Tzippori
Encyclopedia
Tzippori also known as Sepphoris, Dioceserea and Saffuriya ' onMouseout='HidePop("6766")' href="/topics/Transliteration">transliterated
Safurriya and Suffurriye) is located in the central Galilee
region, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north-northwest of Nazareth
, in modern-day Israel
. The site holds a rich and diverse historical and architectural legacy that includes Assyria
n, Hellenistic, Judean, Babylonian, Roman
, Byzantine
, Islamic, Crusader, Arabic and Ottoman
influences.
Interest on the part of Biblical archaeologists is related to the belief in Christian
tradition that the parents of the Virgin Mary, Anna
and Joachim
, were natives of Tzippori, at the time a Hellenized town. Notable structures at the site include a Roman theater
, two early Christian churches, a Crusader fortress
that was renovated by Daher El-Omar
in the 18th century, and upwards of forty different mosaic
s.
Tzippori once served as a center of Jewish religious and spiritual life in the Galilee; remains of a 6th-century synagogue
have been uncovered in the lower section of the site. In the 7th century, the town came under the rule of the Arab caliphates like much of the rest of Palestine
. Successive Arab and Islamic imperial authorities ruled the area until the end of the first World War I
, with a brief interruption during the Crusades
.
Until the eviction of its inhabitants by Israeli forces in 1948-1949, Saffuriya was an Arab
village. The Israel
i moshav
Tzippori was established adjacent to the site in 1949. The area occupied by the former Arab village was designated a national park in 1992. Moshav Tzippori falls under the jurisdiction of Jezreel Valley Regional Council
, and in 2006 had a population of 616.
ian, Hellenistic
and Persian rule.
In 104 BCE, the Hasmonean
s settled there under the leadership of either Alexander Jannaeus
or Aristobulus I. The city was called Tzippori and may have derived from the Hebrew
word for 'bird,' tsippor, perhaps because of its bird's-eye view the hilltop provides. The Hasmonean Kingdom was divided into five districts by the Roman pro-consul Gabinius, and Sepphoris came under the direct rule of the Romans
in the year 37 BCE, when Herod the Great
captured the city from Mattathaias Antigonus, reportedly at the height of a snowstorm.
Tzippori of the time of Jesus
was a large, Roman-influenced city and a hotbed of political activism. Archaeological evidence give credence to the idea that Jesus, while living in Nazareth, would have done most of his business in Tzippori.
After Herod's death in 4 BCE, the Jewish inhabitants of Tzippori rebelled against Roman rule and the Roman army moved in under the command of the Roman Governor in Syria, Varus
. Completely destroying the city, the Roman army sold many of its inhabitants into slavery. Herod's
son, Herod Antipas
was made Tetrarch, or governor, in 1 CE, and proclaimed the city's new name to be Autocratis, or the "Ornament of the Galilee
." An ancient route linking Tzippori to Legio
, and further south to Sebaste-Samaria
, is believed to have been paved by the Romans around this time.
The inhabitants of Autocratis did not join the resistance against Roman rule in the Great Jewish Revolt
of 66
CE. Rather, they signed a pact with the Roman army and opened the gates of the city to the Roman
general Vespasian
upon his arrival in 67 CE They were rewarded for this allegiance by having their city spared from the destruction suffered by many other Jewish cities, including Jerusalem. Coins minted in the city at the time of the First Revolt carried the inscription Neronias and Eirenopolis, "City of Peace." After the revolt, symbolism used on the coins was little different from other surrounding pagan city coins with depictions of laurel wreaths, palm trees, caduceus', and ears of barley.
Just prior to the Bar Kokhba revolt, the city's name was changed to Diocaesarea. Following the Bar Kokhba revolt in 132
–135
, many Jewish refugees settled there, turning it into the center of religious and spiritual life in the Galilee. Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi
, one of the compilers of the Mishnah
, a commentary on the Torah
, moved to Tzippori, along with the Sanhedrin
, the highest Jewish religious court. Before moving to Tiberias by 150 CE, Jewish academies of learning, yeshivot
, were also based there. Diocaeserea, so named in honor of Zeus
and the Roman Emperor
, became not only a center of spiritual and religious study, but also a busy metropolis of trade because of its proximity to important trade routes through Galilee.
