The Biblical name for Jericho, “city of palm trees,” like its Arabic name Er-Riha, or “the perfume,” indicates the striking contrast the oasis makes to the surrounding desert; luxuriant greenery and fragrant flowers flourish here; its subtropical climate makes it an extraordinary garden, ideal for winter vacation, when wealthy families of Jerusalem, Ramallah and Bethlehem come to enjoy the warmth. Situated on the west bank of the Jordan valley, eight kilometers north of the Dead Sea, Jericho owes its fertility to cool, abundant springs. In ancient times, there were already isolated farms on the valley’s fertile land. Cleopatra was undoubtedly the most famous of Jericho’s landowners; her estate here was a gift to her from Mark Antony in 35 BC.
Until 1948, Jericho was a large, peaceful country town; in 1948, tens of thousands of Palestinians from Lydd, Ramle, and villages west of Jerusalem took refuge here. Three camps grew up around Jericho: Aqbat Jaber (30,000 residents), Ein es-Sultan (25,000 people) and Nuama (20,000 residents). The remaining refugees settled outside the camps. The village of Jericho became a city with official municipal status.
In 1952, after the conference of Jericho, the Emirate of Jordan and the annexed West Bank were renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. At the same time, the Palestinian national liberation movements (Fatah, the Arab Nationalist Movement, and the Communist party) were fostering resistance against the state of Israel from inside the refugee camps.
The 1967 war forced people out again, on a new flight to the east. Not one person in the entire governing body of Jericho was left. The camp of Nuama was totally demolished. When the Oslo (Oslo II) Accords were signed, Jericho became, in May 1994, the first Palestinian city in the West Bank with autonomous status, like the Gaza Strip. Despite frequent closures, the city invested heavily in tourism development. Since the al-Aqsa Intifada, Israeli forces have placed Jericho under a total siege, And closed to Palestinians from Jerusalem, Palestinians from the West Bank, or foreigners.
Sites of Interest
The tree of Zacchaeus
Ein es-Sultan Road, north of the Hisham Palace Hotel.
This tree looks like any other tree, but Christian tradition has it that this is the very sycamore that Zacchaeus, a patrician of Jericho, climbed in order to get a better view of Jesus, who was walking through the city followed by a large crowd (Luke19:4).
Tel es-Sultan (ancient Jericho)
2 km north of the city centre. Open daily 8:00-17:00. Admission NIS12.
Irrigated by the Ein es-Sultan river, the ecosystem of this area made it an ideal place for the development of the first agricultural societies. Man first settled here in the second half of the tenth millennium BC (Epipalaeolithic Period).
Hisham’s Palace (Khirbet al-Mafjar)
Open 8:00-17:00; admission NIS8.
In the heart of hunting and farm land, the Hisham Palace was one of the most impressive country residences of the Omayyad period, so archaeologists call it “the Versailles of the Middle East.”
The Monastery of the Qurantul (the Forty)
From the parking lot near Tel es-Sultan, it is a 400 metre climb to the monastery. There is a cable car, inaugurated in 1999, which allows for effortless access. (Open every day 8:00-21:00, $8.00; 02-232 1590, www.jericho-cablecar.com. Transport possible to es-Sultan panoramic restaurant (02-232 4025), a few minutes’ walk from the monastery.
The monastery, perched on the side of the Mount of Temptation, offers a splendid panorama over the Dead Sea, the Jordan Valley and Jericho. Tradition has it that this mountain was where Jesus fasted for 40 days, and his temptation by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11).
The Sugar Mills (Tawahin es-Sukkar)
Near the tel of es-Sultan. Under restoration. Free admission.
The production of sugar in the region goes back to the Omayyad period (Seventh–Eighth centuries) but was at its height during the Crusader period. There is a mediaeval sugar mill to the east of the Mount of Temptation where remains of the hydraulic system, a forced conduit, or flying aqueduct, are partly preserved.
Khirbet Na’ran
4 kms NW of Jericho on Road 449. Open daily 8:00-16:00. Admission NIS7/10.
