Tuesday, October 02, 2007

ZIPPORI/SEPPHORIS in the Galilee is covered in a Tourism piece in the Jerusalem Post:
How the capital of the Galilee housed the Sanhedrin
By ANN GOLDBERG

When Rabbi Yehuda Hanassi moved his Sanhedrin ecclesiastical court from Beit She'arim to nearby Zippori (Sepphoris), quite a few eyebrows were raised. In Beit She'arim he had his yeshiva and was surrounded by religious Jews of his own ilk. In Zippori - the capital of the Galilee - lived many secular Jews who had little or no interest in Judaism. Zippori was also home to a large number of Romans, and many Jews were enjoying their newly-adopted pagan lifestyle.

[...]

One of the most famous discoveries at Zippori was the large mosaic that includes an image that has become known as the "Mona Lisa of the Galilee." This is because the lady with her enigmatic smile appears to be looking at you whichever angle you view her from. However, it is but a small section of the panel surrounding the main design. This mosaic is part of a large mosaic floor in an apparently luxurious Roman home that was reconstructed to give visitors an idea of their occupants' opulent lifestyle. One of the most obvious signs of its ostentation is the discovery of an indoor toilet, almost unknown except among the exceptionally rich. As Reb Yosi Ben Halafta said in the Talmud "Who is rich? One who has his own toilet."

[...]