Perched high atop a mountain between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee is an important site in Roman and Jewish history. First considered the seat of power by the Roman governors when Herod Antipas made it his Galilean headquarters, and afterwards a place of religious importance to the Jewish people when Yehuda Hanassi moved the Rabbanic Academy there. Sepphoris is also a place of significance to Christians since it is believed to be the hometown of Anna and Joachim, the parents of Mary the mother of Jesus.
From Sepphoris, during the second century CE Rabi Yehuda Hanassi \Judah the Prince gathered together writings of the oral law passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth and compiled it into written form in a work called the "Mishna". Rabi Judah also was the head of the Jewish legal council or Sanhedrin and moved the Sanhedrin from Bet Shaarim to Sepphoris. It is still believed by some scholars that the Roman-style theatre that is in Sepphoris was the building originally used for the Sanhedrin at that time.
As you walk through the stone columns of the Cardo Street, you will come to a large building with an impressive mosaic of a Nile measuring stick. Also at this site is a 2nd century villa with a mosaic of a mysteriously beautiful lady that is referred to as the "Mona Lisa of the Galilee."
In one of the synagogues you can still see the magnificent mosaic floor featuring 20 inscriptions in Greek and Aramaic, a Zodiac wheel with the names of the month written in Hebrew, and amazing scenes from biblical events. The scenes from the Bible include; the binding of Isaac, Aaron, elements from the Jerusalem temple, the angelic visit to Sarah, and the seven-branched temple menorah. Also at this site is a small Crusader building later renovated by the Ottomans and used as a school in modern history. Sepphoris will truly give you an experience of a Jewish-Roman village and inspire you to learn more about history during the first three centuries.
