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135-694: Babatha was born in approximately 104 CE, probably in Mahoza. The town was part of the Nabataean Kingdom until 106, when the kingdom was conquered by the Roman Empire and turned into the province of Arabia Petraea . Maḥoza was predominantly Nabatean but had a sizable Jewish community. It was located just inside Nabatea, close to the border with Judea. It was a port on the Dead Sea and a flourishing center of date palm cultivation. Her father, Shimon, son of Menachem,

270-452: A Jewish general of the Bar-Kokhba revolt who was apparently Miriam's brother. The satchel containing Babatha's legal documents was placed into a hole along with what were probably her other possessions that she had taken into the cave: a pair of sandals, a bundle of balls of yarn, remnants of fine fabric, two kerchiefs, a key and two key rings, knives including a clasp knife, a box, some bowls,

405-525: A Nabataean king whose name was lost, dated by Stracky to the early third century BC. The dating is significant, since the available evidence does not attest the existence of Nabataean monarchy until the second century BC. This nameless Nabataean king perhaps could be linked with a reference from the Zenon archive (the second historical mention of the Nabataeans) to deliveries of grain to "Rabbel's men", Rabbel being

540-515: A Nabataean monarch. The word Nabataean stands alone beside a missing word that start with the letter M; one of the suggested words for filling the gap is the traditional name of Nabataean kings, Malichus. Furthermore, the anonymous Nabataean coins dated by Barkay to the second half of the 3rd century BC, found mainly in Nabataean territory, support such an early date of the Nabataean Kingdom. This

675-531: A characteristically royal Nabataean name, it is thus possible to link Rabbel of the Zenon archive with the nameless king of Bosra's inscription, though it is highly speculative. A recent papyrological discovery, the Milan Papyrus , provides further evidence. The relevant part of the Lithika section of the papyrus describes an Arabian cavalry of a certain Nabataean king, providing an early 3rd century BC reference to

810-547: A dispute against Babatha regarding their late husband's property. Therefore, it is assumed that Babatha was near Ein Gedi in 132 CE, placing her in the midst of the Bar Kokhba revolt . It is likely that Babatha fled with Miriam and her family from the imminent violence of the revolt. They are thought to have taken refuge in the Cave of Letters together with the family of Jonathan, son of Beianus,

945-478: A distance its ancestral home [...] Thus when the city came to be bereft of the nation of the Jews, and its ancient inhabitants had completely perished, it was settled by foreigners." Similarly, Jerome writes that Jews were only allowed to visit the city to mourn its ruins, paying for the privilege. Under the argument to ensure the prosperity of the newly founded Roman colony of Aelia Capitolina, Jews were forbidden to enter

1080-410: A guarantee against his debts which she had covered as stated in the marriage contract, as his family had not paid the debts. Judah had died owing her 700 denarii, both from the debt he had taken from her in 128 CE and the original dowry. The documents also indicate that he had taken a loan of 60 denarii for a year at 12% interest from a Roman centurion stationed at Ein Gedi. In 131 CE, she was embroiled in

1215-454: A high-status figure as Archelaus indicates that the Nabatean elite was not particularly status-fixated due to their nomadic background. The earliest document that mentions Babatha is the deed gift that her father Shimon left to her mother Miriam. Most likely the eldest daughter, she inherited her father's property in Mahoza, several date palm orchards, upon her parents’ deaths. Her first husband

1350-507: A legal battle with Judah's other wife over the possessions of their dead husband. The documents also show a dispute between Shelamzion and Judah's orphaned sons over the ownership of a courtyard in Ein Gedi he had gifted to Shelamzion. An elite Roman woman, Julia Crispina, represented the sons. The dispute was ultimately settled in Shelamzion's favor. Babatha's seizure of her late husband's property

1485-464: A magnificent marble sarcophagus showing Dionysus discovered in Turmus Ayya , Latin-inscribed stone discovered at Khirbet Tibnah , a statue of Minerva discovered at Khirbat al-Mafjar , a tomb of a centurion at Beit Nattif and a Roman mansion with western elements discovered at Arak el-Khala, near Beit Guvrin . In Perea , a Roman military presence in the middle of the 2nd century suggests that

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1620-588: A mere two and a half years. The revolt had catastrophic consequences for the Jewish population in Judaea, with profound loss of life, extensive forced displacements, and widespread enslavement. The scale of suffering surpassed even the aftermath of the First Jewish–Roman War , leaving central Judea in a state of desolation. Some scholars characterize these consequences as an act of genocide. Several decades after

1755-454: A military campaign, commanded by Cornelius Palma , the governor of Syria . Roman forces seem to have come from Syria and also from Egypt . It is clear that by 107 AD Roman legions were stationed in the area around Petra and Bosra, as is shown by a papyrus found in Egypt . The kingdom was annexed by the empire to become the province of Arabia Petraea . Trade seems to have largely continued thanks to

1890-468: A political power suddenly; their rise instead went through two phases. The first phase was in the 4th century BC (ruled then by an elders' council), which was marked by the growth of Nabataean control over trade routes and various tribes and towns. Their presence in Transjordan by the end of the fourth century BC is guaranteed by Antigonus's operations in the region, and despite recent suggestions that there

2025-414: A result. According to Rabbinic sources some 400,000 men were at the disposal of Bar Kokhba at the peak of the rebellion. Simon bar Kokhba took the title Nasi Israel and ruled over an entity named Israel that was virtually independent for over two and a half years. The Jewish sage Rabbi Akiva, who was the spiritual leader of the revolt, identified Simon Bar Koziba as the Jewish messiah and gave him

2160-578: A series of religious edicts aimed at uprooting the Jewish nationalism in Judea. He prohibited Torah law and the Hebrew calendar and executed Judaic scholars. The sacred scrolls of Judaism were ceremonially burned at the large Temple complex as an offering to Jupiter. At the Temple, he installed two statues, one of Jupiter, another of himself. These proclamations remained in effect until Hadrian’s death in 138, which marked

2295-415: A sickle, and three waterskins. The opening of the hole was sealed with a rock. Because the documents were never retrieved and because twenty skeletal remains were found nearby, historians have suggested that Babatha perished while taking refuge in the cave. Nabataean Kingdom The Nabataean Kingdom ( Nabataean Aramaic : 𐢕𐢃𐢋𐢈 Nabāṭū ), also named Nabatea ( / ˌ n æ b ə ˈ t iː ə / ),

2430-435: A significant relief to the surviving Jewish communities. Hadrian's post-war policy included a prohibition against Jews living in or even approaching Jerusalem, as described by several ancient sources. Eusebius notes that "Hadrian then commanded that by a legal decree and ordinances the whole nation should be absolutely prevented from entering from thenceforth even the district round Jerusalem, so that it could not even see from

2565-466: A significant settlement gap above these layers. It appears that Jewish settlement in Judea was almost completely eradicated by the end of the revolt. Shimeon Applebaum estimates that about two-thirds of the Jewish population of Judea died during the revolt. In 2003, Cotton described Dio's figures as highly plausible, given accurate Roman census declarations. In 2021, an ethno-archaeological comparison analysis by Dvir Raviv and Chaim Ben David supported

2700-498: A similar account: "in Hadrian's reign, when Jerusalem was completely destroyed and the Jewish nation was massacred in large groups at a time, with the result that they were even expelled from the borders of Judaea." Roman post-war policy also involved removing and enslaving large numbers of prisoners of war, a practice also observed after the revolt of the Salassi (25 BCE), the wars with

2835-639: A state and urban society. The Nabataean institution of kingship came about as a result of multiple factors, such as the indispensabilities of trade organization and war; the subsequent outcomes of the Greek expeditions on the Nabataeans played a role in the political centralization of the Nabatu tribe. The earliest evidence of Nabataean kingship comes from a Nabataean inscription in the Hauran region, probably Bosra, which mentions

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2970-526: A surprise attack on the two brothers. Despite open contradiction between the two accounts, scholars tend to identify the plundering Arab tribe of the second book with the Nabataeans in the first book. They were evidently not Nabataeans, for good relations between the Maccabees and their "friends", the Nabataeans, continued to exist. The friendly relations between them is further emphasized by Jonathan's decision to send his brother John to "lodge his baggage" with

3105-469: A total force of 60,000–120,000 Roman soldiers facing Bar Kokhba's rebels. It is plausible that Legio IX Hispana was among the legions Severus brought with him from Europe, and that its demise occurred during Severus' campaign, as its disappearance during the second century is often attributed to this war. One of the crucial battles of the war took place near Tel Shalem in the Beit She'an valley, near what

3240-474: Is a gap in settlement above these levels. Fragmentary material from Transjordan and the Galilee adds to the discoveries from Judea. Excavations at archaeological sites such as Horvat Ethri and Khirbet Badd ‘Isa have demonstrated that these Jewish villages were destroyed in the revolt, and were only resettled by pagan populations in the 3rd century. Discoveries from towns like Gophna, known to be Jewish before

3375-739: Is by Greek historian Diodorus Siculus who lived around 30 BC. Diodorus refers accounts made 300 years earlier by Hieronymus of Cardia , one of Alexander the Great 's generals, who had a first-hand encounter with the Nabataeans. Diodorus relates how the Nabataeans survived in a waterless desert and managed to defeat their enemies by hiding in the desert until the latter surrendered for lack of water. The Nabataeans dug cisterns that were covered and marked by signs known only to themselves. Diodorus wrote about how they were "exceptionally fond of freedom" and includes an account about unsuccessful raids that were initiated by Greek general Antigonus I in 312 BC. neither

3510-610: Is described as the first conflict caused by a Middle Eastern petroleum product. The series of wars among the Greek generals ended in a dispute over the lands of modern-day Jordan between the Ptolemies based in Egypt and the Seleucids based in Syria. The conflict enabled the Nabataeans to extend their kingdom beyond Edom. Diodorus mentions that the Nabataeans had attacked merchant ships belonging to

3645-449: Is feasible and so the riddle remains unresolved", according to Kasher. A Nabataean inscription in the Negev mentions a Nabataean king called Aretas; the date given by Starcky is not later than 150 BC. However, the dating is difficult. It has been claimed that the inscription dates to the 3rd century BC, based on the pre-Nabataean writing style, or somewhere in the 2nd century BC. Generally,

3780-401: Is in line with Strabo 's account (whose description of Arabia derives ultimately from reports by 3rd century BC Ptolemaic officials) that the Nabataean kingship was old and traditional. In conclusion, Rachel Barkay states that "the Nabataean economy and political regime were in existence by the third century BC". The kingship of the Nabataeans was, in the view of Strabo, an effective one, where

3915-449: Is no evidence of Nabataean occupation of the Hauran in the early period, the Zenon papyri firmly attest the penetration of the Hauran by the Nabataeans in the mid-third century BC beyond all doubt, and according to Bowersock, it " establish[es] these Arabs in one of the principal areas of subsequent splendor ". Simultaneously, the Nabataeans had probably moved across the 'Araba to the west into

4050-511: Is now identified as the legionary camp of Legio VI Ferrata . This theory was proposed by Werner Eck in 1999, as part of his general maximalist work which did put the Bar Kokhba revolt as a very prominent event on the course of the Roman Empire's history. Next to the camp, archaeologists unearthed the remnants of a triumphal arch , which featured a dedication to Hadrian, most likely referring to

4185-701: Is their identification with the Nebaioth of the Hebrew Bible , the descendants of Ishmael , Abraham 's son. Unlike the rest of the Arabian tribes, the Nabataeans later emerged as vital players in the region during their times of prosperity. However, their influence then faded, and the Nabataeans were forgotten. The literate Nabataeans left no lengthy historical texts. However, thousands of inscriptions have been found in their settlements, including graffiti and on minted coins. The Nabataeans appear in historical records from

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4320-857: The Aramaic patronymic bar Kokhba , meaning "Son of a Star", a reference to the Star Prophecy in Numbers 24:17 : "A star rises from Jacob ". The name Bar Kokhba does not appear in the Talmud but in ecclesiastical sources. Following a series of setbacks, Hadrian called his general Sextus Julius Severus from Britannia , and troops were brought from as far as the Danube . In 133/4, Severus landed in Judea with three legions from Europe (including Legio X Gemina and possibly also Legio IX Hispana ), cohorts of additional legions and between 30 and 50 auxiliary units. The size of

4455-611: The Assyrians of old, nor the kings of the Medes and Persians, nor yet those of the Macedonians have been able to enslave them, and... they never brought their attempts to a successful conclusion. - Diodorus . After Alexander the Great's death in 323 BC, his empire split among his generals. During the conflict between Alexander's generals, Antigonus I conquered the Levant , and this brought him to

4590-489: The Church Fathers emphasize the role of Quintus Tineius Rufus , the erstwhile Roman governor of Judea, in provoking the Bar Kokhba revolt. The charismatic and messianic nature of Bar Kokhba may have also been a factor in popularizing the uprising across all of Judea. With the onset of the conflict, initial rebel victories established an independent Jewish enclave covering much of the province for several years. Bar Kokhba

4725-534: The First Jewish–Roman War and the Second Jewish–Roman War , the Bar Kokhba revolt resulted in a total Jewish defeat; Bar Kokhba was killed by Roman troops at Betar in 135, and the Jewish rebels who remained after his death were all killed or enslaved within the next year. Roman rule in Judea was not well-received among the Jewish population, especially after the destruction of the Second Temple during

4860-559: The Hellene ". In 438, when the Empress Eudocia removed the ban on Jews' praying at the Temple site, the heads of the community in Galilee issued a call "to the great and mighty people of the Jews" which began: "Know that the end of the exile of our people has come!" However, the Christian population of the city saw this as a threat to their primacy, and a riot erupted which chased Jews from

4995-587: The Legio X Fretensis , in the area. Tensions continued to build up in the wake of the Kitos War , the second large-scale Jewish insurrection in the Eastern Mediterranean during 115–117, the final stages of which saw fighting in Judea. Mismanagement of the province during the early 2nd century might well have led to the proximate causes of the revolt, largely bringing governors with clear anti-Jewish sentiments to run

5130-736: The Raeti (15 BCE), and the Pannonian War (c. 12 BCE). Sources indicate that Jewish captives were sold into slavery and sent to various parts of the empire, and the slave market was flooded with Jewish slaves. Jerome reports that following the war, "innumerable people of diverse ages and both sexes were sold at the marketplace of Terebinthus. For this reason it is an accursed thing among the Jews to visit this acclaimed marketplace." In another work, he notes that thousands of people were sold at this market. The 7th-century Chronicon Paschale , drawing on earlier sources, mentions that Hadrian sold Jewish captives "for

5265-465: The Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70. The Romans had also continued to maintain a large military presence across the province; pushed unpopular changes in administrative and economic life; constructed the colony of Aelia Capitolina over the destroyed city of Jerusalem ; and erected a place of worship for Jupiter on Jerusalem's Temple Mount , where the Jews' Second Temple had stood. Rabbinic literature and

5400-490: The Senate , did not employ the opening phrase commonly affected by the emperors: 'If you and your children are in health, it is well; I and the army are in health.'" Some argue that the exceptional number of preserved Roman veteran diplomas from the late 150s and 160s indicate an unprecedented conscription across the Roman Empire to replenish heavy losses within military legions and auxiliary units between 133 and 135, corresponding to

5535-814: The Western Wall . In 351–352 the Jews of Galilee launched yet another revolt , provoking heavy retribution. The Gallus revolt came during the rising influence of early Christians in the Eastern Roman Empire, under the Constantinian dynasty . In 355, however, the relations with the Roman rulers improved, upon the rise of Emperor Julian , the last of the Constantinian dynasty, who, unlike his predecessors, defied Christianity. In 363, not long before Julian left Antioch to launch his campaign against Sassanian Persia, he ordered

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5670-441: The 4000 foot-soldiers were slain, but of the 600 horsemen about fifty escaped, and of these the larger part were wounded"; Athenaeus himself was killed. The Antigonids had deployed no scouts, a failure that Diodorus ascribes to Athenaeus's failure to anticipate the rapidity of the Nabataean response. After the Nabataeans returned to their rock, they wrote a letter to Antigonus accusing Athenaeus and declaring that they had destroyed

5805-619: The Antigonid army in self-defence. Antigonus replied by blaming Athenaeus for acting unilaterally, intending to lull the Nabataeans into a false sense of security. But the Nabataeans, though pleased with Antigonus response, remained suspicious and established outposts on the edge of the mountains in preparation for future Antigonid attacks. The Antigonids' second attack was with an army of 4000 infantry and 4000 cavalry led by Antigonus's son, Demetrius "the Besieger". The Nabataean scouts spotted

5940-483: The Arabian peninsula, passing through Petra and ending up in the Port of Gaza for shipment to European markets. Antigonus ordered one of his officers, Athenaeus, to raid the Nabataeans with 4000 infantry and 600 cavalry, and loot herds and processions. Athenaeus learned that, every year, the Nabataeans gathered for a festival, during which women, children, and elders were left at "a certain rock" (later interpreted by some as

6075-530: The Arabs" (169-168 BC), is regarded as the first explicitly named king of the Nabataeans. His first appearance in history is in II Macc., where the high-priest Jason , driven by his rival Menelaus, sought the protection of Aretas. Upon his arrival at the land of the Nabataeans, Aretas imprisoned Jason. It is not clear why or when that happened; his arrest by Aretas was either after he escaped Jerusalem, where Aretas, fearing

6210-571: The Colonia foundation event as one of the causes of the revolt, suggesting to rather time the Colonia establishment to the aftermath of the revolt as a punishment. However, the 2014 archaeological finding of the Legio X Fretensis inscription in Jerusalem dedicated to Hadrian and dated to 129/130, as well as identification of Colonia Aelia Capitolina struck coins have since been largely accepted as confirmation to

6345-506: The Jewish Temple rebuilt in his effort to foster religions other than Christianity. The failure to rebuild the Temple has mostly been ascribed to the dramatic Galilee earthquake of 363 , and traditionally also to the Jews' ambivalence about the project . Sabotage is a possibility, as is an accidental fire, though Christian historians of the time ascribed it to divine intervention. Julian's support of Judaism caused Jews to call him "Julian

6480-438: The Jewish guardian of her son to answer the same charge of insufficient maintenance. She offered to pool her property with the property left in trust for her son so that he could be raised in luxury with the interest on the joint amount. In addition, among the documents in her possession was a record of a sale of a donkey between two brothers, Joseph and Judah, in 122 CE. They are likely to have been Babatha's brothers, and Babatha

6615-475: The Jews produced defective weapons. In fact, weapons found at sites controlled by the insurgents are identical to those used by the Romans. Bethar was selected as the rebels' headquarters because of its strategic location near Jerusalem, abundant springs, and defensible position. Excavations have revealed fortifications likely built by Bar Kokhba's forces, though determining whether these defenses were constructed at

6750-601: The Jews there were also victims of the revolt. The name of a Roman veteran from the village of Meason in Perea appears on a papyrus that was signed in Caesarea in 151, implying that lands there had been expropriated and given to Roman settlers. A building inscription of the Sixth Legion from the 2nd century was discovered at as-Salt , which is identified as Gadara, one of the principal Jewish settlements in Perea, and provides more proof of

