The window painting style existed in Rome and Campania only
between 15 and 10 B.C. Netzer's team believes Italian artists
were brought to the Holy Land to decorate this theater, as
happened at a site in nearby Jericho. "Normally in Judean art
you wouldn't paint scenes such as these with animals. The style
is so similar to what is known from Italy, it really looks like
a team came over to do the painting," said Rachel Chachy-
Laureys, a surveyor working with Nezter. "It fits the context."
In addition, two relatively intact coffins, perhaps belonging to
Herod's sons, were recently found in the mausoleum and show no
signs of deliberate damage. Herod was rumored to have murdered
his sons. The coffins are in good shape compared to what
archaeologists are labeling Herod's sarcophagus, discovered in
2007 and crafted of reddish-pink limestone with carved rosettes.
Herod's coffin was likely vandalized during the first Jewish
revolt against Roman rule sometime between A.D. 66 and 72,
Netzer said. The king was likely des