Eleutheropolis
 Eleutheropolis |
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 Roman ruins of Eleutheropolis |
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| Location | Beit Guvrin, Israel |
| Built in | 2nd century BC |
| Built by/for | {{{builder}}} |
| Type of structure | City |
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Eleutheropolis ("City of the Free") was a Roman city in Palestine, some 53 km southwest of Jerusalem. Its remains still straddle the ancient road to Gaza. The site— referred to as Baitogabra in Ptolemy's Geography— was called Beit Guvrin and Bet Gubrin in the Talmud.[1]
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[edit] History
In the Jewish War (68 CE), Vespasian slaughtered or enslaved the inhabitants of Betaris. According to Josephus: "When he had seized upon two villages, which were in the very midst of Idumea, Betaris, and Caphartobas, he slew above ten thousand of the people, and carried into captivity above a thousand, and drove away the rest of the multitude, and placed no small part of his own forces in them, who overran and laid waste the whole mountainous country."[2]
The Romans gave the city a Greek name, Eleutheropolis, meaning “City of the Free."[3][4] Coins minted by Septimius Severus bear the date January 1, 200, commemorating its founding.,[5]
Eleutherpolis became one of the most important cities in Roman Palestine. Seven routes met at Eleutheropolis,[6] and Eusebius, in his Onomasticon, uses the Roman milestones indicating the city as a central point from which the distances of other towns were measured.[7]
The settlement was demolished once again during the Bar Kokhba revolt, 132–135.
The city was a "City of Excellence" in the fourth century[8] and a Christian bishopric with the largest territory in Palestine: its first known bishop is Macrinus, who attended the Council of Nicaea in 325.
Epiphanius of Salamis, the bishop of Salamis in Cyprus, was born at Eleutheropolis; at Ad nearby he established a monastery which is often mentioned in the polemics of Jerome with Rufinus and John, Bishop of Jerusalem.
At Eleutheropolis, according to the hagiographies, fifty soldiers of the garrison of Gaza who had refused to deny Christ were beheaded in 638: later a church was built in their honor.[9] In 796 the city was again destroyed in civil warfare.
[edit] 19th century identification
In 1838, American scholar Edward Robinson identified Bayt Jibrin as the site of ancient Eleutheropolis.[10] Eleutheropolis remains a titular see in the Roman Catholic Church.[11]
[edit] References
- ^ Jewish Encyclopedia, s.v. "Eleutheropolis".
- ^ Josephus, De Bell. Jud., IV.viii.1
- ^ Biblical Researches in Palestine and the Adjacent Regions: A Journal of ... Edward Robinson, Eli Smith
- ^ 1911 encyclopedia.org
- ^ Catholic Encyclopedia, s.v. "Eleutheropolis".
- ^ Amos Kloner, 1999. "The City of Eleutheropolis": in The Madaba Map Centenary 1897-1997, (Jerusalem) pp 244-246.]
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica 1911: "Eleutheropolis"
- ^ Kloner 1999
- ^ Catholic Encyclopedia 1908, s.v. "Eleutheropolis"
- ^ Biblical researches in Palestine, 1838-52. A journal of travels in the year 1838. P. 57ff: Eleutheropolis 1856,
- ^ Eleutheropolis in Palaestina (Titular See)
[edit] External links
- Edward Robinson: Biblical researches in Palestine, 1838-52. A journal of travels in the year 1838. (1856) p. 57ff: Eleutheropolis
- Amos Kloner, 1999. "The City of Eleutheropolis": in The Madaba Map Centenary 1897-1997, (Jerusalem) pp 244–246. Eleutheropolis in the late Roman and Byzantine period
- Archaeological World: Eleutheropolis
- Catholic Encyclopedia 1908, s.v. "Eleutheropolis"
- Jewish Encyclopedia: "Eleutheropolis"
- pictures of Eleutheropolis
- Early pictures of mosaics at Eleutheropolis, many now in Istanbul:
- Mosaic of warrior, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
- Mosaic of tethered horse, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
- Another view of mosaic floor, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
- Mosaic of Greek inscription, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
- Mosaic of maiden with fruit, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
- Mosaic of maiden with fruit, (approximately 1900 to 1926)
Coordinates: 31°36′47.15″N 34°53′53.87″E / 31.6130972°N 34.8982972°E
