Image Details

Győző Vörös

A HERODIAN PLEASURE PALACE. The size and grandeur of the Herodian palace are apparent in this theoretical cutaway view of the fortress (from the south). Alexander Jannaeus’s original Hasmonean-period structure mostly consisted of defensive walls with little regard for interior luxury. The major renovations under Herod the Great included a courtyard with a royal garden, a Roman-style bath, a triclinium for fancy dining and formal peristyle courtyard lined with porticoes. The newly redesigned fortress shares architectural similarities with Masada and other fortresses west of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea.