Books by Arleta Kowalewska
Bathing culture was one of the pillars of Roman society and bathhouses are one of the largest cat... more Bathing culture was one of the pillars of Roman society and bathhouses are one of the largest categories of a particular type of construction excavated in the Roman world. The large number of surviving remains and their regional variety make bathhouses vital for the study of the local societies in the Roman-Byzantine period.
This book presents the archaeological evidence of close to 200 Roman-style bathhouses from the region of Iudaea/Syria-Palaestina and Provincia Arabia, part of the provinces of the Roman East, constructed from the reign of Herod the Great (second half of the 1st century BCE) to the end of the Umayyad rule (mid-8th century CE). The bathing complexes of the Roman, Byzantine, and the Early Islamic periods, ranging from large public thermae to small bathing suites, are for the first time analysed as unified data with an unprecedented amount of detail, considering a variety of parameters - from dating and setting, through building techniques and materials, to plans and decorations. Typologies of the bathhouses and their components are supplemented by exploration of the socio-cultural insight provided by this particular type of construction. The historical narrative of the regional bathing facilities is updated in the light of new information. The full raw data used for the study is provided in the expandable open-access online database.
https://www.oxbowbooks.com/oxbow/bathhouses-in-iudaea-syria-palaestina-and-provincia-arabia-from-herod-the-great-to-the-umayyads.html
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Databases by Arleta Kowalewska
This constantly growing OCHRE-based database gathers various data on Roman-style bathhouses from ... more This constantly growing OCHRE-based database gathers various data on Roman-style bathhouses from the Roman to Early Islamic periods (mid-1st century BCE to mid-8th century CE) from the geographic area of Iudaea/Syria-Palaestina and Provincia Arabia (modern Israel, Palaestinian Authority, Jordan and southern Syria).
https://ochre.lib.uchicago.edu/BATHS/
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Papers by Arleta Kowalewska
Palestine Exploration Quarterly, 2024
The characteristics and settlement patterns of the Early–Middle Chalcolithic period (ca. 5,800– 4... more The characteristics and settlement patterns of the Early–Middle Chalcolithic period (ca. 5,800– 4,700 cal bc) around the Sea of Galilee have hardly been studied so far. The regional diversity of Chalcolithic material culture and the fragmentary nature of the archaeological record hinder a broader understanding of socio-cultural processes in this area. Chalcolithic architecture and finds, excavated for the last 23 years under the Graeco-Roman city of Hippos on Mt. Sussita, provide a rare opportunity to delve into the characteristics of the Chalcolithic period east of the Sea of Galilee. The current paper presents these remains and discusses their typological traits, spatial distribution, and possible cultural attribution. The site represents one of the few non-Golan Chalcolithic occurrences in the region, and its finds suggest an Early–Middle Chalcolithic period dating.
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Hadashot Arkheologiyot Excavations and Surveys in Israel, 2023
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ZEIT(EN) DES UMBRUCHS, Apr 2024
The Flowers Mausoleum is the most elaborately decorated funerary structure of the Saddle Necropol... more The Flowers Mausoleum is the most elaborately decorated funerary structure of the Saddle Necropolis, the most representative of the three known necropoleis of Hippos of the Decapolis. The foundations of the mausoleum, built in the late 1st to early 2nd century AD, have been fully excavated, together with some of its architectural blocks, collapsed during the 363 AD earthquake. The basalt fragments collected until now give evidence of a building composed of five decorative segments, two rectangular and two circular, with a conical roof. The rectangular ground floor was decorated with a particularly interesting Doric frieze of unusually rendered triglyphs and metopes filled with flowers, which give the mausoleum its name. The meticulously sculpted architectural decorations are some of the finest examples executed in basalt, most probably created in a local workshop. The article introduces Hippos’ necropoleis, and gives a preliminary description of the Flowers Mausoleum, considering the regional parallels as well as Hippos’ timeline.
