Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling
Herodian (22–10 BCE Sebastos harbour, Agrippa? forms Caesarea, Raban, late Roman)·Herodian Roman (Herod 22 BCE hydraulic concrete pozzolana , Vitruvius concrete for Agrippa harbour)·🇮🇱 Coastal Plain, Caesarea, Caesarea Maritima Herodian harbour, near Sharon, Israel
About
About Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling
Caesarea Sebastos Raban 1980–90 hydraulic concrete 22 BCE Herod. Recorded context — Period: Herodian (22–10 BCE Sebastos harbour, Agrippa? forms Caesarea, Raban, late Roman); Culture: Herodian Roman (Herod 22 BCE hydraulic concrete pozzolana, Vitruvius concrete for Agrippa harbour); Field status: excavated; Materials: pozzolana hydraulic concrete (Vitruvian), wood caisson lead filled 30 t, ashlar lighthouse; Condition: submerged — Caisson wood preserved under 8 m, moles subsided 8 m tectonic?.
Why it mattersKey Herodian Roman (Herod 22 BCE hydraulic concrete pozzolana , Vitruvius concrete for Agrippa harbour) port with stratified sequence and regional typology.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing
- 02Construction labor organization
Theories
- 01Seasonal gathering
- 02Defensive stronghold
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- 22–10 BCE Sebastos harbour 200,000 m³ concrete with pozzolana lead pile 500 m moles N and S
- Period
- Herodian (22–10 BCE Sebastos harbour, Agrippa? forms Caesarea, Raban, late Roman)
- Culture
- Herodian Roman (Herod 22 BCE hydraulic concrete pozzolana , Vitruvius concrete for Agrippa harbour)
- Purpose
- Herod's artificial double harbour Sebastos (200,000 m³ hydraulic concrete) 500 m moles N (400 m) and S (500 m) with lead-filled wood caisson — largest Herodian engineering Vitruvian pozzolana 200,000 m³
- Rediscovered
- Modern excavation 1990
- Excavation
- Excavated
22–10 BCE Sebastos harbour 200,000 m³ concrete with pozzolana lead pile 500 m moles N and S
Initial construction / first occupation at Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling
c. 400 BCE major extension
Major expansion / refurbishment at Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling
1970 excavation
Modern rediscovery and scientific excavation of Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling
On the ground
Structures & features
32.4990° N · 34.8900° E · -8 m · 3 mapped features
- Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — Principal Structurestructurestructure at Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — subsidiary complex32.4998° N · 34.8882° E
- Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — Complex Annex 2complexcomplex at Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — subsidiary complex32.5004° N · 34.8909° E
- Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — Southern Rock Artrock artrock art at Caesarea Harbour — Sebastos Concrete Breakwater with Lead Piling — hydraulic feature32.5010° N · 34.8902° E
Gallery