This post is to announce the completion in 2022 of the restoration work and building of a walkway and roof over the ruins of the hammam at Hisham’s palace in Jericho at an estimated cost of $11.4 million with financial support from Japan. Covered since 1930, the mosaic floor of the hammam or bathhouse is now displayed in all it’s glory. It is one of the largest mosaics discovered, measuring 827 square meters in 38 panels, in 21 colors with a total of 7 million tesserae. The mosaics are mostly complex geometric designs, here are some photographs of the newly uncovered mosaics.

The palace gets its name from one of the sons of Abd el-Malik who built the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, Hisham (who ruled from 723-743) because of an inscription containing his name, in ink on a marble slab, found at the site by archaeologist Dmitry Baramki. Based on the artwork in mosaic and stucco including human figures that decorated the palace, Robert Hamilton who was Director of Antiquities at the time under the British argued that the palace was a residence of al-Walid b. al-Yazid (ruled 743-744), a nephew of Hisham who was well-known for his extravagant lifestyle. 

With the uncovering of the incredible 7th century Ummayad mosaic floor, Hisham’s Palace has become a must-see site and I would be happy to take you there on your next visit. The stucco was mostly removed from the site under the British and can be viewed at the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem.

Client emailed me with a list of some of the sites on their bucket list and I built the itinerary from there.

• √ Jerusalem (enough days to get a good feel for the city including major Jewish and Christian sites as well as Herodium
• √ Hula Valley and Eilat area for bird migrations 
• √ Negev Desert for solitude, scenery & desert mammals – Mitzpe Ramon
• √ Bahai Gardens in Haifa
• √ Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mount of Beatitude
• √ Beit Alpha Synagogue
• √ Masada and Dead Sea
• √ Petra
• + and more

Mar 14-15 Arrival & overnight at Tel Aviv hotel [Leonardo]

• Visit to Caesarea park, aquaduct and Bird mosaic
• Bahai Gardens (Haifa & Akko)
• Akko; dinner at Uri Buri!
• Overnight in Akko [Alma]

Mar 16

• Rosh Hanikra & coast sunrise
• Akko tour: Crusader city; Al Jazzar mosque; Hamam; Templar tunnel; Ramhal synagogue!
• Drive to Agamon HaHula (birds at sunset)
• Overnight [Vibe Naftali]

Mar 17

• + Chastellet (Jacob’s Ford), Crusader fortress on Golan
• + Gadot Lookout War Memorial
• Nimrod fortress
• Banias falls
• + Lupines
• + Saar falls
• Overnight [Kinar]

Mar 18 Full Moon

• + Archeology museum in Katzrin
• Gamla & Griffon vultures
• Mount of Beatitudes
• Capernaum
• Sea of Galilee
• – Bet Alpha synagogue
• Drive to Jerusalem [3 Arches]

Mar 19 Shabbat

• Israel museum
• + Old City tour

Mar 20

• Temple Mount
• Lions Gate
• Golden gate
• Gethsemane & Church of Agony
• Kidron valley to City of David
• + Western Wall Great Bridge tour

Mar 21

• + Katisma church
• Herodium
• + Wadi Qelt, St George monastery
• + Hisham’s Palace, Jericho
• driving down to Dead Sea for sunset
• 2 nights [Ganim, En Boqeq]

Mar 22

• Photoshoot at sunrise
• Masada & museum
• – En Gedi (hiking) in afternoon
• Float in Dead Sea   

 Mar 23

• Moa fortress on Spice route; winery?
• Judean palm trees from 2,000 year old seeds at Kibbutz Ketura
• Hai Bar     
• Timna park
• + Hidden valley
• + Eilat Bird sanctuary
• Overnight [Soleil hotel]

Mar 24

• + Eilat bird sanctuary
• Cross to Jordan (3+ days)
• Drive to Dana BioSphere Reserve w Ali
• hike of reserve w Ahmed
• Overnight [Dana Guest House]

Mar 25

• Walk around Dana
• + Frosted trees at high elevation
• Little Petra/Baydeh
• + Neolithic site
• + Petra museum
• Overnight [Amra Palace hotel]

Mar 26 Shabbat

• Petra tour w Prof. Sami El Hasanat
• + Temple; Petra church
• Wadi Rum jeep tour w Mohammed
• + Star gazing
• Overnight [el Sultanah Beduin camp, Wadi Rum]

Mar 27

• cross back to Israel from Jordan
• + Underwater Observatory, Eilat
• Red Canyon hike
• Pundak Smadar
• Drive to Mitzpe Ramon & 2 nights [Ibex ]

Mar 28

• + wildflowers along <171> to Loz cisterns
• + Hemed cistern and Nabatean terraces
• + Bio Ramon
• Makhtesh Ramon: Carpentry, colored sands, old quarry

Mar 29

• + Avdat
• En Avdat reserve; saw Egyptian vultures on their migration
• + Beersheva
• + Covid test
• drive to Jerusalem [Villa Brown, Greek Colony]
• Israel Museum

Mar 30 Drive clients to airport

Not every guide can take you “off the beaten track” and show you things that you couldn’t have any idea that you could find in Israel. But I can. Between Covid-19 lockdowns in Israel (and we had 3) I took the opportunity to travel the country, finding new sites, refreshing familiar sites and exploring off the beaten track (I mean really off the beaten track) so I’m even a better guide.

Tour #1 Hyrcania and Mar Saba monastery

We drove with Yeti off road in the Judean desert to the foot of a mountain fortress called Hyrcania and then we climbed to the top (~200 meters).

Built by John Hyrcanus (134 to 104 BCE) or his son Alexander Jannaeus it was inherited by Herod and notorious as a place where he imprisoned and killed his enemies, even his own son and heir Antipater. Josephus relates that, along with Machaerus (east of Dead Sea in present day Jordan across from Mitzpe Shalem) and Alexandrion/Dok (both on our bucket list!), Hyrcania was one of three fortresses that queen Salome Alexandra did not give up when she handed control of her strongholds over to the Pharisees.

The water system for the Hyrcania fortress is on the western side, a Herodian period upper aqueduct and a later Byzantine lower aqueduct bringing water to more than a dozen cisterns cut into the mountain. In building the fortress the area was quarried for stone and three large rectangular holes cut out of the bedrock were left, used as swimming pools and reservoirs! So Herod!

In the quiet of this desert some 500 year later in the Byzantine period Sabbas the Sanctified founded a cenobium called Castellion on the mountain top on which Hyrcania sat, part of the satellite community associated with the monastery at Mar Saba 4 km to the southwest.

I’m looking forward to your next visit. I hope I’ll see you soon – I’ll be ready.

The last time it snowed in Jerusalem was February 2015 and I wrote about it here.

Headed out early this morning to take photographs of the snow that had fallen overnight. Idea was to check whether Herodion was covered with snow but it quickly became apparent that there hadn’t been enough snow.

Across from Herodion is the Jewish settlement of Tekoa, home of the prophet Amos. The early morning sun lit up the houses and to the south in the distance were the Hebron Hills covered in snow.

Traveled on a road for the first time and discovered these hills covered with a dusting of snow. If you can pinpoint where these hills are I’ll buy you an ice-cream. 

In total I drove a 100km looking for snow pictures. It was cold and wet out. This photo was the last one taken today, from Metzad, looking east toward the Dead Sea and Jordan.

Driving towards the Palestinian town of Si’ir I passed terraces with almond and olive trees. I almost didn’t make the effort to get out of car to get this shot but I’m glad I did. 

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If you’re into photography I’d be happy to guide you to places throughout Israel and you’ll get some great photographs.

Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.