Masada A Desert Fortress In Israel

If you are interested in visiting ancient sites like fortresses and castles then you would surely love to see Masada, Israel. Masada located in the Southern District of Israel is an ancient fortification. It is located on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert at the top of a rock plateau. Masada is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Israel.
Masada has been declared as a world heritage site by UNESCO. One of the most important parts of Masada is the northern palace, which was built by Herod the Great. It clearly depicts the ancient siege system of the Roman Empire which has survived for so long. The strong and well developed siege system shows how the powerful Roman Empire used to be.

The northern palace is attractive because of the way it was built. The palace seems to be hanging off the brink of the cliff and still it has survived for so long in the same position. It is attached to the northern cliff edge. There was a fabulous public wash house at the top of the peak, 29 storerooms and 12 gigantic water holes where the flood water was carried. Combined, the water holes covered 40,000 square meters.

Masada was surrounded by a strong double wall, which was a difficult task considering the location of the fortification. The wall was built along 600 meters length and 300 meters width of Masada’s peak. Romans have always been known to love luxury.

Thus the fortress was not just a fort, but was also a royal citadel with big palaces, some smaller palaces and a state-of-the-art bathhouse. The smaller palaces might have been for Herod’s family.

At the time of Zealots, the palaces were converted into headquarters and public buildings. The horse stable was changed into a synagogue. Two Jewish water “Mikveh” places were also built. The coins found at the site depict the year of the great rebellion.

Now the tourists can visit the site by a cable cart or by one of the two walking paths, i.e. the embankment path and the snake trail. Tourists can also enjoy the story of the last Jewish settlers of Masada by an audio visual spectacle.