First Century Roman Amphitheatre Revealed at Tiberias by Sea of Galilee

Archaeologists in Israel have uncovered an amphitheatre in Tiberias, overlooking the sea of Galilee. It has taken 19 years of research and excavation work to enable the site to be made public by the team of experts, led by the late Professor Izhar Hirshfeld from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Yossi Stefanski.

The team now believes that the amphitheatre dates from the first century AD, which would mean it was built near the time when Tiberias was founded in 20 AD (by Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, during the reign of Tiberius). According to Dr Wallid Atrash, an archaeologist from the Israel Antiquities Authority, the site would have been a central meeting point for the community of Tiberias and could have seated more than 7,000.

According to a report in Haaretz, the site will be named after Amir Drori, the first director of the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Photo by the Israel Antiquities Authority.

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About The Author

Bija Knowles
Bija Knowles is a freelance journalist based outside Rome, Italy. She graduated in Italian and English Literature from the University of Birmingham, UK, and her main areas of interest are art, travel and history in Italy.

Last three pieces by this author: Brittania Superior 'v' Brittania Inferior: the Roman Roots of Britain's North-South Divide, The Ara Pacis As You've Never Seen it Before, Caravaggio: Gay Icon Born Too Late?

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