Decorated Capitals at Korazim Synagogue Israel
Chorazin was a village in northern Galilee, two and a half miles from Capernaum on a hill above the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Korazim is now the site of a National Archaeological Park. The site is an excavated ruin today, but was inhabited starting in the 1st century. It is associated with modern day Kerazeh. The majority of the structures are made from black basalt, a volcanic rock found locally. The main settlement dates to the 3rd and 4th centuries. A mikvah, or ritual bath, was also found at the site. The handful of olive millstones used in olive oil extraction found suggest a reliance on the olive for economic purposes, like a number of other villages in ancient Galilee. The town's ruins are spread over an area of 25 acres , subdivided into five separate quarters, with a synagogue in the center. The large, impressive Synagogue which was built with black basalt stones and decorated with Jewish motifs is the most striking survival. Close by is a ritual bath, surrounded by public and residential buildings. An unusual feature in an ancient synagogue is the presence of three-dimensional sculpture, a pair of stone lions. Other carvings, which are thought to have originally been brightly painted, feature images of wine-making, animals, a Medusa, an armed soldier, and an eagle
Size: 4608px × 6144px
Location: Korazim Upper Galilee Israel
Photo credit: © moris kushelevitch / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: .upper, 3rd, ad, ancient, carvings, cent, decorative, galilee, mikvah, stone, synagogue, village
