Harbours of the Sea of Galilee

Ferrell Jenkins runs a travel blog and today wrote a post on the Ports of the Sea of Galilee which has some excellent photographs of the Church of the Primacy of Peter at Tabgha. In this interesting post he comments on the work of the late Mendel Nun, who was a member of Kibbutz Ein Gev and worked as a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. Although not a professional archaeologist, Mendel researched and recorded the remains of the ancient harbours of the Sea of Galilee, of which there were at least sixteen.

The remains of these harbours can only be seen when the water level is low. In the 1970’s, a number of ancient harbours were discovered, followed by the discovery of an ancient fishing boat in the mud near Magdala. During the years of 1989-1991 there was a severe drought and the accompanying archaeological activities revealed many remains that shed light on the shipping trade and fishing industry during the first century.

Here is a map of the harbours that were plotted by Mendel:

A map of the Sea of Galilee showing the remains of ancient harbours.

The photograph below, taken in 2009, shows the remains of some of the piers of the Capernaum harbour:

Photo: Leen Ritmeyer

Mendel’s map and the photographs he published made it possible to make a reconstruction drawing of Capernaum and its ancient harbour:

Reconstruction of the harbour of Capernaum at the time of Christ, based on archaeological remains. Several piers, which can still be seen when the water level is low, jutted out into the sea to provide a quiet and safe harbor for fishing boats. Capernaum was the city where Jesus lived after he left Nazareth (Matthew 4.13; Mark 2.1; Luke 4.31; John 2.12).

4 thoughts on “Harbours of the Sea of Galilee”

  1. heya. really enjoying perusing the drawings and info on this sight. we attended the bible land expedition this november. we missed meeting you.

  2. Roly, the harbour a little south of Tel Samra at Kibbutz Ha’on is the largest on the east side of the lake. Its outer breakwater is about 250 meters long, with a 5 meter wide base. The quay, or landing area, is approximately 200 meters long. There is also a 500-meter pier along the shore.It was possibly the harbor of Gadara, located on the heights of Gilead above the Yarmuk River.

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