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New Studies in the Archaeology of Jerusalem and Its Region Collected Papers Volume XV, 2022
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In the Roman world a wide variety of funerary architecture was erected along the access roads of ... more In the Roman world a wide variety of funerary architecture was erected along the access roads of cities to catch the eye of passersby. In Hippos (Sussita in Aramaic) of the Decapolis, the most notable funerary structures stood along the city's main approach within the Saddle Necropolis. The most distinctive elements of the necropolis's architectural remains were a series of 13 large funerary podiathe focus of the 2020 excavations. The Hippos podia are unique in the Roman world, in their dating, their architecture, and their multiplicity. The architectural design of this series of structures may be the first evidence of necropolis planning and erection of funerary monuments by the polis itself within the Roman world. The article describes the freshly exposed Hippos podia, proposes reasoning for the choice of this particular type of construction, and analyzes similar funerary structures throughout the Roman world, with emphasis on the Roman East, where sarcophagi were widespread.
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Hadashot Arkheologiyot Excavations and Surveys in Israel, 2021
The season's work included scientific explorations and two small-scale excavations, concurrent wi... more The season's work included scientific explorations and two small-scale excavations, concurrent with development works to open the site, which is located within 'Susita National Park'.
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Hadashot Arkheologiyot Excavations and Surveys in Israel, 2021
In 2018 and 2019 excavations were conducted at Ḥorbat Sussita (Hippos; License Nos. G-38/2018, G-... more In 2018 and 2019 excavations were conducted at Ḥorbat Sussita (Hippos; License Nos. G-38/2018, G-16/2019; map ref. 261829–2421/742664–895) by the Hippos Excavation Project of the Zinman Institute of Archaeology, University of Haifa and directed by M. Eisenberg and A. Kowalewska. The research project included scientific excavations and two salvage excavations commissioned by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (NPA Permit Nos.א010-18, A007-19), as part of development project to open the site as a national park.
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From the Quarry to the Monument. The Process behind the Process: Design and Organization of the Work in Ancient Architecture, 2021
Masons’ marks are a well-attested phenomenon among Classical-periods sites; however, often they a... more Masons’ marks are a well-attested phenomenon among Classical-periods sites; however, often they are not fully documented and researched. The lack of a comprehensible database impedes interpretation of these marks and the possibility of their further use as archaeological evidence. The paper strives to relive this research void by presenting the findings of a survey of masons’ marks conducted in Antiochia Hippos and a list of other marks of Roman Syria-Palaestina. The survey conducted at Antiochia Hippos (Sussita) of the Decapolis yielded identification of almost 400 marks engraved in stones in the quarry for accounts and indication of assembly order. Masons’ marks were documented on local building stone in various Roman period sites of Syria-Palaestina, from rural sites of the chora of Hippos, through other cities of the Decapolis, to Herodian and Nabatean constructions. The gathered material gives insight not only as to the function of the marks, consequently indicating how the construction process of different structures was organized, but also as to a relative and absolute dating of the constructions that the marks appear on. The study of masons’ marks of Syria-Palaestina reveals some curious trends connected to their dating and geographical distribution, such as the particularly numerous occurrences on the first and second century AD – dated basalt monumental architecture that indicate a certain work organisation of local basalt craftsmen at the time.
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La cava e il monumento: MATERIALI, OFFICINE, SISTEMI DI COSTRUZIONE E PRODUZIONE NEI CANTIERI EDILIZI DI ETÀ IMPERIALE, Sep 2020
This article presents the data and conclusions derived from research on Roman-period masons’ mark... more This article presents the data and conclusions derived from research on Roman-period masons’ marks from Syria-Palaestina and Arabia. As one of the regions of the Roman East, Syria-Palaestina and Arabia were characterized by stone architecture of long-established tradition, but the use of masons’ marks is first attested in the architecture of Herod the Great, and continues afterwards throughout the building boom of the Pax Romana period. The marks engraved on imported architectural fragments belonged in the sphere of pan-Roman trade and marble artisanship, but the marks engraved or paint-ed on local stones related only to local quarries and construction sites. As evident from examples of well-researched sites, such as Hippos of the Decapolis, the marks were used to facilitate the assemblage of buildings (construction marks) and to ensure accurate payment for those who supplied the stone (workshop marks). The marks give evidence for the identity and work organization of the local stone-masons from one of the provinces of the vast Roman Empire during the prosperous period of the Pax Romana.
