Hippos (Susita)

Hippos (Susita)

Research objectives

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The NWC Publication Project was launched thanks to financial support from the Polish National Science Centre granted to the Institute of Mediterranean and Oriental Cultures, Polish Academy of Sciences (grant no. DEC-ODW/1/2012/07/B/HS3/02378).

The aim of the grant has been a comprehensive analysis and interpretation of the remains of the so-called North-West Church complex (the basilica with its annexes), discovered at Hippos on the Lake of Galilee, and its use during the Byzantine and Umayyad periods (5th/6th to 8th centuries). The church, situated near the agora of the town, is of the basilica type, its aisles equipped with emporae, with a large atrium on the west, and two side wings on the north and south. On the southern wing, there abuts a spacious wine press neighbouring on an oil press instalation. Another, probably later wine press is situated in the northern wing. The entire architectural complex occupies a part of an ancient temenos of the Roman period. The architectural decoration of the church was relatively modest. Basalt columns (6 in each row), surmounted with pseudo-Ionic capitals, were covered with painted plaster. Mosaic floors with geometric design were executed in two stages: the mosaics of the southern aisle and the nave may be from the first half of the 6th century, while the floor of the northern aisle and the nave are dated to the second half (late 80s?) of the 6th century. The analysis of fragments of the painted wall plasters allowed for the reconstruction of the decoration of some parts of the church. The detailed analysis of the architectural remains has allowed to distinguish three architectural phases of the church, comprised between the 5th century and 749 AD, when the entire city of Hippos was destroyed by a mighty earthquake. The last architectural phase represents a period of a gradual regress when some parts of the church lost its liturgical functions and were adapted for domestic activity, such as food processing in the atrium. However, the most important aspect of economic activity of the local community was wine making, as attested by a winery complex in the northern wing, its parts representing all stages of the wine production.
The research results and their publication have a strong impact on at least two fields of interest relating to the history of ancient Palestine. The first refers to the turning point of the history that is, the Islamic conquest of the Middle East, whose which symbolic date is AD 636, the defeat of the Byzantine army in the battle of Yarmouk. The Research Project in question allowed to a verify and update the picture of Christianity in Palestine in the transition period from the Byzantine to Islamic period. Moreover, it provided a unique picture of the life of the local Christian community in the first half of the 8th century, contributing to the history of early Christianity in the Middle East. The second field of interest refers to a particularly broad and complex question of the relations between pagans and Christians in late antiquity. This applies, in particular, to the one of the most important aspects of these relations, the abandonment of pagan temples and their re-use as places of Christian worship. Again, this research project is a significant archaeological contribution to the discussion which until recently has been focused mainly on the analysis of written sources.

During the years 2014-2015 several individual scholars have conducted extensive resarch relating to the following research objectives:

Dr. Mariusz Burdajewicz, Principal Investigator, Institute of Mediterranean and Oriental Cultures, Polish Academy of Sciences (IKSiO PAN)
- Study of the architectural decoration of the North-West Church
- Study of the glass vessels
- Study of stone, metal and bone artifacts
- Transformation of the pagan temples into churches in the Byzantine period: a case study of the North-West Church in Hippos

Prof. Jolanta M³ynarczyk, Main Investigator, Institute of Archaeology of the University of Warsaw
- Study of the ceramic vessels and terracotta lamps
- The North-West Church: stratigraphy, architectural plan and its typological development. A comparative study with other churches in Palestine and in neighbouring areas
- Wine and oil presses discovered near the North-West Church and the economic activity of the inhabitants of Hippos

Julia Burdajewicz, Faculty of Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art, Academy of Fine Arts, Warsaw
Mosaic floors and wall painting decoration of the North-West Church, iconography, technique of execution and conservation

Zbigniew Solarewicz
A 3D reconstruction and visualization of the North-West Church with the use of computer graphics [pdf]

Barbara Solarewicz, Polish Numismatic Society, Warsaw
Study of the coins

Prof. Adam £ajtar, Institute of Archaeology of the University of Warsaw
Greek inscriptions on the mosaics floors in the North-West Church

The final results of the grant will constitute the base of a final publication of the Polish excavations at Hippos which is currently on the final stage of preparation (for a preliminary contents see here). The publication will provide a new comparative material to all experts dealing with similar issues, and certainly will be helpful to solve a number of research problems. In the meantime, the following articles have been either published or are in press:

B. Solarewicz, "Pieniadz na pograniczu trzech kultur. Monety z koœcio³a w Hippos, w Dekapolis (Izrael)" [Currency on the border of three cultures. Coins from the church at Hippos, in the Decapolis (Israel)], Acta Archaeologica Lodziensia 2015 Volume 61, 39-48 [pdf]
M.Burdajewicz, "From Pagan Temple to Church in Late Antiquity Palestine A View from Hippos-Sussita", Études et Travaux XXX, 181-209
A. £ajtar, J. M³ynarczyk, "A Faction Acclamation Incised on a Pithos Found Near the North-West Church at Hippos (Susita)", Études et Travaux XXX, 289-302
J. Burdajewicz, "Wall Painting Decoration from the North-West Church in Hippos-Sussita of the Decapolis", Études et Travaux XXX, 161-180

In press:
Burdajewicz, J. M³ynarczyk, "Reading the record of the last Christians of Susita (Hippos)”, in Acts of the International Colloquium Les mobiliers archéologiques dans leur contexte, de la Gaule a l’ Orient méditerranéen, 27-29 October 2014, Poitiers, Collection Archéologie et Culture: Presses universitaires de Rennes
M. Burdajewicz, "The Glass Vessels of the Roman, Byzantine and Early Islamic Periods at Hippos: An Overview of the Main Types", in Hippos - Sussita of the Decapolis: The First Twelve Seasons of Excavations 2000-2011, Volume II [pdf]