6885-659: The Judaean Hasmonean dynasty , and a chief element in the disorders which invited Pompey 's intervention in Judea . Gaza City was the last stop for spices that were carried by trade caravans before shipment to European markets, giving the Nabataeans considerable influence over the Gazans. Hasmonean King Alexander Jannaeus besieged and occupied Gaza in 96 BC, murdering many of its inhabitants. Jannaeus then captured several territories in Transjordan north of Nabataea, along

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7020-512: The Judean hills, the Judean desert, northern Negev, and to some degree also in Galilee, Samaria and Jordan Valley. Many houses utilized underground hideouts, where Judean rebels hoped to withstand Roman superiority by the narrowness of the passages and even ambushes from underground. The cave systems were often interconnected and used as hideouts and for storage and refuge for their families. As of July 2015, some 350 hideout systems have been mapped within

7155-560: The Mediterranean region. Bar Kokhba revolt Major conflicts The Bar Kokhba revolt ( Hebrew : מֶרֶד בַּר כּוֹכְבָא Mereḏ Bar Kōḵḇāʾ ‍ ) was a large-scale armed rebellion initiated by the Jews of Judea , led by Simon bar Kokhba , against the Roman Empire in 132 CE. Lasting until 135 or early 136, it was the third and final escalation of the Jewish–Roman wars . Like

7290-572: The Messiah and did not support Bar Kokhba, they were barred from Jerusalem along with the Jews. The rebellion contributed to the differentiation between early Christianity and Judaism and their eventual clear separation. Roman casualties were heavy; Legio X Fretensis sustained heavy casualties during the revolt, and Legio XXII Deiotariana was disbanded following the revolt, perhaps because of serious losses. Cassius Dio writes "Many Romans, moreover, perished in this war. Therefore, Hadrian, in writing to

7425-433: The Nabataean kingdom managed to preserve its formal independence, it became a client kingdom under the influence of Rome. In 106 AD, during the reign of Roman emperor Trajan , the last king of the Nabataean kingdom Rabbel II Soter died. That might have prompted the official annexation of Nabatea to the Roman Empire, but the formal reasons and the exact manner of annexation are unknown. Some epigraphic evidence suggests

7560-440: The Nabataean kingdom was "very well governed" and the king was "a man of the people". For more than four centuries the Nabataean kingdom dominated, politically and commercially, a large territory and was arguably the first Arab kingdom in the area. The testimony of the 4th and 3rd century external accounts and local materialistic evidence demonstrate that the Nabataeans played a relatively substantial political and economic role in

7695-442: The Nabataeans managed to repulse the invading force. A Nabataean called out to Demetrius pointing out that Antigonid aggression made no sense, for the land was semi-barren and the Nabataeans had no desire to be their slaves. Realizing his limited supplies and the determination of the Nabataean fighters, Demetrius eventually was forced to accept peace, and withdraw with hostages and gifts. Demetrius drew Antigonus's displeasure for

7830-502: The Nabataeans must automatically refer to them". But the picture is different, many Arab tribes in the region continued to be nomadic and moved in and out of the emerging Nabataean kingdom, and the Nabataeans, as well as invading armies and eventually the Romans also, had to cope with these people. The Nabataeans began to mint coins during the second century BC, revealing the extensive economic and political independence they enjoyed. Petra

7965-586: The Nabataeans until the battle with the Seleucids is over. Again, the Maccabean caravan suffered an attack by a murderer Arab tribe in the vicinity of Madaba . This tribe was clearly not Nabataean, for they were identified as the sons of Amrai. In Bowersock's view, the interpretation of the evidence in the Books of Maccabees "illustrates the danger of assuming that any reference to Arabs in areas known to have been settled by

8100-437: The Nabataeans' undiminished talent for trading. Under Hadrian , the limes Arabicus ignored most of the Nabatæan territory and ran northeast from Aila (modern Aqaba ) at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba . A century later, during the reign of Alexander Severus , the local issue of coinage came to an end. There was no more building of sumptuous tombs, apparently because of a sudden change in political ways, such as an invasion by

8235-448: The Ninth in 120 and lived on for several decades to lead distinguished public careers. It was concluded that the legion was disbanded between 120 and 197, either as a result of fighting the Bar Kokhba revolt, or in Cappadocia (161), or at the Danube (162). Relations between the Jews in the region and the Roman Empire continued to be complicated. Constantine I allowed Jews to mourn their defeat and humiliation annually on Tisha B'Av at

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8370-454: The Ptolemies in Egypt at an unspecified date, but were soon targeted by a larger force and "punished as they deserved". While it is unknown why the wealthy Nabataeans turned to piracy, one possible reason is that they felt that their trade interests were threatened by the gradual understanding of the nature of monsoon in the Red Sea from the third century BC onward (see Periplus of the Erythraean Sea ). The Nabataean Arabs did not emerge as

8505-612: The Roman army amassed against the rebels was much larger than that commanded by Titus 60 years earlier—nearly one third of the Roman army took part in the campaign against Bar Kokhba. It is estimated that forces from at least 10 legions participated in Severus' campaign in Judea, including Legio X Fretensis , Legio VI Ferrata , Legio III Gallica , Legio III Cyrenaica , Legio II Traiana Fortis , Legio X Gemina , cohorts of Legio V Macedonica , cohorts of Legio XI Claudia , cohorts of Legio XII Fulminata and cohorts of Legio IV Flavia Felix , along with 30–50 auxiliary units, for

8640-407: The Roman authorities resettled the region with a diverse population. This included Roman veterans and immigrants from the western parts of the empire, who settled in Aelia Capitolina and its surroundings, administrative centers, and along main roads. Additionally, immigrants from the coastal plain and neighboring provinces such as Syria, Phoenicia , and Arabia settled in the Judean countryside. In

8775-417: The Roman military presence there. Following the revolt, the Hebrew language disappeared from daily use. Before the revolt, Hebrew was still used as a living language among a very significant part of the Jewish population in this region of the country. In the 3rd century sages no longer knew how to identify the Hebrew names of many plants mentioned in the Mishnah . Only a small number of sages who resided in

8910-425: The Roman-dominated cities on the coastal plain . Most of the villages in Judea's larger region show signs of devastation or abandonment that dates to the Bar Kokhba revolt. Buildings and underground installations carved out beneath or close to towns, such as hiding complexes, burial caves, storage facilities, and field towers, have both been found to have destruction layers and abandonment deposits. Furthermore, there