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Cornucopia. Studies in Honor of Arthur Segal, 2019
A distinct bathing tradition was one of the pillars of the Roman civilization. Consequently, bath... more A distinct bathing tradition was one of the pillars of the Roman civilization. Consequently, bathhouses were vital components of the urban landscape of any Roman town and the most common of all the Roman public buildings. The Southern Bathhouse of Antiochia Hippos fully testifies to the way of Roman bathing and its popularity in the Eastern provinces of the Empire. Over the course of ten seasons of excavations, a craftily constructed and luxurious building was revealed that had once served the sanitary as well as the social needs of its visitors.
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Tel Aviv, 2019
Masons’ marks, though often not fully documented, interpreted and researched, are well-attested a... more Masons’ marks, though often not fully documented, interpreted and researched, are well-attested at sites from the Classical periods. This article presents a complete study of masons’ marks from Antiochia Hippos of the Decapolis. The survey of the site yielded 374 Roman-period marks: 359 used for accounts and 15 probably used for indication of assembly order. The presence of masons’ marks on some of the structures at Hippos and other Roman-period sites in Syria-Palaestina points to details of the organization of work. The marks show chronological dependency, and consequently can be used to indicate relative and even absolute dating.
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Michmanim 27 - Hippos of the Decapolis and its Region - 18 Years of Research, 2017
Michmanim 27 special issue dedicated Hippos (Sussita) research and its region
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Michmanim, 2017
Bathing was one of the pillars of Roman culture, and bathhouses were part of the urban landscape ... more Bathing was one of the pillars of Roman culture, and bathhouses were part of the urban landscape of all the Roman towns. To date, we know of twenty public bathhouses found in the cities of the Decapolis – thirteen were built before the 4th century CE; seventeen were used in the Byzantine period, newly constructed or renewed based on the facilities from the Roman period. The bathhouses conform to Roman standards of technology and interior design, although they were constructed with local building techniques and materials.
Three bathhouses were identified during excavations and surveys of Antiochia Hippos, two inside the city walls, and one outside, probably as part of a sanctuary. The Southern Bathhouse is the only one excavated extensively, revealing a cleverly constructed and luxurious building, in many ways conventional, but in others unique. It is one of the very few bathhouses in the region that did not continue in use into the Byzantine period. The ongoing excavations of the Southern Bathhouse, and the other bathhouse at Hippos, add to our understanding of the architecture of Roman bathhouses and the Roman bathing culture in the Decapolis and the East.
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Conference Presentations by Arleta Kowalewska
ASOR Annual Meeting, 2021
This presentation will focus on data integration practice for the Hippos Excavations Project, a l... more This presentation will focus on data integration practice for the Hippos Excavations Project, a long-term exploration effort of one of the Graeco-Roman cities of the Roman East. Particular attention will be given to
solutions and problems of integrating data from various experts who study various types of finds.
In 2018, the Hippos Excavations Project upgraded to the Online Cultural and Historical Research Environment (OCHRE) database, which brought about the possibility of collecting a variety of data—previously
existing independently—in one place. Written field documentation is now integrated with geographical data and illustrative materials, and, more importantly, the data on various finds from multiple experts are now
found in one place and accessible to all involved in the research. While a working solution has been found for some types of common finds (e.g., coins and architectural items), we are still looking for improvements for
some other prevalent find types (e.g., pottery). This presentation will emphasize the still-problematic categories of find types to open a discussion on possible solutions and practicality of their implementation.
