Solomon’s Pools
Pools, not far from Bethlehem in Judah, part of the irrigation system of Jerusalem.
Description
Coming from Bethlehem and going to Bethsur, Jesus and some disciples stop near immense pools.“There are three large basins excavated in the rocky mountain, a really grand work, and the surface of the most limpid water sparkles as well as the waterfall that from the first basin falls into the second larger one and then into the third one, which is really a little lake. Pipelines convey the water to distant towns. […] But let us thank also Solomon [...] The basins that nourish herbs and men are certainly his.”[1]
Their name
Solomon’s Pools. The name of these pools refers to the assertion in Ecclesiastes (Qohelet), an "autobiographical" book of Solomon who writes: "I made gardens and orchards for myself; I planted all kinds of fruit trees there. I dug pools of water for myself to water the forest of growing trees."[2]
Where are they mentioned in the work?
GRM 208.
Learn more about this place
The Solomon pools or basins are three huge pools[3] carved into the rock. They are mentioned in the Bible,[2] but some archaeologists have challenged their attribution to Solomon considering the works carried out by Herod the Great nine centuries later.[4] There is therefore, here, confirmation that these works date back to the reign of Solomon, even though they have undergone later modifications.
At the time of Maria Valtorta, the location of these pools was little known except by a few archaeologists. Restoration work has been undertaken, and the pools are now again filled with water and have regained their former splendor.
Explore
- 31° 41’ 20’’ N / 35° 10’ 15’’ E /
- +810m
Notes and references
Article partially based on the Geographical Dictionary of the Gospel, by Jean-François Lavère.