9045-495: The Romans scaled back on their crackdown across Judea, but the ban on Jewish entry into Jerusalem remained in place, exempting only those Jews who wished to enter the city for Tisha B'Av. By destroying the association of Jews with Judea and forbidding the practice of the Jewish faith, Hadrian aimed to root out a nation that had inflicted heavy casualties on the Roman Empire. According to Eitan Klein, artistic, epigraphic , and numismatic evidence from post-revolt Judea indicates that

9180-431: The Temple but that a malevolent Samaritan convinced him not to. The reference to a malevolent Samaritan is, however, a familiar device of Jewish literature. An additional legion, the VI Ferrata , arrived in the province to maintain order. Works on Aelia Capitolina commenced in 131. Consul Quintus Tineius Rufus performed the foundation ceremony which involved ploughing over the designated city limits. "Ploughing up

9315-478: The Temple", seen as a religious offence, turned many Jews against the Roman authorities. The Church Fathers and rabbinic literature emphasize the role of in provoking the revolt. The Romans issued a coin inscribed Aelia Capitolina . The Historia Augusta , a text which is problematic when used as a source for historical fact, states tensions rose after Hadrian banned circumcision , referred to as mutilare genitalia , taken to mean brit milah . Were

9450-466: The accuracy of Dio's depopulation claims, describing his account as "reliable" and "based on contemporaneous documentation." Jewish survivors faced harsh punitive measures from the Romans, who often used social engineering to stabilize conflict zones. In the aftermath of the war, Jews were expelled from Jerusalem and its surroundings. Menahem Mor notes that Jews were also expelled from the districts of Gophna , Herodion , and Aqraba . Additionally,

9585-414: The ancient people there; nbṭw , the root consonant of the tribe's name, is found in the early Semitic languages of Hejaz. Similarities between late Nabataean Arabic dialect and the ones found in Mesopotamia during the Neo-Assyrian period, as well as a group with the name of "Nabatu" being listed by the Assyrians as one of several rebellious Arab tribes in the region, suggests a connection between

9720-426: The beginning of the revolt or later in the conflict remains unresolved. Jewish leaders carefully planned the second revolt to avoid the numerous mistakes that had plagued the first First Jewish–Roman War 60 years earlier. In 132, the revolt, led by Simon bar Kokhba and Elasar , quickly spread from Modi'in across the country, cutting off the Roman garrison in Jerusalem. After Legio X and Legio VI failed to subdue

9855-523: The belief of restoration to come, in the early 7th century the Jews made an alliance with the Sasanian Empire , joining the invasion of Palaestina Prima in 614 to overwhelm the Byzantine garrison, and briefly gained autonomy in Jerusalem. Several archaeological excavations have been performed during the 20th and 21st centuries in ruins of Roman-period Jewish villages across Judea and Samaria, as well in

9990-440: The borders of Edom , just north of Petra. According to Diodorus Siculus , Antigonus sought to add " the land of the Arabs who are called Nabataeans " to his existing territories of Syria and Phoenicia . The Nabataeans were distinguished from the other Arab tribes by wealth. The Nabataeans generated revenues from the trade caravans that transported frankincense , myrrh and other spices from Eudaemon in today's Yemen, across

10125-442: The campaign. Historians disagree on the duration of the Roman campaign following the fall of Betar. While some claim further resistance was broken quickly, others argue that pockets of Jewish rebels continued to hide with their families into the winter months of late 135 and possibly even spring 136. By early 136 however, it is clear that the revolt was defeated. The Babylonian Talmud ( Sanhedrin 93b) says that Bar Kokhba reigned for

10260-428: The city, except on the day of Tisha B'Av . A further, more lasting punishment was also implemented by the Romans. In an attempt to erase any memory of Judea or Ancient Israel , the name Judaea was dropped from the provincial name, which was renamed Syria Palaestina . Despite such name changes taking place elsewhere, rebellions have never resulted in a nation's name being expunged. After Hadrian's death in 138,

10395-465: The city. During the 5th and 6th centuries, a series of Samaritan revolts broke out across Palaestina Prima . Especially violent were the third and the fourth revolts, which resulted in near annihilation of the Samaritan community. It is likely that the Samaritan revolt of 556 was joined by the Jewish community, which had also suffered brutal suppression of their religion under Emperor Justinian. In

10530-407: The claim true it has been conjectured that Hadrian, as a Hellenist , would have viewed circumcision as an undesirable form of mutilation . The claim is often considered suspect, and it may in reality have been intended to constitute a form of mockery of Jewish traditions which seemed absurd to the Romans. Cassius Dio reports that: The Jews [...] did not dare try conclusions with the Romans in

10665-570: The command of Sextus Julius Severus —and launch an extensive military campaign across Judea in 134, ultimately crushing the revolt. The killing of Bar Kokhba and the subsequent defeat of his rebels yielded disastrous consequences for Judea's Jewish populace, even more so than the crackdown that had taken place during and after the First Jewish–Roman War. Based on archeological evidence, ancient sources, and contemporary analysis, between 500,000–600,000 Jews are estimated to have been killed in

10800-413: The conflict. Judea was heavily depopulated as a result of the number of Jews killed or expelled by Roman troops, with a significant number of captives sold into slavery. Following the failure of the Bar Kokhba revolt, the center of Jewish society shifted from Judea to Galilee . The province of Judaea was renamed Syria Palaestina as an intended punishment for the Jews and as a result of the desires of

10935-484: The defeat of Bar Kokhba's army. Additional finds at Tel Shalem, including a bust of Hadrian, specifically link the site to the period. The theory for a major decisive battle in Tel Shalem implies a significant extension of the area of the rebellion, with Eck suggesting the war encompassed also northern valleys together with Galilee. After losing many of their strongholds, Bar Kokhba and the remnants of his army withdrew to

11070-448: The desert tracts of the Negev. In their early history, before establishing urban centers, the Nabataeans demonstrated on several occasions their impressive and well organized military prowess by successfully defending their territory against larger powers. The second phase saw the creation of the Nabataean political state in the mid-3rd century BC. Kingship is regarded as a characteristic of

11205-599: The enemy, thereby forfeiting divine protection. The horrendous scene after the city's capture could be best described as a massacre. The Jerusalem Talmud relates that the number of dead in Betar was enormous, that the Romans "went on killing until their horses were submerged in blood to their nostrils." According to a rabbinic midrash , the Romans executed eight leading members of the Sanhedrin (the list of Ten Martyrs includes two earlier rabbis): Rabbi Akiva; Haninah ben Teradion ;

