The Israel Museum is currently exhibiting the story of the life and death of Herod the Great, ancient Israel’s most controversial figure. Herod was a great builder who expanded the Second Temple and the Temple Mount considerably. He also built palaces at Masada, Jericho and Herodium. On the other hand, he was a paranoid ruler who killed many people, including family members, for fear that they were trying to usurp his throne.
This is the first museum exhibit dedicated to Herod and it includes artifacts discovered in the archaeological excavations conducted at Herodium by Prof. Ehud Netzer. The exhibit is dedicated to the memory of Prof. Netzer, who died following a fall at the archaeological site. He planned large parts of the exhibit but didn’t live to see it.
Visitors travel in the footsteps of Herod’s funeral, from the palace at Jericho where he died to Herodium where he was buried. They can view artifacts such as a stone bathtub, reconstructed palace walls and the sarcophagus thought to hold Herod’s remains.
Israel National News visited the exhibit and reported from it:
The exhibition is open during regular Museum hours:
- Sun, Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat 10 am – 5 pm
- Tues 4–9 pm (August 10 am – 9 pm)
- Fri and Holiday Eves 10 am – 2 pm