Diocaesarea was destroyed by the Galilee earthquake of 363
, but rebuilt soon afterwards, and retained its importance in the greater Jewish community of the Galilee, both socially, commercially, and spiritually. Jews and pagan Romans lived peacefully alongside one another during the Byzantine
period, and the city welcomed a number of Christians as well.
noted that Saffuriyyah was taken during the first conquest by the Arab armies in Palestine, in 634 C.E. The city was incorporated into the expanding Umayyad Caliphate, and al-jund coins were minted by the new rulers. Saffuriya was engaged in trade with other parts of the empire at the time; for example, cloaks made in Saffuriyya were worn by people in Medina
. Umayyad
rule was replaced by Abbasid
rule, and Arab and Islamic dynasties continued to control the city, with a brief interlude during the Crusades, up until its conquest by Israel in the war of 1948. Throughout this period of time, the city was known by the Semitic
name Saffuriya.
The early 12th century brought the Crusaders to Palestine
. They built a fortress and watchtower atop the hill, overlooking Saffuriya, and dedicated it to Anne
and Joachim
, the parents of the Virgin Mary. This became one of their local bases in the Kingdom of Jerusalem
and they renamed the city La Sephorie. In 1187, the Crusaders were dispatched from La Sephorie to fight the Battle of Hattin
. After the defeat of the Crusaders by Saladin, the Ayyubid
Sultan renamed the city Saffuriya. In the 15th century, Saffuriya came under the control of the Ottomans
. It remained a titular see
of the Roman Catholic church.
In the 14 centuries between the rule of Herod of Antipas and that of the Ottoman empire, the city reportedly thrived as a center of learning, with a diverse, multiethnic and mutlireligious population of some 30,000 living in relatively peaceful coexistence.
Saffuriya ' onMouseout='HidePop("71577")' href="/topics/Transliteration">transliterated
Safurriya and Suffurriye) , along with the whole of Palestine, came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire
after it defeated the Mamluks at the Battle of Marj Dabiq
in 1516. An Ottoman firman
of 979 H. (1572 C.E.) describes Saffuriyya as one of a group of villages within the sanjak
of Safad, which was part of the Qaysi faction, and that had rebelled against the Ottoman authorities. At the end of the 16th century, the population was recorded as consisting of 366 families and 34 bachelors, all Muslim. Saffuriyya was larger than neighboring Nazareth but smaller than Kafr Kanna. A number of important scholars came from the village during this period, including the qadi
, al-Baq'a al-Saffuri (d.1625) and Ahmad al-Sharif (d.1633), a poet and qadi.
In 1745, it is reported that Zahir al-Umar built a fortress on the hilltop above Saffuriya. In the early nineteenth century, the British traveller J. Buckingham
noted that all the inhabitants of Saffuriya were Muslim, and that the house of St. Anna had been completely demolished.
In the late nineteenth century, Saffuriyya was described as village built of stone and mud, situated along the slope of a hill. The village contained the remains of the Church of St. Anna and a square tower, said to have been built in the mid-eighteenth century. The village had an estimated 2,500 residents, who cultivated 150 faddans (1 faddan = 100-250 dunums), on some of this land they had planted olive trees. In 1900, an elementary school for boys was founded, and later, a school for girls. A local council was established in 1923. The expenditure of the council grew from 74 Palestinian pounds in 1929 to 1,217 in 1944.
Though it lost its centrality and importance as a cultural centre under the Ottomans (1517-1918) and the British Mandate (1918–1948), the village thrived agriculturally. Saffuriyya's pomegranate
s, olive
s and wheat
were famous throughout the Galilee.
In summer of 1931, archaeologist Leroy Waterman began the first excavations at Saffuriya, digging up part of the school playground, formerly the site of a Crusader fortress.
In 1944/45 a total of 21,841 dunum
s of village land was used for cereals, 5,310 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards, mostly olive trees. By 1948, Saffuriya was the largest village in the Galilee both by land size and population, which was estimated at 4,000 Arabs.
