Identification and History

Hippos, a Greek city, is situated approximately 2 km (1mile) east of the Sea of Galilee. The town, primarily known by its Greek name, Antiochia Hippos - hippos meaning “horse” - is also known as Sussita in Aramaic.

Hippos was conquered by Alexander Jannaeus (100-76 B.C.). Pompey took it from the Jews in 63 B.C. Augustus gave the city to Herod the Great. After Herod's death it became part of the Province of Syria. During the First Revolt against Rome, the Jews attacked Hippos. The territory of Hippos extended down to the Sea of Galilee. The city was enemies with the Jewish Tiberias on the opposite shore of the lake. Jewish villages east of the lake were included in the Hippos territory.

Remains of ancient synagogues have been found within the territory of Hippos. In the Byzantine period, Hippos was the seat of a bishop. Like many other towns in the Byzantine period, it enjoyed great prosperity, and many churches and public buildings were built. The city was probably abandoned after the Arab conquest at the beginning of the seventh century.

Survey

With the settlement at 'En Gev in 1937, surveys were again carried out at Hippos by members of the kibbutz. The new surveys made a reliable reconstruction of the city, including the positions of public buildings.

Although Hippos was founded in the Hellenistic period, few remains from that time have been found, probably because the town was so small.

After its conquest by Pompey in 63 BCE, Hippos, one of the cities of the Decapolis, was rebuilt. The town layout is essentially that of the Roman period, although many buildings were built later. The city streets ran at right angles to one another. The public buildings stood at the intersections of the important streets. The main street is paved with large basalt flagstones and runs through the center of the town.

In Hippos, water was a valuable commodity; the main water supply was brought from some distance by a specially constructed aqueduct.

Evidence of Hippos in Roman times can be seen in the many architectural remains. The town wall has also been well preserved. On the south side, parts of the wall still stand tall, providing an excellent view of the Roman road.

At the eastern end is a small bluff in which there are caves, tomb doors and other evidence of burials. This place was used as a cemetery by the people of Hippos. Other graves have been found in the west, outside the city walls.

Excavations

Excavations were carried out at Hippos by C. Epstein (1950-1955), M. Avi Yonah (1951), A. Shulman (1951), and E. Anati (1952), on behalf of the Israel Department of Antiquities. Buildings dating to the Byzantine period were found, including houses and a small church. This is one of four churches discovered so far at Hippos and the largest church, excavated from 1951 to 1955.

Like many churches of the period, it was built with an inscribed apse. Two rows of nine marble and granite columns separate the nave from the aisles. The columns were found lying on the floor of the building as the result of an earthquake. The floor was laid in a decorative pattern of colored marble.

It is almost certain that the walls and the apse were lined with marble. One of the white marble panels was found broken. The decoration on the panel shows the entrance to an ornate public building. From its architrave hangs a large round object, perhaps a basket representing the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. Above the molding of the frame is an inscription in Greek that reads, “In the time of Procopius Presbyter.” The back of the panel was decorated with a large dolphin.

Entrance to the cathedral was through three doorways in the western wall. The southern aisle was not completely excavated. The nave was separated from the aisles by two rows of four white marble columns. The floor of the baptistery was covered with colored mosaics, including three inscriptions in Greek and the monogram of Christ. There are three inscriptions of note; a dedication to martyred Saints Cosmas and Damian, the date of the baptistery - January 654, and in the northern aisle the date and the name Procopius (who was responsible for the building of the baptistery and its mosaic floor) are still legible.

The Hippos baptistery is unusual because of the way it was built - the nave and aisles are divided - and because it is dedicated to special saints.

Mount Sussita

In the east, a rocky saddle connects the city to the north-south range. The approach to ancient Hippos was by way of this saddle. Over it ran a massive basalt aqueduct that carried water into the city. Sections of this aqueduct can still be seen within the city, as well as on the saddle ridge.

During the 1952 excavations, 24 sections were found below the main street pavement. Each section is square outside but circular and hollow inside. The sections are joined by spigots and sockets and reinforced with plaster. The aqueduct entered the city at the east gate - the main gate into the city - and continued beneath the main street to the nymphaeum.

The southern pier of the east gate is an important part of the city wall and has been well preserved. A circular tower strengthened the wall. Built into a rocky slope, the lower part of the tower has a stone fill and a thing layer of plaster. The structure of the tower shows two building phases from the Roman and Byzantine periods. On the northern side, only the foundations of the gate pier have survived. From here the wall turns west, at a point not far from the gate. At this corner a two-story square tower was built to command the northeastern entrance to the city.

In the west, the main street stops at a much smaller city gate. This gate provided easy access into and out of the town for farmers. Remains of a well-preserved city wall were also found in the west. Below this city is a steep approach that makes this entrance very dangerous. Beyond the west gate is a group of large rocks, which were most likely used to defend the city against enemies. Graves, dating back to the Byzantine period, were found not far from these rocks.

--The above was summarized from the New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land. It shows the state of knowledge prior to the current excavations.

Many people have traveled, traded and fought in the land called Canaan, Judea, Palestine and now Israel. The land, a narrow strip between desert and sea, is a kind of a bridge linking Africa, Asia and Europe.

Hippos is in the northern part of modern Israel. The mountain on which the city was built rises 350 meters over the Sea of Galilee — but the lake itself is 209 meters below sea level, so the mountaintop is only about 140 meters above sea level. The floor of the Northeast church is about 130 meters above sea level.

