Masada

Masada (or Massada, or Metzada in Hebrew) was an ancient fortress, located on a rock 400 m above the Dead Sea, in south-eastern Judea, in Israeli territory about 100 km south-east of Jerusalem.

Walls five meters high - along a perimeter of a kilometer and a half, with about forty towers over twenty meters high - enclosed it, making it almost impregnable.

The particular geomorphological conformation of the area contributed to making a siege even more difficult: the only access point was in fact the impervious path of the snake, so called for the numerous bends that made it a very serious obstacle for the infantry. The fortress became known for the siege of the Roman army during the First Jewish War and its tragic conclusion.

The path of the Serpent (or in Hebrew Shvil HaNachash) is the path that, to this day, allows access to the fortress of Masada.

In ancient times (according to the story of Josephus) it was so steep, tortuous, sinuous and steep that it prevented a Roman soldier from "placing both feet at the same time":

«[...] they call it the snake, to which it resembles for its narrowness and the continuous curves and counter-curves; its straight path is interrupted to go around protruding rocks. She struggles forward, continually bending over herself, and then stretches out again. Those who walk it must keep both feet firmly in order to avoid falling and losing their life; in fact on both sides there are ravines so frightening that even the bravest man trembles. After a journey of thirty stages [equal to 5.5 km], the track reaches the summit, which does not end with a peak, but with a plateau. "