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ASOR Annual Meeting, 2021
This presentation introduces the latest finds that pertain to the Hellenistic period made by the ... more This presentation introduces the latest finds that pertain to the Hellenistic period made by the Hippos Excavations Project at the polis of Antiochia Hippos, located on Mt. Sussita next to the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The finds attest to the urban character of the site in the Hellenistic period, which until now was only known through literary sources. Moreover, they allow for the first partial reconstruction of the Hellenistic Hippos layout. The excavation results are briefly considered in the context of other Decapolis cities. Excavations conducted at Hippos, in the last few years, in various areas, produced a significant amount of new information on the Hellenistic period narrative of the site-including probable traces of the Hellenistic agora, evidence of a pre-Roman unpaved thoroughfare, remains of a previously unknown Late Hellenistic-Early Roman neighborhood, and remnants of the Hellenistic-period pressure pipe water supply system. Moreover, additional dating material was recovered in the Hellenistic temenos, and traces of Hellenistic-period activity were found under the Roman basilica-among them silos, water cisterns, and architectural fragments. The comparative material from the Decapolis has grown in the recent years, now including not only Hellenistic living quarters of Pella and fortifications of Gadara, but also a preliminary summary from Nysa and review of Gerasa's Hellenistic architecture and pottery. This recent work narrows the disparity between the evidence of the literary sources and the physical remains of the regional Hellenistic poleis.
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ICCA XIX, Bonn/Cologne May 2018
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ASOR Program 2017, Boston
CHAIR: Michael Eisenberg
Antiochia Hippos (Sussita) of the Decapolis is... more ASOR Program 2017, Boston
CHAIR: Michael Eisenberg
Antiochia Hippos (Sussita) of the Decapolis is the last polis to be unearthed in the Land of Israel and one of the largest archaeological enterprises of the Classical period in the region.
The city, founded upon Sussita Mountain crest in the first half of the second century BC, is the center of an on-going archaeological research started at 2000 and published in a series of monographs and articles. In recent years the research expanded to Sussita’s saddle-ridge area and the Khôra/Territorium of Hippos.
Hippos administrative region covered the central and southern Golan during the Roman period and is the core of a new regional and inter-regional study using archaeological, geo-spatial and lab-based analytical methods. The research aims to gain a better understanding of the urban – rural relationships in the region.
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Books by Arleta Kowalewska
This book presents the archaeological evidence of close to 200 Roman-style bathhouses from the region of Iudaea/Syria-Palaestina and Provincia Arabia, part of the provinces of the Roman East, constructed from the reign of Herod the Great (second half of the 1st century BCE) to the end of the Umayyad rule (mid-8th century CE). The bathing complexes of the Roman, Byzantine, and the Early Islamic periods, ranging from large public thermae to small bathing suites, are for the first time analysed as unified data with an unprecedented amount of detail, considering a variety of parameters - from dating and setting, through building techniques and materials, to plans and decorations. Typologies of the bathhouses and their components are supplemented by exploration of the socio-cultural insight provided by this particular type of construction. The historical narrative of the regional bathing facilities is updated in the light of new information. The full raw data used for the study is provided in the expandable open-access online database.
https://www.oxbowbooks.com/oxbow/bathhouses-in-iudaea-syria-palaestina-and-provincia-arabia-from-herod-the-great-to-the-umayyads.html
Databases by Arleta Kowalewska
https://ochre.lib.uchicago.edu/BATHS/
Papers by Arleta Kowalewska
Three bathhouses were identified during excavations and surveys of Antiochia Hippos, two inside the city walls, and one outside, probably as part of a sanctuary. The Southern Bathhouse is the only one excavated extensively, revealing a cleverly constructed and luxurious building, in many ways conventional, but in others unique. It is one of the very few bathhouses in the region that did not continue in use into the Byzantine period. The ongoing excavations of the Southern Bathhouse, and the other bathhouse at Hippos, add to our understanding of the architecture of Roman bathhouses and the Roman bathing culture in the Decapolis and the East.
Conference Presentations by Arleta Kowalewska
solutions and problems of integrating data from various experts who study various types of finds.