On July 1, 1948, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
, the village was bombarded by Israeli planes. It was captured by Israeli forces along with the rest of the lower Galilee in Operation Dekel
. All but 80 of the villagers fled northwards toward Lebanon, some settling in the refugee camps of Ein al-Hilwa, Sabra
and Shatila in Lebanon
. After the attack, the villagers returned but were evicted again in September 1948. On January 7, 1949, 14 residents were deported and the remaining 550 were resettled in neighboring Arab villages such as 'Illut. Many settled in Nazareth in a quarter now known as the al-Safafira quarter because of the large number of Saffuriyya natives living there. As the Israeli government considers them absentees, they cannot go back to their old homes and have no legal recourse to recover them.
The site of the Arab village was planted with pine trees. On February 20, 1949, the Israeli moshav
of Tzippori was founded southeast of the former village. The pomegranate and olive trees were replaced with crops for cattle fodder.
The Crusader/Ottoman tower sits high atop the hill, overlooking both the Roman theater, the majority of the Jewish city and the destroyed Palestinian village. It was built in the 12th century, on the foundation of an earlier Byzantine structure. The tower is built as a large square, 15m x15m, and approximately 10 m. high. The lower part of the walls are built of reused antique spolia, including a sarcophagus
with decorative carvings.
The upper part of the tower and the doorway were constructed by Zahir al-Umar in the 18th century. Noticeable features from the rebuilding are the rounded corners which are similar to those constructed under Daher in the fort in Shefa-'Amr
. The upper part of the building was converted for use as a school during the reigh of Abd al-Hamid II in the early 1900s, and used for this purpose until 1948.
Much of the town itself has been excavated, revealing Jewish homes along a main cobblestone street. Several images have been found carved into the stones of the street, including that of a menorah, and another image that resembles some ancient game reminiscent of tic-tac-toe
. Mikva'ot (pl. of Mikvah
), or Jewish ritual baths, have been found as well, identified by the steps leading to the bottom, carved out of the earth along with the rest of the bath.
The Roman theater sits on the northern slope of the hill, and is about 45 m in diameter, seating 4500. Most of it is carved into the hillside, but some parts are supported by separate stone pillars. The theater shows evidence of ancient damage, probably from the earthquake in 363
, but also quite possibly from the Arab conquest.
A modern structure stands to one side of the excavations, protecting the remains of a 5th century public building, with a large and intricate mosaic
floor. Some believe the room was used for festival rituals involving a celebration of water, and possibly covering the floor in water. Drainage channels have been found in the floor, and the majority of the mosaic
seems devoted to measuring the floods of the Nile
, and celebrations of those floods.
Finally, a Roman villa is arguably the centerpiece of the discoveries, containing one of the most famous mosaics in all of Israel. It was built around the year 200
, and destroyed in the earthquake in 363
. The villa is in the traditional form of a triclinium; seats would have been arranged in a U-shape around the mosaic, Roman villa mosaic floor and people would have reclined while dining and drinking, talking and contemplating the mosaic images. The mosaic, for the most part, is devoted to Dionysus
, god of wine, and of socializing. He is seen along with Pan
and Hercules
in several of the 15 panels.
The centerpiece of the mosaic floor, however, at least for the archaeologists, is an image of a young lady, possibly meant to be Venus
, which the researchers have dubbed "The Mona Lisa of the Galilee." Smaller mosaic tesserae were used to allow for greater detail and a more life-like result. The image is certainly more life-like, and more detailed (as in the shading and blush of her cheeks) than most expect mosaics to be.
The remains of the ancient Tzippori Synagogue
have been uncovered in the lower section of the city. It was built in the late fifth or early sixth century, at a time when the town's Christian population was increasing and the strength of the Jewish population was diminishing. Measuring 20.7 meters by 8 meters wide, it was located at the edge of the town.
The mosaic floor is divided into seven parts. Near the entrance there is a scene showing the angels visiting Sarah
. The next section shows the binding of Isaac
. There is a large Zodiac with the names of the months written in Hebrew. Helios
sits in the middle, in his sun chariot. The last section shows two lions flanking a wreath, their paws resting on the head of an ox.
The most interesting are the central sections of the mosaic. One shows the "tamid" sacrifice, the showbread, and the basket of first fruits form the Temple in Jerusalem. Also shown are a building facade, probably representing the Temple, incense shovels, shofars, and the seven-branched menorah from the Temple. Another section shows Aaron
dressed in priestly robes preparing to offer sacrifices of oil, flour, a bull and a lamb.
