Mamshit

This morning we set off for Mamshit, a Nabataean city, just south of Dimona. I always liked the Nabataeans, whose capital was the impressive Petra (I will go there one day), and who built Shivta, Avadat and Mamshit in the Negev. Mamshit was built in the First Century CE, and was used by the Romans and the Byzantines. The Nabataeans were a resourceful lot. They built their cities on the Incense Road, and utilized the trade routes between Egypt and the Far East to become wealthy. Mamshit was originally built as a trade post between Petra and Gaza. During the Roman occupation, the Mamshitaeans (my word) reared horses, and so remained very wealthy. Their wealth is reflected in the exceptional architecture and housing seen in Mamshit.

You know you in the desert when you see signs like these.
This is the river bed of the Mamshit River. It only flows in winter when it rains (and then only for a few days). The rocks and cliffs surrounding the site are particularly picturesque.
This is one of the gates in the wall surrounding the city. There has been a lot of reconstruction done. But, it's tasteful and there is still a lot of rubble and rock. In 2005 Mamshit became a Unesco World Heritage Site. The honor is well deserved.
This is what an original Nabataean house's roof looked like. There are arches like this in most of the rooms, of course, the original wood is long gone.
The "Palatial House" Is a particularly grand building with many rooms and impressive architecture. These guys clearly had money. In it's heyday Mamshit only had about 1000 residents. The amount of building for that few people is interesting. The spice trade must have paid very well.
This is what a typical house looked like.
During the Byzantine period, two churches were built on the site. They both had impressive mosaic floors. One had a hidden crypt that contained the bones of some poor Christian martyr.
When the spice trade dried up (the Romans cornered the market), the residents took to horse raising. The stables are nicely restored, with feeding troughs intact.
This is a baptizing area. There are steps carved into the stone that lead down to the water at the bottom.
During the Byzantine Period, a bath house was built on the site, complete with a reservoir to catch and hold rainwater.

We noticed that the Parks Department have opened a camp ground in the park. It's very nice. There were only about 10 people camping and they had access to the ruins after the park closes at 5pm. Looks like a nice place to go and spend a night, maybe I can convince my family.