Herodium, Palestine

Herodium is a man-made mountain located in the middle of the desert region of the Judean wilderness, 8 miles south of Jerusalem and 3 miles east of Bethlehem. Herod, Palestine's greatest builder, created the seven-story palace atop a natural hill and then constructed a sloping fill of earth and gravel around it, partially burying his palace to create a virtually impenetrable wall of defense. Originally, the seven story monolith rose 90 feet above the ground, but the top three layers have since been destroyed.