An Aramaic inscription reads: May he be remembered for good
Yudan son of
Isaac the Priest
and Paragri his daughter
Amen Amen
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
Safurriya and Suffurriye) is located in the central Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
region, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north-northwest of Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...
, in modern-day Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. The site holds a rich and diverse historical and architectural legacy that includes Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
n, Hellenistic, Judean, Babylonian, Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
, Islamic, Crusader, Arabic and Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
influences.
Interest on the part of Biblical archaeologists is related to the belief in Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
tradition that the parents of the Virgin Mary, Anna
Saint Anne
Saint Hanna of David's house and line, was the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus Christ according to Christian and Islamic tradition. English Anne is derived from Greek rendering of her Hebrew name Hannah...
and Joachim
Joachim
Saint Joachim was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of Joachim and Anne appears first in the apocryphal Gospel of James...
, were natives of Tzippori, at the time a Hellenized town. Notable structures at the site include a Roman theater
Roman theatre (structure)
The characteristics of Roman to those of the earlier Greek theatres due in large part to its influence on the Roman triumvir Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus. Much of the architectural influence on the Romans came from the Greeks, and theatre structural design was no different from other buildings...
, two early Christian churches, a Crusader fortress
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
that was renovated by Daher El-Omar
Daher El-Omar
Daher el-Omar was the Arab-Bedouin ruler of the Galilee district of the southern Levant during the mid-18th century...
in the 18th century, and upwards of forty different mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
s.
Tzippori once served as a center of Jewish religious and spiritual life in the Galilee; remains of a 6th-century synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
have been uncovered in the lower section of the site. In the 7th century, the town came under the rule of the Arab caliphates like much of the rest of Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. Successive Arab and Islamic imperial authorities ruled the area until the end of the first World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, with a brief interruption during the Crusades
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
.
Until the eviction of its inhabitants by Israeli forces in 1948-1949, Saffuriya was an Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
village. The Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i moshav
Moshav
Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
Tzippori was established adjacent to the site in 1949. The area occupied by the former Arab village was designated a national park in 1992. Moshav Tzippori falls under the jurisdiction of Jezreel Valley Regional Council
Jezreel Valley Regional Council
Jezreel Valley Regional Council is a regional council in northern Israel that encompasses most of the settlements in the Jezreel Valley. It includes 15 kibbutzim, 15 moshavim, 6 communal settlements and two Bedouin villages...
, and in 2006 had a population of 616.
Early history
Although the date of the city's founding is a point of some dispute, it is at least as old as the 7th century BCE, when it was fortified by the ancient Assyrians. It subsequently served as an administrative center in the region under BabylonBabylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
ian, Hellenistic
Hellenistic civilization
Hellenistic civilization represents the zenith of Greek influence in the ancient world from 323 BCE to about 146 BCE...
and Persian rule.
In 104 BCE, the Hasmonean
Hasmonean
The Hasmonean dynasty , was the ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during classical antiquity. Between c. 140 and c. 116 BCE, the dynasty ruled semi-autonomously from the Seleucids in the region of Judea...
s settled there under the leadership of either Alexander Jannaeus
Alexander Jannaeus
Alexander Jannaeus was king of Judea from 103 BC to 76 BC. The son of John Hyrcanus, he inherited the throne from his brother Aristobulus I, and appears to have married his brother's widow, Shlomtzion or "Shelomit", also known as Salome Alexandra, according to the Biblical law of Yibbum...
or Aristobulus I. The city was called Tzippori and may have derived from the Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
word for 'bird,' tsippor, perhaps because of its bird's-eye view the hilltop provides. The Hasmonean Kingdom was divided into five districts by the Roman pro-consul Gabinius, and Sepphoris came under the direct rule of the Romans
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
in the year 37 BCE, when Herod the Great
Herod the Great
Herod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his...
captured the city from Mattathaias Antigonus, reportedly at the height of a snowstorm.
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
was a large, Roman-influenced city and a hotbed of political activism. Archaeological evidence give credence to the idea that Jesus, while living in Nazareth, would have done most of his business in Tzippori.
After Herod's death in 4 BCE, the Jewish inhabitants of Tzippori rebelled against Roman rule and the Roman army moved in under the command of the Roman Governor in Syria, Varus
Publius Quinctilius Varus
Publius Quinctilius Varus was a Roman politician and general under Emperor Augustus, mainly remembered for having lost three Roman legions and his own life when attacked by Germanic leader Arminius in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest.-Life:His paternal grandfather was senator Sextus Quinctilius...
