Background to foreground:
1) The cave: Part of the Temple of Augustus built in front of the cave by King Herod around 20 b.c.e. The cave may have been part of the inner sanctuary of the Temple of Augustus. Long before the temple was built, the cave was part of a larger cave that collapsed.

2) Niches in the cliff behind a flat platform: Niches in the cliff were carved by Romans and were part of a courtyard, including the flat platform in front of the niches, dedicated to the worship of Pan.

3) Column and the area behind it: Temple of Zeus - built around 100 c.e.

4) Steps leading to an open area (courtyard) with a large niche in the cliff: Temple of Nemesis, goddess of revenge, justice, and imperial law.

5) Judy on the remains of the Temple of the Tomb of the Holy Goats - name derives from the large number of goat bones buried here.

The building (partially visible high on the cliff in the background): A shrine dedicated to the El-Khader (the prophet Elijah) one of the five supreme prophets for the Druze (Arabs). The building was converted by Muslims from a chapel that Christians built to honor St. George.

Banias: Located at the foot of Mt. Hermon in the Golan Heights. It has the ruins of Roman temples. The word Banias is a corruption of the word Panias (Arabic has no p sound), the name of the area dedicated to the Greek god Pan (4th century b.c.e.). Pan supposedly was half goat-half human – a god of nature, herdsmen, music, homosexuals and nymphs. Then the area became Roman - part of King Herod’s domain. In the New Testament – Banias is the place where Jesus designated Peter as the, “Rock.” Banias was conquered by Muslims in the 7th century and then by Crusaders in the 12th century.