Israel 6: The spirit of war on the Incense Route

We came back home with Iris and, after a generous lunch (this time it was an entirely new version of couscous with vegetables), we set out for another trip.

Firstly, we passed by Nitzana village, established in 1987 and named after the ruins of a Nabataean city located due east. 

The ancient Nitzana is another, apart from Shivta, Haluza, Mamshit and Avdat, town on the Incense Route. The route, or routes, linked Yemen and Oman with Mediterranean Sea ports through Arabia and Petra, a Nabataean city. Spices and incenses were transported by the route from the southern Arabia and Far East to Greece and Rome to satisfy the demand for these exotic, aromatic goods. 

Nabataeans built cities and smaller settlements on the route to protect the caravans transporting the goods. The trade flourished by almost seven centuries, between 3^rd century B.C. and 4^th century A.D. At the end of this period, during the reign of the Romans, the route began to decline, and the Nabataeans started agricultural activity. In the heart of the Negev Desert various crops appeared. They were irrigated with the use of surprisingly advanced systems of canals and reservoirs. 

The cities built by the Incense Route became centres of agricultural production and gave shelter to travellers. With the adoption of Christianity by the Nabataeans in the 4^th century A.D., the travellers were mostly pilgrims, and in the cities churches and monasteries were built. 

When the Muslims from Arabia conquered this territory, Nitzana began to decline gradually. The basic source of income started to disappear: agriculture, especially production of wine banned by Islam, and services related to the Christian pilgrims. The city was abandoned probably in the 9^th century A.D., just like Shivta.

For almost a thousand years, the hill of the old Nitzana was visited only by migratory birds. It was like that until 1912 when the Ottoman Empire and the German army saw it as an ideal location for military base to fight against the British in the Sinai Peninsula. A Turkish and German hospital, existing almost until the end of World War I, was established there. 

You can imagine that after the war, there was not much left from the ancient ruins. Meanwhile in the 40’s, an archaeologist known to us from Shivta, H.D. Colt, discovered a real treasure known as “Nitzana Papyri” (“Nessana Papyri”). The treasure was comprised of 195 documents from 6^th and 7^th century in Greek and Arabic, describing the daily life of the inhabitants of the city. 

Apart from Colt, another old friend from Shivta arrived to the city: T.E. Lawrence, also known as “Lawrence from Arabia”, who, a few months before the outbreak of the WWI, arrived to Nitzana and described the destruction made by the Turks . He made also sketches of the site.

By the way, Lawrence from Arabia reappeared several times during our desert trips, and especially during our visit in Jordan). It was amazing to see the places seen in the movie with our own eyes: "Lawrence z Arabii".

Not only Turks and Germans left traces of war in this region. After the World War II, the region was like a "loving cup" in Arab-Israeli wars due to its proximity to the Sinai Peninsula and the border with Egypt: in 1948 during the war for independence, in 1956 during the Suez Crisis and in 1967 during the Six-day War. Since 1982, after the Israeli troops left the Sinai Peninsula, the border seems to be stable.

We can see the traces of war at the foothill of the Nabataean Nitzana. It is a monument commemorating the Israeli soldiers who died in the attempt to conquer the hill in December 1948, during the last days of the war for independence of Israel. 

Despite the relatively stable border, the spirit of the war hasn’t left this place. Around the contemporary Nitzana there are a few quite big bases of the Israeli army with polygons, by the way perfectly visible from the road:

The contemporary Nitzana, located near the hill with ancient ruins, is an interesting place, too. There was an educational centre for immigrants from Africa and former Soviet Union who converted to Judaism and learned Hebrew established. 

The village is surrounded by the dunes which are the subject of university research. Beneath the ground, reservoirs of salt water, which is extracted, desalinated and used for agricultural purposes, were discovered. In the area, there are forests, greenhouses and fields irrigated with desalinated water. It seems that the Eitan’s orchard uses the same irrigation system.

Moving forward, we had another chance to see the traces of Turkish reign in this region.

During the WWI, the Turks decided to reconquer the Suez Canal from the British. For that purpose, they wanted to extend the existing railway line from Damascus to BeerSheba (1915) and later to Nitzana (1916). The line was used until the British victory in 1917. Some of its sections have been preserved to this day, and in many places one can find old wagons which now serve as bird-watching sites.

Through the windows, you can watch not only birds, but also admire the beautiful desert.  

I am not sure if I have it right, but I remember that, while we were approaching the site, Iris mentioned that there were some porn videos filmed in these wagons. If so, this must be a very sophisticated type of perversion. 

Maybe it is the omnipresent spirit of war, having replaced the caravans slowly moving forward by the Incense Route, which messes up with people’s minds?