. Completely destroying the city, the Roman army sold many of its inhabitants into slavery. Herod's
Herod the Great
Herod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his...
son, Herod Antipas
Herod Antipas
Herod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...
was made Tetrarch, or governor, in 1 CE, and proclaimed the city's new name to be Autocratis, or the "Ornament of the Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
." An ancient route linking Tzippori to Legio
Legio
Legio was a Roman Catholic titular see in the former Roman province of Palestina Secunda, which was suffragan of ScythopolisIt figures for the first time in a Latin episcopal notitia, dating probably from the eleventh century, where it is given under the name of Legionum, between the Bishoprics of...
, and further south to Sebaste-Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, is believed to have been paved by the Romans around this time.
The inhabitants of Autocratis did not join the resistance against Roman rule in the Great Jewish Revolt
First Jewish-Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War , sometimes called The Great Revolt , was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews of Judaea Province , against the Roman Empire...
of 66
66
Year 66 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Telesinus and Paullinus...
CE. Rather, they signed a pact with the Roman army and opened the gates of the city to the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
general Vespasian
Vespasian
Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
upon his arrival in 67 CE They were rewarded for this allegiance by having their city spared from the destruction suffered by many other Jewish cities, including Jerusalem. Coins minted in the city at the time of the First Revolt carried the inscription Neronias and Eirenopolis, "City of Peace." After the revolt, symbolism used on the coins was little different from other surrounding pagan city coins with depictions of laurel wreaths, palm trees, caduceus', and ears of barley.
Just prior to the Bar Kokhba revolt, the city's name was changed to Diocaesarea. Following the Bar Kokhba revolt in 132
132
Year 132 was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Serius and Sergianus...
–135
135
Year 135 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lupercus and Atilianus...
, many Jewish refugees settled there, turning it into the center of religious and spiritual life in the Galilee. Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi
Judah haNasi
Judah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
, one of the compilers of the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
, a commentary on the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
, moved to Tzippori, along with the Sanhedrin
Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
, the highest Jewish religious court. Before moving to Tiberias by 150 CE, Jewish academies of learning, yeshivot
Yeshiva
Yeshiva is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim and in study pairs called chavrutas...
, were also based there. Diocaeserea, so named in honor of Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...
and the Roman Emperor
Roman Emperor
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
, became not only a center of spiritual and religious study, but also a busy metropolis of trade because of its proximity to important trade routes through Galilee.
Diocaesarea was destroyed by the Galilee earthquake of 363
Galilee earthquake of 363
The Galilee earthquake of 363 was a severe earthquake that shook the Galilee and nearby regions in 363 CE.-Impact:* Tzippori was severely damaged.* Nabratein and the Nabratein synagogue were destroyed....
, but rebuilt soon afterwards, and retained its importance in the greater Jewish community of the Galilee, both socially, commercially, and spiritually. Jews and pagan Romans lived peacefully alongside one another during the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
period, and the city welcomed a number of Christians as well.
Islamic conquest and the Crusaders
Ya'qubiYa'qubi
Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub ibn Ja'far ibn Wahb Ibn Wadih al-Ya'qubi , known as Ahmad al-Ya'qubi, or Ya'qubi, was a Berber Muslim geographer.-Biography:He was a great-grandson of Wadih, the freedman of the caliph Mansur...
noted that Saffuriyyah was taken during the first conquest by the Arab armies in Palestine, in 634 C.E. The city was incorporated into the expanding Umayyad Caliphate, and al-jund coins were minted by the new rulers. Saffuriya was engaged in trade with other parts of the empire at the time; for example, cloaks made in Saffuriyya were worn by people in Medina
Medina
Medina , or ; also transliterated as Madinah, or madinat al-nabi "the city of the prophet") is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and...
