Delegation Permanente d'Israel aupres de l'UNESCO Property names
are listed in the language in which they have been submitted by
the State Party. Caesarea is situated on the Mediterranean coast
alongside bays and shallow inlets that were formed by wave
erosion. These unique bays were utilized throughout history for
the anchorage of sea-going vessels and made Caesarea a major
port of call in the Mediterranean. During the Persian rule, the
Phoenicians built a settlement on the shoreline of one of the
bays, where the ground water level was high. The village
flourished in the Hellenistic period and is first mentioned
under the name of Straton's Tower. In the year 30 BCE the
village was awarded to Herod, who built a large port city at the
site, and called it Caesarea in honor of his patron Octavian
Augustus Caesar. In Josephus' Jewish War it says: "And he chose
on the coast one forsaken town by the name of Straton's
Tower...which thanks to its favorable location was suitable for
carrying out his ambitious plans. H