powered by FreeFind	Mount Hermon 220 pictures     4 minutes HQ video The Hebrew name of Mt. Hermon is derived from the Hebrew word "Herem", which means "sacred and forbidden to touch": according to Canaanite tradition, the mountain was the dwelling of the gods. The archaeological finds indicate that there were settlements here during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods, but it is difficult to ascertain whether the settlements were Jewish, non-Jewish or mixed. Historical sources support the hypothesis that Jewish settlements existed on Mt. Hermon. Mt. Hermon in the Spring As far as we know, the earliest settlers on Mt. Hermon were the Itureans (Arab tribes). The Itureans are mentioned in the bible as far back as the reign of Kind Saul: they were nomadic tribes, whose livelihood was based on livestock breeding and later agriculture. The Itureans had reached Mt. Hermon from the eastern bank of the Jordan River, and later spread north to Lebanon. In the Hellenistic period they were defeated by Alexander the Great in the Lebanon Mountains. When the Seleucid Kingdom declined, the Itureans founded the kingdom of Chalcis that spread over the Labanon and Anti-Lebanon mountains and the fertile valley in between. There they built their administrative capital (Majdal 'Anjar in the Lebanon Valley), while Ba'al-Bek served as their ritualistic capital. Mt. Hermon in the Winter The invasion of Rome to Syria and Israel affected the independence of the Itureans, too: slowly, following their "divide and conquer" strategy, the Romans severed the Iturean kingdom of Chalcis and in 20 B.C. Augustus Caesar gave their southern territories - Mt. Hermon and the sources of the Jordan River - to Herod, who ruled over them for the next 120 years. Apparently, demographic considerations led the Romans to do so: they attempted to create a Jewish and Iturean population, that was sympathetic with the house of Herod. The settlement projects of Herod in the north-eastern regions of Israel - Bashan, Horen, Tarchon - are well known from the writings of Josephus Flavius and the Archaeological and Epigraphical findings. Herod populated those regions with his Jewish, Edomite and Babylonian followers. In 6-7 A.D. the Roman governors tries to conduct a census of the Itureans that lived on the mountains. The latter, together with their Jewish neighbors headed by Judah of Galilee, rebelled. The Romans sent two cohorts up the mountain and destroyed an Iturean citadel. During the Roman and Byzantine periods, the Itureans served as hired soldiers, sharp-shooters and archers in the armies of the Empire. In Byzantine sources they are mentioned as pagans, who religiously adhered to their tribal structure. Upon the invasion of the desert tribes and the fall of the Byzantine Empire, the Iturean tribes were lost as well, after being killed of assimilated among the desert invaders. Encounters of Jews and Itureans are documented in Maccabees. The book tells the story of Jonathan the Hasmonean's journey in the Lebanon Valley, for the purpose of fighting the Zabadeans, relatives of the Itureans, that threatened one of the Jewish communities in the kingdom of Chalcis. Judah Aristobulus I (reigned in 103-104 B. C.) also went on a military campaign to the land of the Itureans, conquered part of it, and converted many of its inhabitants to Judaism. Apparently, a Jewish community still existed in the Hermon during the times of the Mishna and the Talmud. There is direct evidence of Jews living in the land of the Itureans, both in mixed settlements and in pure Jewish ones. Documents i the "Cairo Genizah (archive)" mention Jewish farmer communities on Mt. Hermon from the 11th. Century, to the 16th century. The Jews abandoned the place due to the bloody struggles between the Christians, the Druze, and the Muslims. On the Hermon there are remains of more than 40 settlements, most of which were probably seasonal ones, and a small part of them - permanent ones from the times of the Itureans. There is a long continuity of settlement to present day (the 70's, after conquering Har Dov and building the Good Fence). "The Covenant between the Pieces"- A Holy Site for Both Muslims and Jews The Site of the Covenant - a 1290 m high mountain at Katef Si'on. This is the place of a sacred site, named Mashad A-Tayar ("Bird's Testimony") by the Arabs, or "Makam Ibrahim Al Khalil" ("Beloved Abraham's Place"). Both Muslim and Jews made pilgrimage there. The Jewish tradition about the holiness of the site is at least a few hundred years old. Jews used to make pilgrimage to the site during the week after reading the section in the Torah discussing Abraham's leaving his home, and read at the site the section discussing the Covenant. The place contains an elongated structure, with three rooms, which was built around the 16th century. The site is surrounded by groves of old oaks. There are two water pools, graves, and other early traces here, proving that there was once an ancient settlement at the site. There is a legend about an 80 year old Jew, who near his death, in the 17th. Century, wanted to visit the site. He arrived at the town Majdal Shams, and hired an old guide and a mule in order to climb the mountain. While climbing in the area of Si'on River, he fell off the mule's back and died immediately. The Druse guide, who didn't know what to do with the old man, turned back to Majdal Shams with the dead body. But before arriving back at the village, he decided to climb back to the mountain, and buried him at the southern part of the site. The Squirrel Mountain A 1,146m high mountain, northeast of the Sirin branch. Its western slopes go down to Si'on River. The mountain's dome is about 400 m long- east to west. Most of the mountain is afforested, a part of an old oak forest. The Olive Press On Squirrel Mountain, a few ritualistic compounds were found, as well as traces of a 10 dunam (2.5 acre) settlement, and two temples. Bir Ansuba is the highest settlement in the area, at 1,350 m. The town houses are located on an eastern slope, hidden from the wind, and are spread along 150 meters. There is a ritual area in the settlement, wells, a karstic pit, burial caverns, paths, and traces of agriculture. The Old Snow Pit The meaning of the name Bir Ansuba, or Bir Al-Nasuba, is unknown. No traces of a settlement of a late period were found at the site. It is a typical ancient village on the top of Mt. Hermon. The settlers apparently made their living mainly from a rather developed mountainous orchard agriculture, in which olives played a major role. A rather large ritual center was established in the village. Traces of Agriculture in Oak Valley Pasture on top of the Hermon Dura- a Village Located about six kilometers northeast of the Banias, up the Si'on River, the remains of the village may be found up the eastern bank of the Si'on River, about 1,000 m above sea level. The ancient road leading to the ruins passes through the Mann Pool on the eastern side, and climbs up toward Mazra'at Barakhta on the northwest. Dura is an ancient name, of either Hebrew or Greek origin. A Moat Pool, and the Tallest Syrian Olive Trees on Mt. Hermon Mazra'at Barakhta Back to Israel Index