An arch spanning Wadi Ein es-Sultan marks the site of the aqueduct that brought water to Hisham’s Palace. Ruins of a Byzantine synagogue were discovered under a house here, so it was placed under Israeli military protection. It has a beautiful mosaic floor with ornamental patterns similar to those found in Christian churches of this period.
Ein es-Sultan Refugee Camp
This camp was established in 1948 on the lands of the Mount of Temptation. On the eve of the 1967 war, about 25,000 refugees lived here. Their number decreased to just over 2,000 after the new exile in 1967 forced inhabitants into and beyond Jordan.
Around Jericho and the Dead Sea
Deir Hijla (Monastery of Saint Gerasimus)
East of Jericho, on the road to Abu Bakr or by-pass Road 90. The monastery has a guest house, rooms NIS50 per person; 02-994 3038. Advisable to reserve in advance.
There is only a small community here today in what is one of the most ancient Greek Orthodox monasteries in Palestine. Founded by Saint Gerasimus circa 455, the monastery was built on the site where Jesus was baptized.
Khirbet Qumran
20 kms south of Jericho. Open daily from 8:00-16:00 (15:00 in winter); Admission NIS 16.
This site gains its reputation as the place where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered in caves in the surrounding cliffs. In 1947, a young Bedouin first accidentally came upon some terracotta jars containing manuscript scrolls of copper.
The Dead Sea
Except for very rare micro-organisms, neither flora nor fauna can survive in this lake, a fact which explains its name. Fish carried here by flood waters in tributary rivers die immediately because of the high salt content; one may see them on the shore, stiff with salt. The lake is also sometimes known by its Biblical name, Bahr Lot, the Sea of Lot.
The Dead Sea lies at the lowest point of the great Afro-Syrian divide (the Great Rift); over 400m below sea level, the surface of the Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth, its base being 800m below sea level. This huge salty lake extends over 80 kms and 18 kms at its widest point. It is actually the residue of the ancient Lisan Sea which, a million years ago, stretched from south of the Dead Sea to the Hula Valley, north of Lake Tiberias. The water level has lowered considerably since ancient times and is continuing to recede by 18 cms per year or more. The natural phenomenon of evaporation is no longer compensated by a fresh supply of water, due to the system regulating water flow to the Jordan River from its sources. Dams have substantially reduced the amount of water flowing into the Jordan River, and the effects of the drop in its water level are accelerating. The Dead Sea is unique for the high concentration of salt in its water: 20%-26% compared to only 4% in most other bodies of salt water.
There are signs of instability in its substratum: lumps of pitch occasionally escape from submarine fissures and come to the surface. In olden the past, this pitch was collected and used to waterproof roofs or burnt as fuel. Other intense natural activity substrata is responsible for the hot sulphur springs on the lake’s eastern bank (Zerqa Ma’in and Hammamat Ma’in, among others). Environmentalists warn that the Dead Sea is dying, largely due to the bromide industry which has taken over, on both sides of the shore (Jordanian and Israeli), but mainly the larger Israeli factories, and the lack of freshwater inflow. Sink holes are an increasing sight and worry, if not danger; excessive pollution from emissions from these factories is also troubling.
Swimming in the Dead Sea
Ein Feshkha
3 kms south of Qumran. Open every day April-October 8:00-17:00, November-March 8:00-16:00. Admission NIS22-25.
Ein Gedi
50 kilometres from Jericho and 80 kms from Bir es-Saba’ (Beersheba). There are frequent Egged buses: to Jerusalem (10 buses daily, 1.5 hours’ ride), to Massada (3 buses daily, the journey 30 minutes), to Arad and Bir es-Saba’ (5 buses daily, 1 and 2 hours, respectively). Natural reserve: open Saturday-Thursday from early morning to 17:00 (16:00 inwinter).
Praised in the Bible for its beauty (Song of Songs 1:14), the natural reserve of Ein Gedi is an enchanting place for walks with its canyons, caves and waterfalls.
Mount Sodom
On Road 90, 50 kms south of Ein Gedi.
The depravity of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah and their divine punishment is legendary (Genesis 19:24-25). According to biblical tradition, a rain of sulphur and fire devastated this region, transforming it into a desolate landscape. |