11340-574: The fortress of Betar , which subsequently came under siege in the summer of 135. Legio V Macedonica and Legio XI Claudia are said to have taken part in the siege. According to Jewish tradition, the fortress was breached and destroyed on the fast of Tisha B'av , the ninth day of the lunar month Av, a day of mourning for the destruction of the Second Temple. Rabbinical literature ascribes the defeat to Bar Kokhba killing his maternal uncle, Rabbi Elazar Hamudaʻi , after suspecting him of collaborating with

11475-531: The fourth century BC, although there seems to be evidence of their existence before that time. Aramaic ostraca finds indicate that the Achaemenid province Idumaea must have been established before 363 B.C. after the failed revolt of Hakor of Egypt and Evagoras I of Salamis against the Persians . The Qedarites joined the failed revolt, and consequently lost significant territory and their privileged position in

11610-509: The frankincense trade, and were presumably replaced by the Nabataeans. It has been argued that the Persians lost interest in the former territory of the Edomite Kingdom after 400 BC, allowing the Nabataeans to gain prominence in that area. All of these changes would have allowed Nabataeans to control the frankincense trade from Dedan to Gaza. The first historical reference to the Nabataeans

11745-463: The future city of "Petra", "rock" in Greek.) The Antigonids attacked "the rock" in 312 BC while the Nabataeans were away trading; the inhabitants were taken by surprise and tonnes of spices and silver were looted. The Antigonids departed before nightfall and made camp to rest 200 stadion away, where they thought they would be safe from Nabataean counter-attack. The camp was attacked by 8000 pursuing Nabataean soldiers and - as Diodorus describes it - "all

11880-441: The god". The kingdom seems to have reached its territorial zenith during the reign of Aretas III (87 to 62 BC). In 62 BC, a Roman army under the command of Marcus Aemilius Scaurus besieged Petra. The defeated king Aretas III paid a tribute to Scaurus and recognized Roman supremacy over Nabataea. The Nabataean kingdom was slowly surrounded by the expanding Roman Empire , which conquered Egypt and annexed Hasmonean Judea. While

12015-526: The governor of Arabia Petraea during a Roman census and served as her legal guardian. In 128, a legal document shows that Judah took a loan without interest from Babatha, showing that she had control of her money despite the union. The loan covered the gift Judah gave his daughter at her wedding, which she used as a dowry. Judah bequeathed his property in Ein Gedi to Shelamzion that same year, half immediately and half to be inherited upon his death. Upon Judah's death in 130, Babatha seized his estates in Ein Gedi as

12150-730: The increasing influence of the Nabataeans to the south of their territories. During the Battle of Cana , the Seleucid king Antiochus XII waged war against the Nabataeans. Antiochus was slain during combat, and his army fled and perished in the desert from starvation. After Obodas's victories over the Judaeans and the Seleucids, he was worshipped as a god by his people. He was buried in the Temple of Oboda in Avdat , where inscriptions have been found referring to "Obodas

12285-499: The inscription is attributed to Aretas I of II Macc., or perhaps as suggested by others, to Aretas II . Around the same time, the Arab Nabataeans and the neighboring Jewish Maccabees had maintained a friendly relationship, the former had sympathized with the Maccabees, who were being mistreated by the Seleucids. The Romano-Jewish historian Josephus report that Judas Maccabeus and his brother Jonathan marched three days into

12420-504: The interpreter of the Sanhedrin, Rabbi Huspith; Eleazar ben Shammua ; Hanina ben Hakinai ; Jeshbab the Scribe ; Judah ben Dama ; and Judah ben Bava . The date of Akiva's execution is disputed, some dating it to the beginning of the revolt based on the midrash, while others link it to final phases. The rabbinic account describes agonizing tortures: Akiva was flayed with iron combs, Ishmael had

12555-507: The latter influenced by similar revolts among the Jewish communities in Egypt, Cyrenaica and Mesopotamia during the reign of Trajan in the Kitos War. The proximate reasons seem to centre around the construction of a new city, Aelia Capitolina , over the ruins of Jerusalem and the erection of a temple to Jupiter on the Temple Mount . Until recently, some historians had tried to question

12690-459: The marching enemy and used smoke signals to warn of the approaching Antigonid army. The Nabataeans dispersed their herds and possessions to guarded locations in harsh terrain - such as deserts and mountain tops - which would be difficult for the Antigonids to attack, and garrisoned "the rock" to defend what remained. The Antigonids attacked "the rock" through its "single artificial approach", but

12825-436: The messiah becoming abstracted and spiritualized. The Talmud refers to Bar Kokhba as "Ben Koziva" ( בֶּן כּוֹזִיבָא , lit.   ' Son of Deception ' ), placing him among the false messiahs . Eusebius of Caesarea wrote that Christians were killed and suffered "all kinds of persecutions" at the hands of rebel Jews when they refused to help Bar Kokhba against the Roman troops. Although Christians regarded Jesus as

12960-600: The mid-3rd century BC until it was annexed in AD 106 by the Roman Empire , which renamed it Arabia Petraea . The Nabataeans were one among several nomadic Bedouin Arab tribes that roamed the Arabian Desert and moved with their herds to wherever they could find pasture and water. They became familiar with their area as seasons passed, and they struggled to survive during bad years when seasonal rainfall diminished. The precise origin of

13095-515: The neo- Persian power under the Sassanid Empire . The city of Palmyra , for a time the capital of the breakaway Palmyrene Empire , grew in importance and attracted the Arabian trade away from Petra. The Nabataean Kingdom was situated between the Arabian and Sinai Peninsulas . Its northern neighbour was the Hasmonean kingdom, and its south western neighbour was Ptolemaic Egypt . Its capital

13230-399: The numbers to be exaggerations, they nonetheless acknowledge the large scale of the disaster for Judea's Jewish population. Archaeological evidence confirms widespread destruction in Judea, as every village in the region exhibits signs of devastation from the revolt. The majority of Roman-period settlements in Judea that have been excavated exhibit destruction or abandonment layers, indicating

13365-529: The open field, but they occupied the advantageous positions in the country and strengthened them with mines and walls, in order that they might have places of refuge whenever they should be hard pressed, and might meet together unobserved underground; and they pierced these subterranean passages from above at intervals to let in air and light. Dio's account has been corroborated by the discovery of hundreds of hiding complexes , created in large numbers in almost every population center. Hideout systems were employed in

13500-561: The peace, but this was ameliorated by Demetrius's reports of bitumen deposits in the Dead Sea , a valuable commodity that was essential for the embalming process. Antigonus sent an expedition, this time under Hieronymus of Cardia , to extract bitumen from the Dead Sea. A force of 6000 Arabs sailing on reed rafts approached Hieronymus's troops and killed them with arrows. These Arabs were almost certainly Nabataeans. Antigonus thus lost all hope of generating revenue in that manner. The event

