Hippos (Golan Heights)
Aerial view of Hippos (2017) | |
| Alternative name | Sussita/Sūsiya/Qal'at el-Ḥuṣn |
|---|---|
| Region | Golan Heights |
| Coordinates | 32°46′44″N 35°39′36″E / 32.779°N 35.660°E |
| Type | Ancient city |
| Part of | Decapolis |
| History | |
| Material | Basalt and nari |
| Founded | ca. 170 BCE |
| Abandoned | 749 |
| Periods | Chalcolithic, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and Umayyad |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | https://www.dighippos.com |
| Archaeologists | Arthur Segal, Michael Eisenberg, Arleta Kowalewska |
| Condition | In ruins, partly reconstructed |
| Ownership | National Park |
| Public access | yes |
| Website | https://www.dighippos.com |
Hippos (Ancient Greek: Ἵππος, lit. 'Horse') or Sussita (Aramaic, Hebrew: סוסיתא) is an ancient city and archaeological site located on a hill 2 km east of the Sea of Galilee, attached by a topographical saddle to the western slopes of the Golan Heights.
Hippos was a Hellenistic city in the northern Jordan Valley, and a long-time member of the Decapolis, a group of ten cities more closely tied to the Greco-Roman culture than to the local Semitic-speaking population. Later, Hippos became a predominantly Christian city, which declined towards the end of the Byzantine period and throughout the Early Muslim period, and was abandoned after the 749 earthquake.