JERICHO, Judean Desert – Long before modern cities and borders, an ancient priestly family called the Hasmoneans restored religious freedom and strengthened Jewish identity. They turned Jericho into a place of power, luxury, and politics.

The Hasmoneans are remembered as a Jewish priestly family who led the revolt against Greek-Seleucid rule. The Greeks had outlawed the practice of Jewish traditions and desecrated the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. 

 Excavations in Jericho at the Hasmonean Palace complex uncovered one of the region's most impressive Second Temple Period sites. For security reasons, it's not accessible year-round.

Israeli Tour Guide Gadi Himof told CBN News that the complex is open "only on holidays, Hanukkah, Passover, Sukkot."

He added, "It's three days (per year) each chance, and that's it. That's why you can see here a few hundred people on these days, because they’re the only days you can come here to see the archeology, our history, our tradition.”  

The Hasmoneans fought to restore Jewish worship, religious freedom, and devotion to the God of Israel. They eventually established an independent Jewish kingdom here, two thousand years before modern Israel.   

It's not hard to see parallels between modern Israel and that Jewish state of the past. Both faced challenges in maintaining sovereignty over a complex geopolitical environment, and both faced concerns over maintaining security as well as safety.

The fortified complex served as a palace, as well as a defensive stronghold. Ruins show a city located in a strategic area. Discoveries also indicate that city leaders were observing Jewish practices, which is exactly what they had fought for against the Greeks. 

The Hasmonians and later Herod chose Jericho as a winter capital because its climate and commerce made it an important hub.

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So began the Hasmonean slide into assimilation. The remains show a lavish lifestyle, with one foot in Greek culture and the other in traditional Jewish customs.

Himof explained, "You actually can see here a warm room with the bath.  You can actually take a bath inside. Over there, you can also see the hot room, the cold room, and one thing here, not in any other bath house – this is a mikveh.  So, they actually had a kosher mikveh and took a good shower like the Greek king." 

Herod the Great, who came to power under Roman authority in 37 BC, dramatically expanded the Jericho complex. The remains allow visitors to see the shift from a Jewish monarchy to Roman-backed kingship, showing the evolution of Second Temple architecture and culture.

“What Herod the Great built here is just unbelievable," Himof declared. "He built one big palace, but it's built on both sides of the valley. ‘Valley?  We are in the middle of the desert."

He continued, "If you invited someone from Rome to your palaces from both sides of the river with a bridge in the middle, you can feel like you’re in Rome.”

The trenches from the Six-Day War in 1967 show how the issue of security has continued through the centuries.  Located near the Jordan Valley, Jericho is close to key trade routes, which required protection from the empires that sought the destruction of the Jewish people. Today, Israel maintains its security and sovereignty while it flourishes.