin Comes to Life,” BAR 13:05.