The Mediterranean Sea is 40 miles west of Hippos. Jerusalem is about 90 miles to the southwest. Damascus, the capital of Israel's sometime enemy Syria, is just 75 miles to the northeast.

At Hippos, rain from late October until April turns the grass green. In January, flowers cover the mountain. When the rains stop in late spring, grasses wither and die in the heat.

Jesus lived and preached on the Sea of Galilee, or Lake Kinneret as it's called here. Fishing craft and tourist excursion boats now ply the freshwater lake, which is 13 miles (21 kilometers) long and 7 miles (11 kilometers) across.

Hippos marks the western edge of the Golan Heights, a hilly area cut by deep ravines. Israelis started farming in disputed territory nearby in 1948 when Syria held the Golan Heights. Sometimes Syrians shot at the settlements from the heights. The Israelis captured the Golan from Syria in 1967 and still control it.

Watch that Step!

Abandoned fortifications from that war are on the mountain. Old minefields on the mountain have been "swept" for explosives, but are still enclosed by barbed wire just in case any live mines remain. Keep out!

Modern Israel is a small country, only 50 to 115 kilometers (30 to 70 miles) from east to west and 420 kilometers (260 miles) from north to south. More than 6 million people live in Israel. Another 2.6 million Palestinians live in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. These territories aren't part of Israel but are controlled by Israel since the 1967 war.

Jerusalem is Israel's largest city, but Tel Aviv is the capital. Control of Jerusalem remains unsettled since the 1967 war. Palestinians still want Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state.

The Israeli-Palestinian dispute is complicated. People called Jews lived in Israel starting about 1,000 BCE. In 587 BCE, Babylonian invaders took many Jewish prisoners back to Babylon. About 50 years later the Jews were allowed to return to their homeland, though many stayed in Babylon.

After failed revolts against Rome in 70 CE and 132 CE, the Romans again drove the Jews out of Jerusalem and the surrounding area, renaming the land Palestine. Control of Palestine passed to the Byzantine Empire, Muslim conquerors, European crusaders, Turks and, after World War I, to England. By then, Muslims, Jews and Christians had lived together in the land for centuries.

After Nazis in control of Germany executed 6 million European Jews in the Holocaust, the United Nations agreed to establish the modern state of Israel in 1947.

Independence And War

But when Israel officially became an independent Jewish state in 1948, its Muslim neighbors attacked, angry that Israelis were forcing Muslims out of their homes. Israel fought and won wars with its Muslim neighbors in 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1973.

U.S. President Jimmy Carter arranged talks in 1978 that led to a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. His efforts won Carter a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

Outbreaks of violence in Israel have continued, however. Palestinians whose parents and grandparents lost their homes after 1948 are still living in refugee camps.

Palestinians want their own state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Many want peace, but are angry about continued Israeli control of those territories. Palestinians can't travel wherever they want. Many must pass through military checkpoints to get to their jobs. Many can't get jobs. Israelis want to limit Palestinians' movements to prevent terrorist attacks.

Palestinians and Israelis have been discussing a solution for years. But militants have repeatedly interrupted this peace process by sending young suicide bombers and other attackers to kill Israeli soldiers and civilians. In turn Israel attacks the militants, but often kills innocent Palestinians as well. A remedy still seems far away.

Click on the map below for an interactive view of Israel

There are three teams that excavate at Hippos. They include:

The Israeli Team: Primary work at the site is directed by Prof. Segal. His students, students from other Israeli universities, and volunteers from Israel and elsewhere are excavating the Roman center of the city, its surrounding temples and public buildings, along with wall and gate structures. With workers from the National Parks Authority, preservation efforts are undertaken at the site, along with uncovering some work dones in the 1950s on the cathedral of the city. The web site for the Hippos Excavations at the University of Haifa is at http://hippos.haifa.ac.il/.

The Polish Team: Co-directing the excavation with Prof Segal are Dr. Jolanta Mlynarczyk of the Polish Academy of Science, Warsaw and Dr. Mariusz Burdajewicz, of the National Museum, Warsaw. Together with their students Drs. Mlynarczyk and Burdajewicz are responsible for work on the Northwest Church, a large basilical structure still in use when the city was destroyed in 749. The web site documenting the work of the Polish team is at http://susyam.webpark.pl/.

The American Team: a team from Concordia University in Saint Paul began work on the Northeast Church in 2002, a project to excavate a small structure containing at least two tombs. The project is coordinated by Prof. Mark Schuler and is the focus of this virtual dig. Reports of previous work are at http://hippos.archaeology.csp.edu.

The excavations at Hippos of the Decapolis are under the auspices of the Zinman Institute of Archaeology at the University of Haifa. Prof. Arthur Segal is the director of the excavation and has a ten-year permit from the Israel Antiquities Authority to excavate at the site through 2009. He is assisted by Michael Eisenberg.

Seven previous seasons of work have been done at Hippos. Brief summaries of a few seasons composed by Arthur Segal and Michael Eisenberg are available online:

First Season (2000)
Second Season (2001)
Third Season (2002; Concordia joined)
Fourth Season (2003)

Formal reports of the excavation seasons through the University of Haifa are also available online: (large pdfs)

2001
2002
2004
2005