File:Banias, Ancient Caesarea Philippi.jpg

Image Title: Banias, Ancient Caesarea Philippi

Image Description from historic lecture booklet: "About two miles from Dan at the foot of Mt. Hermon lies Banias. This is the modern representative of the Ancient Caesarea Philippi, and the more ancient Paneas.

This picture is taken from a spur of Hermon looking over the modern town which consists of about fifty stone houses. Most of these are within an ancient castle wall. Remains of columns show that the ancient city extended much farther to the south. The chief object of interest, however, at Banias is the source of Jordon, which boils forth from ancient ruins and rocks, below the western end of castle hill.

The evidences of a temple to the Greek god Pan at the grotto above the spring gave the ancient name Paneas. When Philip, the Tetrarch, inherited this region, he rebuked the town and called it Caesarea, the name Philippi being added later.

This is probably the most northerly point ever visited by Christ (Matt. 16:13). An early tradition makes this the scene of the healing of the woman with the issue of blood (Matt. 9:20). Eusebius says he saw, at Banias, bronze statues representing Jesus, and the woman on bended knee. Later writers make the heights of some lofty peak of Mt. Hermon the more probable place of transfiguration (Matt 17:1), as Christ was in the borders of Caesarea Philippe just previous to that transcendent occurrence in the Gospel narrative. There is no doubt as to the identity of this town with the biblical Caesarea Philippi."

Original Format: Lantern slides

Original Collection: Visual Instruction Department Lantern Slides

Item Number: P217:set 010 042

Restrictions: Permission to use must be obtained from the OSU Archives.

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