‘They will flee to caverns in the rocks and to the overhanging crags’ (Isa. 2:21). Historical Sources for the Use of Rock-Cut Caves in Times of Distress, in Antiquity

Abstract has gained tremendous momentum over the past four decades, contributing immensely to an understanding of the defense methods practiced by the Jewish population in the Early Roman period, particularly during the Great Revolt and the Bar Kokhba Revolt. However, far less attention has been paid to the historical sources describing the preparation and use of natural caves as hiding places in times of distress, and the extent of the phenomenon as reflected in the historical record is unclear. Careful reading of the extant historical sources reveals several descriptions of the use of such defensive measures throughout the country in different periods, for which we now have archaeological evidence. The following article brings examples from the Hebrew Bible, Josephus, Dio Cassius, rabbinical sources, epigraphic evidence and early Christian writings, providing historical evidence of the use of underground caverns in times of distress from long before the first- and third-century CE writings of Josephus and Dio Cassius. Historical sources also describe the different types of underground cavities, conforming to recent classification of three types: (1) refuge caves – natural caves created by karstic processes in cliffs, discovered mainly in the Judean Desert, in the Land of Benjamin, southern Samaria and more recently elsewhere; (2) cliff shelters – natural caves discovered near Jewish settlements from the Second Temple period in Galilee in steep cliffs, in which essential, life-preserving installations were hewn in preparation for their use; (3) hiding complexes – rock-hewn underground caverns and passages discovered mainly beneath Jewish settlements from the Second Temple period. This same phenomenon occurs in both Judea and Galilee, although to a different extent. All three components are intended to be used in periods of stress and not as permanent residences.