Archaeologists to Explore Mysterious Underground Structure at the Desert Fortress of Masada

A team of archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have returned to Masada in Israel, after a 11-year hiatus, in order to excavate previously unexplored areas of the desert mountain fortress, including a mysterious underground structure. Once a pleasure palace for Herod the Great, Masada is most well-known for the deaths of around 960 Jewish rebels and their families in 74 AD, who chose to commit suicide rather than be captured or slaughtered by the Romans.

Fresh Explorations of an Ancient Treasure

For the first time since 2006, a Tel Aviv University team, headed by Roman-period archaeologist Guy Stiebel, have launched new excavations at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, examining previously untouched areas of the legendary desert mountain fortress. “This is the next generation,” Stiebel told The Times of Israel, adding that his team plan to excavate new sections of the Jewish rebel dwellings, as well as a garden constructed by Herod, “Our intention is to further explore a mysterious underground structure that was detected in the earliest (1924) aerial photographs of the site. The building has remained hitherto unexplored.”

Dr Stiebel did not add any further information about the underground structure and what it may have been used for. But it is possible that it was used as a hideout or escape route during the Siege of Masada.