In 2018, the Hippos Excavations Project upgraded to the Online Cultural and Historical Research Environment (OCHRE) database, which brought about the possibility of collecting a variety of data—previously
existing independently—in one place. Written field documentation is now integrated with geographical data and illustrative materials, and, more importantly, the data on various finds from multiple experts are now
found in one place and accessible to all involved in the research. While a working solution has been found for some types of common finds (e.g., coins and architectural items), we are still looking for improvements for
some other prevalent find types (e.g., pottery). This presentation will emphasize the still-problematic categories of find types to open a discussion on possible solutions and practicality of their implementation.
CHAIR: Michael Eisenberg
Antiochia Hippos (Sussita) of the Decapolis is the last polis to be unearthed in the Land of Israel and one of the largest archaeological enterprises of the Classical period in the region.
The city, founded upon Sussita Mountain crest in the first half of the second century BC, is the center of an on-going archaeological research started at 2000 and published in a series of monographs and articles. In recent years the research expanded to Sussita’s saddle-ridge area and the Khôra/Territorium of Hippos.
Hippos administrative region covered the central and southern Golan during the Roman period and is the core of a new regional and inter-regional study using archaeological, geo-spatial and lab-based analytical methods. The research aims to gain a better understanding of the urban – rural relationships in the region.
This book presents the archaeological evidence of close to 200 Roman-style bathhouses from the region of Iudaea/Syria-Palaestina and Provincia Arabia, part of the provinces of the Roman East, constructed from the reign of Herod the Great (second half of the 1st century BCE) to the end of the Umayyad rule (mid-8th century CE). The bathing complexes of the Roman, Byzantine, and the Early Islamic periods, ranging from large public thermae to small bathing suites, are for the first time analysed as unified data with an unprecedented amount of detail, considering a variety of parameters - from dating and setting, through building techniques and materials, to plans and decorations. Typologies of the bathhouses and their components are supplemented by exploration of the socio-cultural insight provided by this particular type of construction. The historical narrative of the regional bathing facilities is updated in the light of new information. The full raw data used for the study is provided in the expandable open-access online database.
https://www.oxbowbooks.com/oxbow/bathhouses-in-iudaea-syria-palaestina-and-provincia-arabia-from-herod-the-great-to-the-umayyads.html
https://ochre.lib.uchicago.edu/BATHS/
Three bathhouses were identified during excavations and surveys of Antiochia Hippos, two inside the city walls, and one outside, probably as part of a sanctuary. The Southern Bathhouse is the only one excavated extensively, revealing a cleverly constructed and luxurious building, in many ways conventional, but in others unique. It is one of the very few bathhouses in the region that did not continue in use into the Byzantine period. The ongoing excavations of the Southern Bathhouse, and the other bathhouse at Hippos, add to our understanding of the architecture of Roman bathhouses and the Roman bathing culture in the Decapolis and the East.
solutions and problems of integrating data from various experts who study various types of finds.
In 2018, the Hippos Excavations Project upgraded to the Online Cultural and Historical Research Environment (OCHRE) database, which brought about the possibility of collecting a variety of data—previously
existing independently—in one place. Written field documentation is now integrated with geographical data and illustrative materials, and, more importantly, the data on various finds from multiple experts are now
found in one place and accessible to all involved in the research. While a working solution has been found for some types of common finds (e.g., coins and architectural items), we are still looking for improvements for
some other prevalent find types (e.g., pottery). This presentation will emphasize the still-problematic categories of find types to open a discussion on possible solutions and practicality of their implementation.
CHAIR: Michael Eisenberg
Antiochia Hippos (Sussita) of the Decapolis is the last polis to be unearthed in the Land of Israel and one of the largest archaeological enterprises of the Classical period in the region.
The city, founded upon Sussita Mountain crest in the first half of the second century BC, is the center of an on-going archaeological research started at 2000 and published in a series of monographs and articles. In recent years the research expanded to Sussita’s saddle-ridge area and the Khôra/Territorium of Hippos.
Hippos administrative region covered the central and southern Golan during the Roman period and is the core of a new regional and inter-regional study using archaeological, geo-spatial and lab-based analytical methods. The research aims to gain a better understanding of the urban – rural relationships in the region.