Israeli archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of an ancient bathhouse dating back to the Byzantine era.
The newly discovered Byzantine bathhouse in Judea (IAA)
Dr. Rina Avner and Dr. Yitzchak Paz, archaeologists at the Israel Antiquities Authority, said that the remains of the Byzantine bath were exposed during work being conducted on the modern water infrastructure near Moshav Tarum in the Judean coastal hills.
“This is a bathhouse that measures 20 x 20 m and dates to the fourth-fifth centuries CE. The remains visible in the field include the frigidarium (cold room), tepidarium (warm room) and caldarium (hot room), as well as a courtyard attached northeast of the bathhouse rooms. Two steps led up to a small cold-water pool located in one of the corners of the courtyard.”
“It is possible the bathhouse was used by an inn situated on an ancient road that ran along Nahal Harel through the southern Ayalon Valley, and it might also have been part of a wealthy country estate – just like the pools in the gardens of villas in Caesarea today”, concluded Dr. Rina Avner.