13635-451: The price of a daily portion of food for a horse." William V. Harris puts the overall number of enslaved captives taken during the revolt at higher than 100,000. Those who were not sold were transported to Gaza for auction. Many others were relocated to Egypt and other regions, significantly increasing the Jewish diaspora . While Jewish presence in the region significantly dwindled, there

13770-458: The province. Historians have suggested multiple reasons for the sparking of the Bar Kokhba revolt, long-term and proximate. Several elements are believed to have contributed to the rebellion; changes in administrative law, the widespread presence of legally-privileged Roman citizens , alterations in agricultural practice with a shift from landowning to sharecropping, the impact of a possible period of economic decline, and an upsurge of nationalism,

13905-413: The provincial governor, complaining that the two denarii per month that her son's guardians were providing in maintenance were insufficient. A document from 132 CE indicates that she lost the case, as she was still receiving two denarii a month in maintenance for her son. The document was signed on her behalf by Babeli, son of Menachem, who may have been her paternal uncle. In 125 CE, she brought suit against

14040-473: The rebels, additional reinforcements were dispatched from neighbouring provinces. Gaius Poblicius Marcellus , the legate of Roman Syria , arrived commanding Legio III Gallica , while Titus Haterius Nepos , the governor of Roman Arabia , brought Legio III Cyrenaica . Later on it is proposed by some historians that Legio XXII Deiotariana was sent from Arabia Petraea but was ambushed and massacred on its way to Aelia Capitolina and possibly disbanded as

14175-405: The region’s non-Jewish inhabitants. The Jews were also subjected to a series of religious edicts by the Romans, including an edict that barred all Jews from entering Jerusalem. The Bar Kokhba revolt also had philosophical and religious ramifications; Jewish belief in the Messiah was abstracted and spiritualized, and rabbinical political thought became deeply cautious and conservative. The rebellion

14310-525: The retaliation of Antiochus IV Epiphanes for "openly demonstrating pro-Ptolemaic stand" (in Hammond's view however, Aretas hoped to use Jason as a political bargaining counter with the Seleucids), arrested Jason. Or his imprisonment might have happened at a later date (167 BC), as a result of the established friendship between the Nabataeans and Judas Maccabaeus , aimed to hand Jason to the Jews. "Either suggestion

14445-428: The revolt prompted a widespread migration of Jews from Judea to coastal cities and Galilee . Eusebius writes "[...] all the families of the Jewish nation have suffered pain worthy of wailing and lamentation because God's hand has struck them, delivering their mother-city over to strange nations, laying their Temple low, and driving them from their country, to serve their enemies in a hostile land." Jerome provides

14580-445: The revolt's suppression, Roman historian Cassius Dio ( c.  155 –235) wrote: 50 of their most important outposts and 985 of their most famous villages were razed to the ground. 580,000 men were slain in the various raids and battles, and the number of those that perished by famine, disease and fire was past finding out, Thus nearly the whole of Judaea was made desolate." While several scholars, such as Peter Schäfer , thought

14715-562: The revolt, demonstrate that pagans of Hellenistic and Roman culture lived there during the Late Roman period. Herodium was excavated by archaeologist Ehud Netzer in the 1980s, publishing results in 1985. According to findings, during the later Bar-Kokhba revolt, complex tunnels were dug, connecting the earlier cisterns with one another. These led from the Herodium fortress to hidden openings, which allowed surprise attacks on Roman units besieging

14850-565: The revolt. Some historians argue that Legio IX Hispana 's disbandment in the mid-2nd century could have also been a result of this war. Previously it had generally been accepted that the Ninth disappeared around 108 CE, possibly suffering its demise in Britain, according to German historian Theodor Mommsen ; but archaeological findings in 2015 from Nijmegen dated to 121 contain the known inscriptions of two senior officers who were deputy commanders of

14985-515: The road to Damascus , including northern Moab and Gilead . These territorial acquisitions threatened Nabataean trade interests in Gaza and in Damascus. The Nabataean King Obodas I regained control of these areas after his forces defeated Jannaeus in the Battle of Gadara around 93 BC. After the Nabataean victory over the Judaeans, the former were now at odds with the Seleucids, who were concerned about

15120-536: The ruins of Roman villas at Ein Yael, Khirbet er-Ras, Rephaim Valley and Ramat Rachel , and the Tenth Legion's kilns discovered near Giv'at Ram are all indications that the rural area surrounding Aelia Capitolina underwent a romanization process, with Roman citizens and Roman veterans settling in the area during the Late Roman period. Indications for the settlement of Roman veterans in other parts of Judea proper includes

15255-401: The ruins of 140 Jewish villages. Dio also states that the Jews manufactured their own weapons in preparation for the revolt: "The Jews [...] purposely made of poor quality such weapons as they were called upon to furnish, in order that the Romans might reject them and that they themselves might thus have the use of them." However, there is no archaeological evidence to support Dio's claim that

15390-536: The same home as the first wife or if Judah traveled between two separate households, as polygamy was common and mandated by law in the Jewish community. Babatha contributed a dowry of 400 denarii to the marriage. The documents concerning this marriage offer insight into her status in the relationship. Judah's debts become part of her liability in their marriage contract , indicating financial equality. Judah accompanied Babatha to Rabba to declare her property in Maḥoza to

15525-410: The sequence of events depicted in Jewish traditional literature. One interpretation involves the visit in 130 of Hadrian to the ruins of the Temple . At first sympathetic towards the Jews, Hadrian promised to rebuild the Temple, but the Jews felt betrayed when they found out that he intended to build a temple dedicated to Jupiter. A rabbinic version of this story claims that Hadrian planned on rebuilding

15660-408: The skin of his head pulled off slowly, and Haninah was burned at a stake , with wet wool held by a Torah scroll wrapped around his body to prolong his death. Following the fall of Betar, the Roman forces went on a rampage of systematic killing, eliminating all remaining Jewish villages in the region and seeking out the refugees. Legio III Cyrenaica was the main force to execute this last phase of

15795-400: The south still spoke Hebrew. The Jerusalem Talmud and the classic legend midrashes (in which the majority of the acts and stories are in Aramaic ) both demonstrate that Hebrew was used mostly as a literary and artificial language. Hebrew is only found on a small percentage of cemeteries and synagogues. Rabbinical political thought became deeply cautious and conservative, with Jewish belief in

