Herod the
Great rebuilt of the port city known as Straton's Tower, which
he renamed Caesarea, in honor of Caesar Augustus; it took a decade to
complete the project. When the Romans assumed direct control over Judaea
in 6, after the deposition of Archaelus, Herod's son, Caesarea became
the capital of the province and the seat of Roman administration. Since
Caesarea did not have a natural harbor, Herod built
two breakwaters that together created a circular harbor capable of holding
large fleets of ships. The two breakwaters, two hundred feet wide, were
constructed of blocks of stone fifty feet long, eighteen feet wide and
ten feet high. A wall divided the breakwater lengthwise and on the harbor
side of this wall were situated towers and other structures. The southern
breakwater extended out from the shore and then curved northward. The
northern breakwater extended outward perpendicular to the shore. The
entrance to the harbor faced north, and at the end of the southern
breakwater was situated a lighthouse. As a result of this artifical
harbor, Caesarea became an important point along important trade routes.
Herod also constructed a temple to Roma and Augustus on a mound, so
that it is visible from sea. Josephus describes the temple to Roma and
Augustus as follows, "In a circle around the harbor there was a continuous
line of dwellings constructed of the most polished stone, and in their
midst was a mound on which there stood a temple of Caesar, visible a
great way off to those sailing into the harbor, which had a statue of
Rome and also one of Caesar" (Ant. 15.339). He also
built a palace, theater, amphitheatre hippodrome, public baths, sewers
and forum (see Ant. 15.331-41; 16.136-41; War 1.408-16).
To provide the needs of the population, Herod built an aqueduct to bring
water to the Caesarea. It extends for six and a half miles from a spring
in the Mt. Carmel range to the city.
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