Literary Sources and Numismatic Evidence of Maritime Activity in Caesarea during the Roman Period

It is evident from the writings of Josephus Flavius that Herod's main purpose in building Caesarea was to endow his newly created kingdom with a modern, international port in which large ships might anchor in safety. This is also obvious from the fact that, although Herod named the city in honour of Caesar, he gave a different name to the port, calling it Sebastos. ¹