PANEAS
PANEAS,
PANIAS, or PANEIAS (
Πανεάς, Πανιάς, Πανειάς, Hierocl. p. 716), more usually called either CAESAREIA PANEAS (
Καισάρεια Πανεάς or
Πανιάς, J. AJ 18.2.3,
B. Jud. 2.9.1;
Ptol. 5.15.21;
Plin. Nat. 5.15. s. 15; Sozom. 5.21; on coins, K.
ὑπὸ Πανείῳ and
πρὸς Πανείῳ; in
Steph. B. sub voce incorrectly
πρὸς πῇ Πανεάδι) or
CAESAREIA PHILIPPI (K.
ἡ Φιλίππου, Matth. 16.13;
Mark, 8.27;
J. AJ 20.8.4,
B. J. 3.8.7, 2.1;
Euseb. Hist. Eccl. 7.17), a city in the north of Palestine, called by Ptolemy and Hierocles (
ll. cc.) a city of Phoenicia, situated upon one of the sources of the Jordan, at the foot of Mt. Panium, one of the branches of Lebanon. Mt Panium contained a cave sacred to Pan, whence it derived its name. (Philostorg. 7.7.)
At this spot Herod erected a temple in honour of Augustus. (
J. AJ 15.10.3,
B. J. 1.21.3.) Paneas was supposed by many to have been the town of Laish, afterwards called Dan; but Eusebius and Jerome state that they were separate cities, distant 4 miles from each other. (Reland,
Palaestina, p. 918, seq.) Paneas was rebuilt by Philip the Tetrarch, who called it Caesareia in honour of the Roman emperor, and gave it the surname of Philippi to distinguish it from the other Caesareia in Palestine. (
J. AJ 18.2.3,
B. J. 2.9.1.)
It was subsequently called Neronias by Herod Agrippa in honour of the emperor Nero. (
J. AJ 20.8.4; Coins.)
According to ecclesiastical tradition it was the residence of the women diseased with an issue of blood. (
Matth. 9.20;
Euseb. Hist. Eccl. 7.18; Sozom. 5.21; Theoph.
Chronogr. 41 ; Phot. cod. 271.) Under the Christians Paneas became a bishopric.
It is still called
Bâniâs, and contains now only 150 houses. On the NE. side of the village the river, supposed to be the principal source of the Jordan, issues from a spacious cavern under a wall of rock. Around this source are many hewn stones.
In the face of the perpendicular rock, directly over the cavern and in other parts, several niches have been cut, apparently to receive statues. Each of these niches had once an inscription; and one of them, copied by Burckhardt, appears to have been a dedication by a priest of Pan.
There can be no doubt that this cavern is the cave of Pan mentioned above; and the hewn stones around the spring may have belonged perhaps to the temple of Augustus.
This spring was considered by Josephus to be the outlet of a small lake called Phiala, situated 120 stadia from Paneas towards Trachonitis or the NE. Respecting this lake see Vol. II. p. 519b.
(Reland,
Palaestina, p. 918, seq.; Eckhel, vol. iii. p. 339, seq.; Burckhardt,
Syria, p. 37, seq.; Robinson,
Bibl. Res. vol. iii. p. 347, seq.)