. Umayyad
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate was the second of the four major Arab caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. It was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, whose name derives from Umayya ibn Abd Shams, the great-grandfather of the first Umayyad caliph. Although the Umayyad family originally came from the...
rule was replaced by Abbasid
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate or, more simply, the Abbasids , was the third of the Islamic caliphates. It was ruled by the Abbasid dynasty of caliphs, who built their capital in Baghdad after overthrowing the Umayyad caliphate from all but the al-Andalus region....
rule, and Arab and Islamic dynasties continued to control the city, with a brief interlude during the Crusades, up until its conquest by Israel in the war of 1948. Throughout this period of time, the city was known by the Semitic
Semitic
In linguistics and ethnology, Semitic was first used to refer to a language family of largely Middle Eastern origin, now called the Semitic languages...
name Saffuriya.
The early 12th century brought the Crusaders to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. They built a fortress and watchtower atop the hill, overlooking Saffuriya, and dedicated it to Anne
Saint Anne
Saint Hanna of David's house and line, was the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus Christ according to Christian and Islamic tradition. English Anne is derived from Greek rendering of her Hebrew name Hannah...
and Joachim
Joachim
Saint Joachim was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of Joachim and Anne appears first in the apocryphal Gospel of James...
, the parents of the Virgin Mary. This became one of their local bases in the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Kingdom of Jerusalem
The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Catholic kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. The kingdom lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, was destroyed by the Mamluks, but its history is divided into two distinct periods....
and they renamed the city La Sephorie. In 1187, the Crusaders were dispatched from La Sephorie to fight the Battle of Hattin
Battle of Hattin
The Battle of Hattin took place on Saturday, July 4, 1187, between the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the forces of the Ayyubid dynasty....
. After the defeat of the Crusaders by Saladin, the Ayyubid
Ayyubid dynasty
The Ayyubid dynasty was a Muslim dynasty of Kurdish origin, founded by Saladin and centered in Egypt. The dynasty ruled much of the Middle East during the 12th and 13th centuries CE. The Ayyubid family, under the brothers Ayyub and Shirkuh, originally served as soldiers for the Zengids until they...
Sultan renamed the city Saffuriya. In the 15th century, Saffuriya came under the control of the Ottomans
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. It remained a titular see
Titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
of the Roman Catholic church.
In the 14 centuries between the rule of Herod of Antipas and that of the Ottoman empire, the city reportedly thrived as a center of learning, with a diverse, multiethnic and mutlireligious population of some 30,000 living in relatively peaceful coexistence.
Modern history
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
Safurriya and Suffurriye) , along with the whole of Palestine, came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
after it defeated the Mamluks at the Battle of Marj Dabiq
Battle of Marj Dabiq
The battle of Marj Dābiq was a decisive military clash in Middle Eastern history, fought on 24 August 1516, 44 km north of Halab , Syria.- Battle preparations :...
in 1516. An Ottoman firman
Firman
A firman is a royal mandate or decree issued by a sovereign in certain historical Islamic states, including the Ottoman Empire, Mughal Empire, State of Hyderabad, and Iran under Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi. The word firman comes from the meaning "decree" or "order"...
of 979 H. (1572 C.E.) describes Saffuriyya as one of a group of villages within the sanjak
Sanjak
Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...
of Safad, which was part of the Qaysi faction, and that had rebelled against the Ottoman authorities. At the end of the 16th century, the population was recorded as consisting of 366 families and 34 bachelors, all Muslim. Saffuriyya was larger than neighboring Nazareth but smaller than Kafr Kanna. A number of important scholars came from the village during this period, including the qadi
Qadi
Qadi is a judge ruling in accordance with Islamic religious law appointed by the ruler of a Muslim country. Because Islam makes no distinction between religious and secular domains, qadis traditionally have jurisdiction over all legal matters involving Muslims...
, al-Baq'a al-Saffuri (d.1625) and Ahmad al-Sharif (d.1633), a poet and qadi.
In 1745, it is reported that Zahir al-Umar built a fortress on the hilltop above Saffuriya. In the early nineteenth century, the British traveller J. Buckingham
James Silk Buckingham
James Silk Buckingham was an English author, journalist and traveller.He was born at Flushing near Falmouth, the son of a farmer, and had a limited education. His youth was spent at sea, and in 1797 he was captured by the French and held as a prisoner of war at Corunna...
noted that all the inhabitants of Saffuriya were Muslim, and that the house of St. Anna had been completely demolished.
