A water reservoir (?) on Arbel Hills.

An Inflorescence from Arbel

Coney or Syrian Hyrax. Mentioned in Leveticus 11:5; Deuteronomy 14:7; Psalm 104:18 and Proverb 30:26; Coney is Shaphan in Hebrew. Although coney resembles rabbit or hare, their habits and morphology are different. They live in holes or clefts of the rock in steep cliffs.

Hikers on the Arbel. (Enlarge the snaps.)

 1P: Look for the hill 'Horns of Hittin' at the background.

Caves and the Fortress of Arbel. The three-storied castle (12th cent AD onwards) connects caverns and caves in the cliff into one fortress. The caves were actively used by Jewish rebels against King Herod's forces (1st Century BC).

The caves were used by Jewish rebels of ancient Arbel as a stronghold against: 1) Syrian General Baccides (2nd Cent. BC) by the Maccabees; 2) King Herod's army (1st Cent. BC); 3) Romans (1st Cent. AD) at the time of first Jewish War. During the great Jewish rebellion against the Roman army in 68 AD, Arbel was fortified by none other than the famous Jewish Historian, Flavius Josephus! The towering steep cliffs, the gaping void below it and lack of access roads made the caves a strategic location for the defense of Arbel. Most of the remains of fortifications from this time were uncovered on adjacent Mount Nitai.

 1P: The Caves of Arbel (located in the Nithail hills)

 The three-storied Arbel Fortress

The fortress at Arbel was used during the Crusader and Mamluk periods. But most of the remains visible today are from the castle built here by Ali Beck (18th century) during the Ottoman period. Known as Qala’at Ibn Ma’an in Arabic, the fortress controlled Arbel Valley and the roads leading through it. Coins and Jewish ritual immersion baths from the Hellenistic period (2nd Cent BC) were among the finds in the caves inside the fortress.

 Inside the Arbel Fortress

 Views from the Arbel Fortress

Magdala from Arbel Cliffs. Magdala is traditionally identified as the birthplace of Mary Magdalene (Matthew 27:56, 61; 28:1; Mark 16:9; Luke 8:2; John 20:1, 18). Recently (2009), Magdala was in limelight after a first century synagogue and perfume bottles from the same era were discovered.

According to Talmud, there are two Magdala: 1) Magdala Gadar (near Gadar east to the Sea of Galilee) and 2) Magdala Nunayya or "Magdala of the Fishes" (near Tiberias west to the Sea of Galilee). Magdala Nunayya is identified as the Magdala of Mary the Magdalene. After the destruction of Jerusalem Temple by Romans in first century AD, Magdala became the seat of one of the twenty-four priestly divisions. 

Records of a church at the site from 4th century are known. The name of ancient Magdala and therefore the location of the site was preserved along with the Arab village Al-Majdal that existed here until 1948. From the ancient synagogue (50 BC to 100 AD) of Magdala, archaeologists have unearthed a seven-branched menorah (candelabrum), the likes of which have never been seen. It is the first menorah to be discovered  that dates to the Second Temple period. If the synagogue was active during first century, there is a very high chance that Jesus would have visited the site.

The fertile 'Ginnosar Valley' from Arbel Cliffs. The settlement in the background is the modern Israeli town of Migdal. The valley separates Upper and Lower Galilee.This is the 'Land of Gennaseret' through which Jesus and his disciples often travelled.