Ἀπολλωνία Σώζουσα אפולוניה أرْسُوف Arsur | |
 An aerial view of the Crusader castle and anchorage | |
  Apollonia–Arsuf Shown within Central Israel | |
| Alternative name | Arsur |
|---|---|
| Location | Tel Aviv District, Israel |
| Coordinates | 32°11′43″N34°48′24″E / 32.19528°N 34.80667°E /32.19528; 34.80667 |
| Grid position | 132/178PAL |
| Type | Lowland castle[dubious –discuss] (for the city citadel) |
| History | |
| Abandoned | 1265 |
| Periods | Mainly Early Islamic and Crusader periods |
| Associated with | Baldwin I of Jerusalem -1101 Baibars, Mameluk sultan - 1265 |
| Events | First siege byGodfrey of Bouillon - 1099 Battle of Arsuf - 1191 - betweenSaladin andRichard the Lionheart |
| Site notes | |
| Condition | Ruin |
| Public access | Yes, national park |
| Website | [1] |
Apollonia (Ancient Greek:Ἀπολλωνία;Hebrew:אפולוניה), known in the Early Islamic period asArsuf (Arabic:أرْسُوف,romanized: Arsūf) and in the CrusaderKingdom of Jerusalem asArsur, was an ancient city on theMediterranean coast of today'sIsrael. In Israeli archaeology it is known asTel Arshaf (תֵּל אַרְשָׁף). Founded by thePhoenicians during thePersian period in the late sixth century BCE, it was inhabited continuously until theCrusader period,[1] through theHellenistic,Roman, andByzantine periods, during the latter being renamed toSozusa (Ancient Greek:Σώζουσα, orSozusa in Palaestina to differentiate it fromSozusa in Libya).[2] It was situated on a sandy area ending towards thesea with a cliff, about 34 kilometres (21 mi) south ofCaesarea.
Itfell to the Muslims in 640, was fortified againstByzantine attacks and became known as Arsuf. In 1101 it was conquered by the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, and was a strategically important stronghold in theThird Crusade, during which theBattle of Arsuf (1191) was fought nearby. The fortified city and the castle fell to theMamluks in 1265, when both were completely destroyed.
The site of Arsuf (alsoApollonia–Arsufאַפּוֹלוֹנְיָה-אַרְסוּף) is now inHerzliya municipality,Israel (just north ofTel Aviv). The site was intensively excavated from 1994. In 2002Apollonia National Park was opened to the public.
The city is first recorded under its Greek nameApollonia in the final decades of thePersian period (mid-4th centuryBCE). In a long-standing suggestion, first proposed byClermont-Ganneau in 1876, it was assumed that the Greek name was given due to theinterpretatio graeca of theCanaanite deityResheph (ršp) asApollo (as god of the plague), suggesting that the settlement would originally have been a "Phoenician" foundation. The Semitic nameršp would then have been "restored" in the medieval Arabic toponym ofArsūf. There is indeed no archaeological evidence for a settlement prior to the Persian period, and Izre'el (1999) upholds this identification, suggesting that the Semitic name might have been preserved by theAramaic-speakingSamaritan community. The Samaritan chronicle ofAbu l-Fath (14th century, written in Arabic) records a toponymrʿšfyn (withayin). Izre'el (1999) considers the possibility of identifying this toponym with the ArabicArsūf, assuming that the ayin may derive from amater lectionis used in Samaritan Aramaic orthography.[3]
A tradition connecting the name with the biblical Resheph, a grandson ofEphraim, is spurious.[4]
The name of the nearby Israeli settlement ofRishpon was given in 1936, inspired by a misreading of an inscription ofTiglath-Pileser III, where *rašpūna was read forkašpūna; recognition of the misreading rendered void the identification ofArsuf with a supposed Iron Age Phoenician settlement of *Rašpūna.[5]
The renaming ofApollonia "city of Apollo" toSozusa (ΣώζουσαSōzousa) "city of theSaviour" took place in theByzantine period, under the influence ofChristianity as thestate religion, motivated bySoter (Σωτήρ) "savior" being a byname of Apollo as well as of Christ. The renaming is paralleled in at least three other cities calledApollonia:Sozusa in Cyrenaica,Sozopolis in Pisidia andSozopolis in Thrace.[2] The identification of ancient Apollonia with Byzantine-era Sozusa is due to Stark (1852),[6] that of medieval Arsuf with Apollonia/Sozusa to Clermont-Ganneau (1876).[2]
The site is variously referred to asApollonia, Arsin, Arsuf, Arsuph, Arsur, Arsuth, Assur, Orsuf andSozusa in Crusader-era documents, with a large dominance of "Arsur" among the secondary sources discussed by Schmidt.[7]
Although some Chalcolithic and Iron Age remains were uncovered at the site, there is no evidence that there was a settlement prior to the Persian period (ca. 500 BCE). While the importance of the town was overshadowed by bothJaffa and Caesarea, Apollonia developed into a regional center after the decline of its neighbouring site atTel Michal in the Late Persian period, and was likely the main city and harbour in the southernSharon Plain by the mid-4th century BCE. It is mentioned in thePeriplus of Pseudo-Scylax.[8]
During theHellenistic period it was a port town ruled by theSeleucids.
