King Herod’s 2,000-Year-Old Roman Basilica Uncovered in Ashkelon

The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Monday that archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old Roman basilica established by King Herod. Unearthed in Ashkelon National Park, the basilica, found with a nearby odeon (ancient theater), is the largest structure of its kind in Israel.
King Herod the Great, who is perhaps best known from the Christian Bible for ordering the murder of Bethlehem’s infants in an attempt to kill the newborn baby Jesus, was appointed by the Roman Empire to