15930-511: The southern Hebron Hills . There were also Jewish communities along the coastal plain, in Caesarea , Beit She'an and on the Golan Heights . The maintenance of Jewish settlement in Palestine became a major concern of the rabbis. They endeavored to halt Jewish dispersal and even banned emigration from Palestine, branding those who settled outside its borders as idolaters. Hadrian promulgated

16065-550: The specific tribe of Arab nomads remains uncertain. One hypothesis locates their original homeland in today's Yemen , in the southwest of the Arabian peninsula , but their deities, language and script share nothing with those of southern Arabia. Another hypothesis argues that they came from the eastern coast of the peninsula. The suggestion that they came from the Hejaz area is considered to be more convincing, as they share many deities with

16200-540: The sphere of the early Hellenistic world. While the Nabataeans didn't attain observable characteristics of a Hellenistic state (i.e. monumental architecture) in their early period, similar to contemporary Seleucid Syria, the Milan papyrus speaks of their wealth and prestige in this period. In that respect, the Nabataeans must be considered a unique entity. Aretas I , mentioned in the Second Book of Maccabees as "the tyrant of

16335-476: The star") was the leader's original name and Bar Kosiba (meaning "son of disappointment") a later derogatory term, documents discovered in the 1950s in the Judaean desert confirm that his original name was Simeon ben Kosiba . The name Bar Kokhba was bestowed by supporters including Rabbi Akiva , who endorsed him as the messiah based on the biblical prophecy "A star ( kokhav ) rises from Jacob." However, this claim

16470-512: The two. The Nabataeans might have originated from there and migrated west between the 6th and 4th centuries BC into northwestern Arabia and much of what is now modern-day Jordan . Nabataeans have been falsely associated with other groups of people. A people called the "Nabaiti", who were defeated by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal , were associated by some with the Nabataeans because of the temptation to link their similar names. Another misconception

16605-427: The vicinity of Jerusalem, villages were depopulated, and arable land owned by Jews was confiscated. In the following centuries, the lack of an alternative population to fill the empty villages led Roman and later Byzantine authorities to seek a different approach to benefit the nobles, and ultimately the church, by constructing estate farms and monasteries on the empty village lands. The Roman legionary tomb at Manahat ,

16740-476: The wilderness before encountering the Nabataeans in the Hauran, where they were settled in for at least a century. The Nabataeans treated them peacefully and told them of what happened to the Jews residing in the land of Galaad . This peaceful meeting between the Nabataeans and two brothers in the First Book of Maccabees seems to contradict a parallel account from the second book where a pastoral Arab tribe launched

16875-422: Was Jesus, son of Jesus, whom she probably married around 120, when she would likely have been around 12–15 years old. They had a son named Jesus. By 124, her first husband had died. In 125, she married Judah, the son of Eleazar Ketushyon, the owner of three date palm orchards in Ein Gedi, who had another wife, Miriam, daughter of Beianus, and a teenage daughter, Shelamzion. It is uncertain whether Babatha lived in

17010-469: Was a continuous small Jewish presence, and Galilee became its religious center. Some of the Judean survivors resettled in Galilee, with some rabbinical families gathering in Sepphoris . The Mishnah and part of the Talmud , central Jewish texts, were composed during the 2nd to 4th centuries in Galilee. Jewish communities continued to live on the edges of Judea, including Eleutheropolis , Ein Gedi and

17145-552: Was a political state of the Nabataeans during classical antiquity . The Nabataean Kingdom controlled many of the trade routes of the region, amassing large wealth and drawing the envy of its neighbors. It stretched south along the Tihamah into the Hejaz , up as far north as Damascus , which it controlled for a short period (85–71 BC). Nabataea remained an independent political entity from

17280-762: Was also among the events that helped differentiate early Christianity from Judaism . The Bar Kokhba revolt is named for its leader, Simon bar Kokhba . Since it was the last of three major Jewish–Roman wars , it is also known as the Third Jewish–Roman War or the Third Jewish Revolt. Some historians also refer to it as the Second Revolt of Judea, not counting the Diaspora Revolt (115–117), which had only marginally been fought in Judea. While earlier scholars debated whether Bar Kokhba (meaning "son of

17415-408: Was appointed nasi ( נָשִׂיא , lit.   ' prince ' ) of the rebels' provisional state, and much of Judea's populace regarded him as the messiah of Judaism who would restore Jewish national independence . This initial setback for the Romans led Emperor Hadrian to assemble a large army—six full legions with auxiliaries and other elements from up to six additional legions, all under

17550-531: Was contested by his sons, whom Julia Crispina again represented in the court of the provincial governor. At one point, Babatha summoned Julia Crispina to court, despite her Roman elite status, claiming that a false charge of violence had been made against her. Other documents of importance concern the guardianship of Babatha's son Jesus. In 124 CE, the Council of Petra appointed two guardians for her son, one Jewish and one Nabatean. Within four months, Babatha petitioned

17685-403: Was contested by other contemporary sages like Yohanan ben Torta. Seventeen letters discovered in the Judaean desert reveal some details on Bar Kokhba's personality. After the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73), Roman authorities took measures to suppress the rebellious province of Roman Judea . Instead of a procurator , they installed a praetor as a governor and stationed an entire legion ,

17820-402: Was from Ein Gedi in Judea and came to Maḥoza roughly around the time of her birth and bought property there. He is known to have bought a date palm orchard from Archelaus, a Nabatean provincial governor, in 99 CE. Archelaus had purchased the same orchard only a month before but rescinded the purchase. He gave Shimon two documents to help him secure his title to the orchard. This behaviour by such

17955-416: Was included in a list of major cities in the Mediterranean area to be visited by a notable from Priene , a sign of the significance of Nabataea in the ancient world. Petra was counted with Alexandria , which was considered to be a supreme city in the civilized world. The Nabataeans were allies of the Maccabees during their struggles against the Seleucid monarchs. They then became rivals of their successors,

18090-400: Was probably given the document to hold onto for safekeeping. The documents were written on her behalf by Eleazar, son of Eleazar, and Yochana, son of Makhouta. Babatha herself was illiterate as declared by Eleazar, who wrote that "she does not know letters." The latest documents discovered in the pouch concern a summons to appear in an Ein Gedi court as Judah's first wife, Miriam, had brought

18225-610: Was the city of Raqmu in Jordan , and it included the towns of Bosra , Hegra ( Mada'in Saleh ), and Nitzana /Nessana. Raqmu, now called Petra, was a wealthy trading town, located at a convergence of several important trade routes . One of them was the Incense Route which was based around the production of both myrrh and frankincense in southern Arabia, and ran through Mada'in Saleh to Petra. From there, aromatics were distributed throughout

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