Herod the Great​—A Master Builder

MORE than 2,000 years ago, he reigned for about three decades. His kingdom was based in Judea and included some of the surrounding areas. He is known in history as Herod the Great.

Herod is often remembered as a jealous murderer, not only of his family members but also of helpless little boys. When astrologers from the East reported to him that a future king had been born, Herod feigned a desire to honor the child. He asked them to find the child and return to him after that. But when God warned the astrologers not to return, Herod ordered the murder of all the boys two years of age and under in Bethlehem, the city where the astrologers had found Jesus, as well as its surrounding districts.​—Matthew 2:1-18.

Earlier in his life, however, Herod had won the favor of many because of his remarkable building projects. He built temples, amphitheaters, hippodromes, and aqueducts, as well as palatial fortresses with luxurious bathhouses. His projects were truly impressive​—even to modern engineers who study the sites.

Herod chose dramatic locations and integrated the architecture with the natural topography. His palaces were decorated with elaborate frescoes, rich stuccowork, and mosaic floors. He also introduced the Roman-style bathhouse to Judea, with hot and warm rooms and heating systems under the floor. In effect, he built entire cities, one of them with an artificial harbor.

Caesarea​—A Port City

Herod built one of the largest seaports of the Roman world in Caesarea. Its dimensions have astonished archaeologists. There was anchorage space to accommodate a hundred ships, serving as a silent witness to the international trade center that Caesarea became.

The piers and breakwaters were constructed with the most advanced techniques of the era. However, scholars were puzzled as to how workmen could have handled the colossal blocks measuring approximately 50 feet [15 m] by 10 feet [3 m] by 9 feet [3 m] that the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus described. In recent times, divers have discovered that blocks Herod used were actually of concrete. To build the piers and breakwaters, the workers poured the concrete into wooden frames and then submerged and anchored them.

The well-planned port city included a temple dedicated to Caesar Augustus, a palace, a hippodrome, a 4,000-seat theater, and an underground sewage system. Aqueducts and tunnels delivered fresh water to Caesarea from springs in the Mount Carmel range nearly four miles [some 6 km] away.

Jerusalem and Herod’s Temple

The greatest of Herod’s projects was the temple he built in Jerusalem. The original temple on the site was built by King Solomon, who followed architectural plans his father, David, had received by inspiration from God. (1 Kings 6:1; 1 Chronicles 28:11, 12)  That temple was destroyed by the Babylonians some 420 years later, and about 90 years after that, it was replaced by a rather modest structure built by Judah’s Governor Zerubbabel.

Regarding the temple that Herod built on the same site, Josephus wrote: It was “covered on all sides with massive plates of gold, the sun was no sooner up than it radiated so fiery a flash that persons straining to look at it were compelled to avert their eyes, as from the solar rays. To approaching strangers it appeared from a distance like a snow-clad mountain; for all that was not overlaid with gold was of purest white.”

Thousands of men were involved in building the temple’s retaining walls, which on the west were about 1,600 feet [500 m] in length. The huge stones were set in place without mortar. One weighed close to 400 tons and was “unequaled in size anywhere in the ancient world,” according to one scholar. No wonder disciples of Jesus were impressed! (Mark 13:1) The walls were topped by a huge platform called the Temple Mount​—the largest man-made platform in the ancient world. It could have accommodated more than 25 American football fields [144,000 sq m]!

Herod was responsible for other buildings in Jerusalem. One was the fortress of Antonia, adjoining the temple that he had built earlier. Herod also had a  palace constructed, as well as three unique multistory towers built at the entrance of the city.

Samaria and Jericho

Herod received as a gift from Augustus Caesar the ancient city of Samaria, which he renamed Sebaste. He embellished the city with various structures, including what was possibly a stadium surrounded by colonnades. He also constructed many sizable buildings decorated with ornate frescoes.

Jericho lies about 820 feet [250 m] below sea level in the Jordan Valley and enjoys a subtropical climate. It extended over some 2,500 acres [1,000 ha] and had the character of a garden city. There Herod constructed a winter palace. He combined three palaces that he had built into one expansive dwelling, endowing each building with reception halls, baths, gardens, and swimming pools. No wonder he preferred Jericho as a winter residence!

Outstanding Palace-Fortresses

Yet, Herod had another option for winter living. He developed a fortress on the towering rock plateau known as Masada, which rises over 1,300 feet [400 m] above the Dead Sea. At that location he built an elegant, three-tiered palace with a terrace and bathing pools, as well as another palace that featured a Roman bathhouse with heating pipes in the walls and a lavatory with a flushing system!

In that hostile desert environment, Herod created what one might call a royal health resort. He equipped it with a dozen cisterns able to hold some 10,500,000 gallons [40,000,000 L] of water. Since the fortress was also provided with an efficient system for collecting and storing rainwater, there was ample water to grow crops and enjoy swimming pools and baths.

Another of Herod’s remarkable feats of engineering was his palace-fortress of Herodium, located on a prominent hill about three miles [5 km] southeast of Bethlehem. It consisted of two main parts: Upper Herodium and Lower Herodium. The upper part included an imposing palace-fortress topped by a five-story east tower​—now in ruins—​that once dominated the skyline. Two years ago international news agencies reported that remains of Herod’s tomb had been discovered on the upper slopes of Herodium, stating that this confirmed Josephus’ first-century report of Herod’s funeral procession there.

Lower Herodium once had a complex of palace annexes and offices. The focal point was a Roman-style garden​—embellished with columns—​encircling an immense pool with a decorative island in the middle. The pool was almost double the size of a modern Olympic pool. It served as a reservoir, but it was also used for swimming and even for boating. The water came via aqueduct from a spring three and a half miles [5 km] away.

Some years ago a visitor said this about the surrounding landscape: “To the east, we could see all the way to the Dead Sea. Here before us was the Judean wilderness where David successfully eluded his pursuer, Saul. Seeing the ruggedness of the territory, we understood how he could do so, especially since from his youth he must have been very familiar with the territory. We thought, too, that, while pasturing his sheep, David perhaps often climbed this very hill for the magnificent view we were enjoying.”

Volumes have been written about Herod’s building projects. There is much speculation as to why he launched such an extensive building program. Some have said it was for personal fame or to curry political favor. Whatever the motive, this brief overview confirms the fact that Herod the Great, besides being a ruthless despot, was a master builder.

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CAESAREA

An artist’s rendering

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PALACE IN JERUSALEM

Model

[Picture on page 25]

HEROD’S TEMPLE

Model

[Picture on page 26]

MASADA

Ruins of the three-tiered palace

[Credit Line]

Pictorial Archive (Near Eastern History) Est.

[Picture on page 26]

HERODIUM

An artist’s rendering

[Picture Credit Lines on page 25]

Caesarea: Hiram Henriquez/​National Geographic Stock; Palace: Courtesy of Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and Todd Bolen/​Bible Places.com