In the late nineteenth century, Saffuriyya was described as village built of stone and mud, situated along the slope of a hill. The village contained the remains of the Church of St. Anna and a square tower, said to have been built in the mid-eighteenth century. The village had an estimated 2,500 residents, who cultivated 150 faddans (1 faddan = 100-250 dunums), on some of this land they had planted olive trees. In 1900, an elementary school for boys was founded, and later, a school for girls. A local council was established in 1923. The expenditure of the council grew from 74 Palestinian pounds in 1929 to 1,217 in 1944.
Though it lost its centrality and importance as a cultural centre under the Ottomans (1517-1918) and the British Mandate (1918–1948), the village thrived agriculturally. Saffuriyya's pomegranate
Pomegranate
The pomegranate , Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between five and eight meters tall.Native to the area of modern day Iran, the pomegranate has been cultivated in the Caucasus since ancient times. From there it spread to Asian areas such as the Caucasus as...
s, olive
Olive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
s and wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
were famous throughout the Galilee.
In summer of 1931, archaeologist Leroy Waterman began the first excavations at Saffuriya, digging up part of the school playground, formerly the site of a Crusader fortress.
In 1944/45 a total of 21,841 dunum
Dunum
Dunum is a municipality in the district of Wittmund, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
s of village land was used for cereals, 5,310 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards, mostly olive trees. By 1948, Saffuriya was the largest village in the Galilee both by land size and population, which was estimated at 4,000 Arabs.
On July 1, 1948, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
, the village was bombarded by Israeli planes. It was captured by Israeli forces along with the rest of the lower Galilee in Operation Dekel
Operation Dekel
Operation Dekel , was the largest offensive in the north of Israel after the first truce of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It was carried out by the 7th Armoured Brigade, a battalion from the Carmeli Brigade along with some elements from the Golani Brigade between 8–18 July. Its objective was to...
. All but 80 of the villagers fled northwards toward Lebanon, some settling in the refugee camps of Ein al-Hilwa, Sabra
Sabra
Sabra may refer to:*Sabra and Shatila massacre, a 1982 massacre in Lebanon**Sabra refugee camp, former Palestinian refugee camp, part of the scene of the above massacre*Sabra , a native-born Israeli JewSABRA...
and Shatila in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. After the attack, the villagers returned but were evicted again in September 1948. On January 7, 1949, 14 residents were deported and the remaining 550 were resettled in neighboring Arab villages such as 'Illut. Many settled in Nazareth in a quarter now known as the al-Safafira quarter because of the large number of Saffuriyya natives living there. As the Israeli government considers them absentees, they cannot go back to their old homes and have no legal recourse to recover them.
The site of the Arab village was planted with pine trees. On February 20, 1949, the Israeli moshav
Moshav
Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
of Tzippori was founded southeast of the former village. The pomegranate and olive trees were replaced with crops for cattle fodder.
Archaeological sites in the National Park
The history of Tzippori as presented in the modern day national park covers the periods up to Roman and Byzantine rule, with a brief mention of the Crusades. The period of rule under the Arab caliphates, Ottoman Empire and the rest of the modern history of the site is not mentioned at all.The Crusader/Ottoman tower sits high atop the hill, overlooking both the Roman theater, the majority of the Jewish city and the destroyed Palestinian village. It was built in the 12th century, on the foundation of an earlier Byzantine structure. The tower is built as a large square, 15m x15m, and approximately 10 m. high. The lower part of the walls are built of reused antique spolia, including a sarcophagus
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
with decorative carvings.
The upper part of the tower and the doorway were constructed by Zahir al-Umar in the 18th century. Noticeable features from the rebuilding are the rounded corners which are similar to those constructed under Daher in the fort in Shefa-'Amr
Shefa-'Amr
Shefa-'Amr, also Shfar'am is a predominantly Arab city in the North District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a population of 35,300.-Etymology:...
. The upper part of the building was converted for use as a school during the reigh of Abd al-Hamid II in the early 1900s, and used for this purpose until 1948.
Much of the town itself has been excavated, revealing Jewish homes along a main cobblestone street. Several images have been found carved into the stones of the street, including that of a menorah, and another image that resembles some ancient game reminiscent of tic-tac-toe
Tic-tac-toe
Tic-tac-toe, also called wick wack woe and noughts and crosses , is a pencil-and-paper game for two players, X and O, who take turns marking the spaces in a 3×3 grid. The X player usually goes first...
