Theater Interior 4

Theater Interior 4

A view looking southwest at the interior of the reconstructed theater.  All of the current seats are modern facing on an older substructure.  There were at least two, maybe three, tiers of seats that were divided into cunei by stain cases (visible).  The lower section of seats is separated from the upper by a walkway—called a "belt" (diazoma)—on the left side of the image

The orchestra is visible in the center portion of the image—partially filled with seats for a concert.


The theater was first constructed by Herod the Great (37 to 4 B.C.) and went through many modifications until it went out of use in the sixth century A.D.  Herod Agrippa I (r. 39–44) may have been struck with an illness that led to his death in this theater (or possibly in the circus; Acts 12:19-23; Josephus Ant. 19.343-52 [8.2]).