Under Roman rule, the town prospered and grew into the chief commercial and industrial centre of the region between thePoleg andYarkon rivers. In 113 CE, Apollonia was partially destroyed by an earthquake, but recovered quickly.[citation needed]
Apollonia is mentioned byPliny,Hist. nat., V, 14, andPtolemy, V, xv, 2, between Cæsarea and Joppa, and by other ancient authors, includingJosephus,Ant. jud., XIII, xv, 4,Appianus,Hist. rom. Syr., 57. The Roman proconsul,Gabinius, found it ruined in 57 BCE, and had it rebuilt (Josephus,Bel. jud., I, viii, 4). Apollonia is depicted in theTabula Peutingeriana, on the coastal highway between Joppa and Caesarea, at the distance of 22 miles from Caesarea, confirming the identification of Arsuf with Apollonia.[citation needed]
There was no coin minting in Apollonia, confirming that the town did not have the role of a Roman provincial center but was rather considered a medium-sized coastal town likeJamnia andAzotus.
Sozusa in Palaestina was the name of the city in the lateRoman province of Palaestina Prima,[dubious –discuss] and itsepiscopal see was asuffragan ofCaesarea, the provincial capital. The name had changed from Apollonia to Sozusa before 449, when Bishop Baruchius signed the acts of theRobber Council of Ephesus with this title.[9] The name Sozusa also occurs in the works of the Byzantine geographersHierocles andGeorge of Cyprus. Apart from Baruchius of 449, the names of two more of its bishops, Leontius in 518, and Damianus in 553, are also known.[10]The death ofpatriarch Modestus in 630 in the city is recorded in both Georgian and Arabic texts, the Georgian texts usingSozos (forSozusa) and the Arabic textsArsuf, suggesting that both names remained in use for some time in the early medieval period.[11]
During theByzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628, the city surrendered on terms in 614 toShahrbaraz and was in Sasanian hands until near the end of the war.[12]
In 640, the townfell to the Muslims. The Arabic nameArsuf orUrsuf occurs in works ofArab geographers from the 10th century, e.g.Al-Muqaddasi said it was "smaller than Yafah, but strongly fortified and populous There is here a beautifulpulpit, made in the first instance for theMosque ofAr Ramlah, but which being found too small, was given to Arsuf".[13]
At the time of the Muslim conquest, Sozusa was inhabited bySamaritans.[14]In 809, following the death ofHarun al-Rashid, the local Samaritan community was destroyed and their synagogue ruined.[citation needed] In 809 theAbbasids violently removed the large group of Samaritans that had been living in the city.[15]
The town's area decreased to about 22 acres (89,000 m2) and, for the first time, it was surrounded by a fortified wall with buttresses, to resist the constant attacks of Byzantine fleets from the sea.[citation needed]
Godfrey de Bouillon attempted to capture it, but failed for want of ships (William of Tyre, IX, x). KingBaldwin I took it in 1102, after a siege by land and sea, allowing the inhabitants to withdraw toAscalon.The Crusaders, who called itArsur, rebuilt the city's walls and created theLordship of Arsur in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. In 1187 Arsuf was recaptured by the Muslims, but fell again to the Crusaders on 7 September 1191 after the Battle of Arsuf, fought between the forces ofRichard I of England andSaladin.