. Mikva'ot (pl. of Mikvah
Mikvah
Mikveh is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism...
), or Jewish ritual baths, have been found as well, identified by the steps leading to the bottom, carved out of the earth along with the rest of the bath.
The Roman theater sits on the northern slope of the hill, and is about 45 m in diameter, seating 4500. Most of it is carved into the hillside, but some parts are supported by separate stone pillars. The theater shows evidence of ancient damage, probably from the earthquake in 363
363
Year 363 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iulianus and Sallustius...
, but also quite possibly from the Arab conquest.
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
floor. Some believe the room was used for festival rituals involving a celebration of water, and possibly covering the floor in water. Drainage channels have been found in the floor, and the majority of the mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
seems devoted to measuring the floods of the Nile
Nile
The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is long. It runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.The Nile has two major...
, and celebrations of those floods.
Finally, a Roman villa is arguably the centerpiece of the discoveries, containing one of the most famous mosaics in all of Israel. It was built around the year 200
200
Year 200 was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Victorinus...
, and destroyed in the earthquake in 363
363
Year 363 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iulianus and Sallustius...
. The villa is in the traditional form of a triclinium; seats would have been arranged in a U-shape around the mosaic, Roman villa mosaic floor and people would have reclined while dining and drinking, talking and contemplating the mosaic images. The mosaic, for the most part, is devoted to Dionysus
Dionysus
Dionysus was the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness and ecstasy in Greek mythology. His name in Linear B tablets shows he was worshipped from c. 1500—1100 BC by Mycenean Greeks: other traces of Dionysian-type cult have been found in ancient Minoan Crete...
, god of wine, and of socializing. He is seen along with Pan
Pan (mythology)
Pan , in Greek religion and mythology, is the god of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature, of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music, as well as the companion of the nymphs. His name originates within the Greek language, from the word paein , meaning "to pasture." He has the hindquarters, legs,...
and Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
in several of the 15 panels.
Venus (mythology)
Venus is a Roman goddess principally associated with love, beauty, sex,sexual seduction and fertility, who played a key role in many Roman religious festivals and myths...
, which the researchers have dubbed "The Mona Lisa of the Galilee." Smaller mosaic tesserae were used to allow for greater detail and a more life-like result. The image is certainly more life-like, and more detailed (as in the shading and blush of her cheeks) than most expect mosaics to be.
Synagogue
Tzippori Synagogue
The Tzippori Synagogue is an ancient synagogue in Tzippori, an ancient town in Israel that is now a national archaeological park.-History:...
have been uncovered in the lower section of the city. It was built in the late fifth or early sixth century, at a time when the town's Christian population was increasing and the strength of the Jewish population was diminishing. Measuring 20.7 meters by 8 meters wide, it was located at the edge of the town.
The mosaic floor is divided into seven parts. Near the entrance there is a scene showing the angels visiting Sarah
Sarah
Sarah or Sara was the wife of Abraham and the mother of Isaac as described in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. Her name was originally Sarai...
. The next section shows the binding of Isaac
Isaac
Isaac as described in the Hebrew Bible, was the only son Abraham had with his wife Sarah, and was the father of Jacob and Esau. Isaac was one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites...
. There is a large Zodiac with the names of the months written in Hebrew. Helios
Helios
Helios was the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology. Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
sits in the middle, in his sun chariot. The last section shows two lions flanking a wreath, their paws resting on the head of an ox.
The most interesting are the central sections of the mosaic. One shows the "tamid" sacrifice, the showbread, and the basket of first fruits form the Temple in Jerusalem. Also shown are a building facade, probably representing the Temple, incense shovels, shofars, and the seven-branched menorah from the Temple. Another section shows Aaron
Aaron
In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...
dressed in priestly robes preparing to offer sacrifices of oil, flour, a bull and a lamb.
An Aramaic inscription reads: May he be remembered for good
Yudan son of
Isaac the Priest
and Paragri his daughter
Amen Amen
External links
- Tzippori excavation project Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- "Saffuriyya Palestine Remembered
- Saffuryeh, from Dr. Moslih Kanaaneh
- Zippori Hillel International
- Zippori Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (Accessed 9 February 2005)
- Tzippori Jewish Agency for Israel/Education Dept
- PBS Frontline: The Surprises of Sepphoris PBS