Jerusalem, Machaerus, and Masada in AD 70, 72, and 73: Comparative Analysis of the Three Subsequent Roman Circumvallation Siege Walls in the Lights of the Archaeological Evidence and the Narrative Accounts of Flavius Josephus

The comparative archaeological examinations of the subsequent circumvallation siege walls around Machaerus and Masada, built by the Legion X Fretensis in AD 72 and 73, raised an obvious question: Would it be possible to reconstruct the similar circumvallation siege wall as well, that was built around Jerusalem in AD 70 by the same Roman army? After the 2023 publication of the western part of the Third Wall of Jerusalem, together with the archaeological remains of an in situ AD 70 battlefield, we measured the length of the complete city-wall of Jerusalem before its destruction: it was 33 stadia (6105 meter), exactly corresponding to the data, given by Josephus. Taking into consideration the geomorphological surroundings of Jerusalem, the required and described minimum two-stadium (ca. 370 m) distances between the city- and the siege-walls, and finally the military data provided by Josephus, we were able to reconstruct the reliable line of the surrounding siege wall around Jerusalem, built upon the command of Titus. We used our digital mapping device and professional GPS and GIS (Global Positioning System and Geographic Information System) units on the field, accurate to 10-centimeter- certainty, on the former circumvallation line of Titus, in ca. two stadia distance around the Old City and the Third Wall. The siege wall, according to Josephus, incorporated the General Headquarters and 13 military garrisons that were complemented by the 39 stadia (7215 meter) long circumvallation wall, located between them. The contemporary archaeological analogies and architectural parallels in Machaerus and Masada were essential to understand the Jerusalem AD 70 siegeworks.