(Sorry, whomever that is that I captured their “good side.”) : )
Not far from Nazareth is the ancient city of Zippori. I must admit to not seeing very much of this particular site because I was feeling the worst, physically, this day. I think there is a lot more to see here than even our crew visited (without me), based on what I read in the brochure we received. I saw the pictures that Evan took of what they toured, and there is lots more in the brochure beyond that.
Neat place. Lot’s of ancient mosaics to be seen that are telling of the culture of the city. The part that I did see (before I retired myself to rest/wait on the bus), the synagogue, had a mixture of mosaic images in the floor tiles that told a story of Jews and Romans sharing the space.
The circle part of the floor of the synagogue contains images of the 12 signs of the zodiac. There are also menorah and other Jewish images, along with the name of the first Levitical priest, Aaron, the brother of Moses.
So, sorry this is upside down, but the Hebrew name in front of the animal’s nose is the name Aaron.
Very cool ruins from a city that was in existence during the time of Jesus. Jesus would have walked through this city several times. In fact, trail markers denote the paths Jesus walked with an orange dot, like this.
This is a red trail marker, and the top left orange dot (if the picture was in the correct orientation, sorry) denotes a Jesus-frequented trail. There are also black, green, and blue trails in the holy land that have been there for centuries now. They paint trail markers directly on stones and trees along the ancient paths.
The presentation we watched in the modern building around the ancient synagogue ruins showed what the floor would look like with all the mosaic tiles still in place. The white tiles are still there, the blue are added in as they would have been. Interesting to see the combination of Roman and Jewish symbols, even though sometimes they didn’t get along with each other quite so well.
The workmanship of the mosaics is really quite remarkable. The rest of the group saw the theatre and more ruins and mosaics, but I just couldn’t make it. I am still coughing a week later, and walking around in the rain, up hills and freezing, was not helping me recuperate! I managed to hang with the group every place but here.
Next up, Cana!