Saturday, February 9, 2013

Roman Bathhouse at Avdat

A splendid Roman Bathhouse is located at the bottom of the hill under the acropolis.

Water Supply:--  The Nabateans built where no-one had settled before.  The Israelite's territory stretched from "Dan to Beersheba" but not further South (except for military posts).  It was thought that the annual precipitation was too little to support a settled population.  The Nabateans proved this to be wrong, and built cities in the Highlands.  They were able to prosper because of the rich trade that passed through their cities, and their ablity to carefully manage the water supply.  Elaborate drainage systems were constructed to collect every ounce of rainwater and channel it into family and public water cisterns.