John of Ibelin, Lord of Beirut became Lord of Arsuf in 1207 when he marriedMelisende of Arsuf. Their sonJohn of Arsuf (d. 1258) inherited the title. The title then passed to John of Arsuf's eldest sonBalian of Arsuf (d. 1277). He built new walls, the large castle and new harbor in 1241. In 1251Louis IX of France re-erected its ramparts. From 1261, the city was ruled by theKnights Hospitaller.[16]
In 1225,Yakut wrote: "Arsuf remained in Muslim hands till taken byKund Furi [Godfrey of Bouillon], lord of Jerusalem, in the year 494 [AH 494, i.e. 1101 CE], and it is in the hand of the Franks [Crusaders] at the present day."[13]
In 1265, sultanBaibars, ruler of the Mamluks, captured Arsuf after 40 days of siege,[17] after almost getting killed in the moat by a sortie of the defenders.[18] The inhabitants were killed or sold as slaves and the town completely razed. The destruction was so complete that the site was abandoned and never regained its urban character – in the 14th century the geographerAbulfeda said it contained no inhabitants ("Tabula Syriæ", 82).
According toMujir al-Din (writing c. 1496), theSidna Ali Mosque just south of Arsuf was dedicated by Baibars at the site of a saint's tomb where he prayed for victory prior to retaking Arsuf.[19]
In the Middle Ages, Sozusa was confused withAntipatris.[citation needed][dubious –discuss] The identity of Arsuf with ancient Apollonia was first noted by Clermont-Ganneau in 1876.[2]
In 1596, Ottoman tax registers recorded a village called Arsuf with 22 families and 4 bachelors, allMuslims. The villagers paid a total of 2,900akçe in taxes. 1/3 the revenue went to awaqf:Hadrat 'Ali bin 'Ulaym.[20] It appeared, just named "village" on the map thatPierre Jacotin compiled duringNapoleon's invasion of 1799.[21]
Sozusa in Palaestina is listed as atitular see in the 2013Annuario Pontificio.[22] Due to the confusion with the other ancient city in classicalPalestine known as Apollonia, it was also assigned under the nameAntipatris. Its last titular bishop of theLatin Church was Francis Joseph McSorley, theApostolic Vicar of Jolo (d. 1970). It has no longer been assigned since, in accordance with the practice established after theSecond Vatican Council regarding all titular sees situated in what were the easternpatriarchates.[23]
The site was incorporated inHerzliya municipality in 1924. At the time, a village calledal-Haram existed adjacent to the ruins, but it was depopulated during the 1948Nakba, and the area south of the site was built up as theShikun Olim (שיכון עולים "immigrant housing") district of Herzeliya in the 1950s.
Rishpon was established in 1936 to the immediate north-east of the site. It is part of theHof HaSharon Regional Council,Central District.
Arsuf is a modern "exclusive clifftop community" named for Arsuf, built in 1995 north of the site, in Hof HaSharon Regional Council.[24]
The site of Apollonia–Arsuf was excavated in the 1990s and opened for visitors asApollonia National Park in 2002.Excavations were ongoing as of 2015. The excavation report is prepared in three volumes, of which the first was published in 1999. The second and third volume, covering the excavation seasons until 2015, were in preparation as of 2016.
The above-ground remains before the excavations included the medieval city wall and moat, enclosing an area of about 90dunam, a Crusader castle with a double-wall system with an area of about 4 dunam, a port with built jetties and a sheltered anchorage, protected by a sandstone reef.
Large amounts of pottery were recovered in the area surrounding the city, mostly of the Byzantine and early Islamic period, indicating that the city extended significantly beyond its old walls in the 7th century. A large Roman-eravilla maritima was uncovered to the south of the site.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Sozusa".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
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