Banias

Banias

Sacred springs and ancient shrines

Banias, at the foot of Mount Hermon, is one of the main sources of the Jordan River. A spring flows from a cave once sacred to the Greek god Pan, from which the name Paneas, later Banias, derives. Herod built a temple to Augustus here, and the city became a regional center, with a Roman bathhouse and a palace. The Gospels place a conversation between Jesus and his disciples nearby, at Caesarea Philippi. A short trail leads to a waterfall, and the nature reserve has riverside paths and a Crusader fortress above.

Glossary: Banias