BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Anastylosis at Machaerus, Where John the Baptist Was Beheaded

Restoration work gives archaeological context to Biblical scene

Who beheaded John the Baptist in the Bible? What were the circumstances of his death? This famous Biblical episode—the notorious dance that ended in death—is recounted in Matthew 14:1–12 and Mark 6:14–29. The sordid details play out much like a Greek tragedy: Princess Salome dances before her stepfather, King Herod, at his birthday party. Pleased, he offers to grant her anything that she desires. After conferring with her mother, Herodias, Princess Salome asks for the head of John the Baptist on a platter. (Earlier, John the Baptist had angered Herodias by saying that her marriage to Herod was not legal; Herodias had previously been married to Herod’s brother, Philip, but had divorced him so that she could marry Herod.) Herod complies with the wish of Salome, and John the Baptist is beheaded.

anastylosis-machaerus

The palace-fortress of Machaerus sits on a precipice above the Dead Sea. Machaerus is the location of the New Testament episode featuring Princess Salome and John the Baptist. Photo: Courtesy Győző Vörös

Where did this event take place? Where was John the Baptist beheaded? According to the Jewish historian Josephus, he was beheaded at Herod the Great’s palace-fortress of Machaerus on the east side of the Dead Sea in modern Jordan (Antiquities 18.5,2). Herod had built the fortified palace around 30 B.C. over the ruins of the earlier Hasmonean fortress. In the January/February 2015 issue of BAR, Győző Vörös, the director of the Machaerus Excavations and Surveys, details the restoration work taking place at Machaerus—giving archaeological context to this Biblical scene starring Princess Salome and John the Baptist—in his article “Anastylosis at Machaerus.”

machaerus-drawing

Where was John the Baptist beheaded? According to Josephus, he was beheaded at Herod’s palace-fortress of Machaerus. Photo: Courtesy Győző Vörös

Who beheaded John the Baptist? In the Bible, it says that King Herod, or Herod the ruler, beheaded John the Baptist. This was not Herod the Great but his son, Tetrarch Herod Antipas, who governed Galilee and Perea from 4 B.C.–39 A.D. Herod Antipas also infamously played a role in Jesus’ execution (Luke 23:6–12).

The royal courtyard at Machaerus where Salome danced before her stepfather, Herod Antipas, has been partially reconstructed by Vörös and his team from the Hungarian Academy of Arts. The stones where several Biblical figures walked are visible once more. Herod the Great, Herod Antipas, Herodias, Princess Salome—and perhaps even John the Baptist—had all tread this very floor.

A Doric column in the royal courtyard and an Ionic column in the bathhouse were restored at Machaerus according to the principles of anastylosis. Győző Vörös explains this term in his article: “Anastylosis is a Greek term used by architects and archaeologists to refer to the restoration of an ancient structure using only the original architectural elements to the greatest extent possible. One of the most famous examples of anastylosis is the 19th-century restoration of the Parthenon in Athens.”


Masada, the mountaintop fortress that set the stage for one of the ancient world’s most dramatic tragedies, is today one of the world’s most iconic archaeological sites. In the free ebook Masada: The Dead Sea’s Desert Fortress, discover what archaeology reveals about the defenders’ identity, fortifications and arms before their ultimate sacrifice.


At Machaerus, Vörös and his team used only original architectural elements to restore the two columns. Following the international conventions for anastylosis, the researchers reconstructed the columns at their original locations. Visitors to Machaerus are thus able to see the columns as they originally appeared in Herodian times.

machaerus-courtyard

Who beheaded John the Baptist in the Bible? The royal courtyard at Machaerus has been partially reconstructed. It was here that Salome danced before her stepfather, Tetrarch Herod Antipas. Photo: Courtesy Győző Vörös

To learn more about the palace-fortress of Machaerus and the restoration taking place at the site, read the full article “Anastylosis at Machaerus” by Győző Vörös in the January/February 2015 issue of BAR.

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BAS Library Members: Read the full article “Anastylosis at Machaerus” by Győző Vörös in the January/February 2015 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

Not a BAS Library member yet? Join the BAS Library today.


 

Related reading in Bible History Daily:

New Testament Political Figures: The Evidence by Lawrence Mykytiuk

Machaerus: Beyond the Beheading of John the Baptist

King Herod’s Ritual Bath at Machaerus

Baptismal Site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan” Added to UNESCO World Heritage List

Herod Antipas in the Bible and Beyond

The Masada Siege: The Roman assault on Herod’s desert fortress


This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on January 12, 2015.


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6 Responses

  1. Johanna says:

    Nowhere in the Bible is the young woman who danced for Herod Antipas given a name. “Salome” is merely myth.

  2. Adeline Smith says:

    This is why we don’t celebrate birthdays,as John the Baptist was beheaded for a birthday gift !

  3. Anastylosis at Machaerus, Where John the Baptist was Beheaded | NFTU says:

    […] Continue reading…. […]

  4. Kurt says:

    Tiberias, where Herod Antipas, the district ruler, had his residence and evidently where John the Baptizer was put to death (Mr 6:21-28)
    http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200273147

  5. David says:

    Surely, the one column I see in the picture didn’t look like that 2000 years ago; it must have been painted to look like marble, I would think, or decorated in some fashion.

  6. John the Baptist confirmed by history and archaeology | Laodicean Report says:

    […] John the Baptist confirmed by history and archaeology […]

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6 Responses

  1. Johanna says:

    Nowhere in the Bible is the young woman who danced for Herod Antipas given a name. “Salome” is merely myth.

  2. Adeline Smith says:

    This is why we don’t celebrate birthdays,as John the Baptist was beheaded for a birthday gift !

  3. Anastylosis at Machaerus, Where John the Baptist was Beheaded | NFTU says:

    […] Continue reading…. […]

  4. Kurt says:

    Tiberias, where Herod Antipas, the district ruler, had his residence and evidently where John the Baptizer was put to death (Mr 6:21-28)
    http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200273147

  5. David says:

    Surely, the one column I see in the picture didn’t look like that 2000 years ago; it must have been painted to look like marble, I would think, or decorated in some fashion.

  6. John the Baptist confirmed by history and archaeology | Laodicean Report says:

    […] John the Baptist confirmed by history and archaeology […]

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