Tiberias Looking Towards Hermon

Roberts arrived at Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee on the 21st of April 1839 and was to stay for two nights. The city was founded by Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great in circa 20 AD and was named after the Roman emperor Tiberius. In 1837 an earthquake destroyed the town and Roberts noted in his journal that ‘the part nearest the lake seems to have suffered most, the city wall, which is built of hewn stones, is in most parts thrown down and those remaining are rent from top to bottom.’

In this lithograph, Roberts captures the sublime nature of Tiberias’s surroundings and in the foreground places a group of figures that survey the scene from a high vantage point.