MACHERONTE. – A mountain fort to the east of the Dead Sea, built by Alexander Iannaeus (Flavius Josephus, *Bell. Jud.*, VII, 6, 2) and destroyed by the Romans in 57 BC (id., *Antiq. Jud.*, XIV, 5, 4). It was later rebuilt by Herod the Great between 25 and 15 BC on a grander scale, serving both as a fortress and a villa. For this purpose, Herod connected it by a road of about 20 km to the lower baths of Callirrhoe. M. was one of the high places where fires were lit to announce the new moon. The castle suffered severe damage during the siege by Lucilius Bassus in AD 57. What made M. famous was the beheading of St. John the Baptist (v.), which took place there by order of Herod Antipas, master of the fortress, at the instigation of Herodias (Mt 14:1-12; Mk 6:17-29; Lk 9:7-9). The site is clearly mentioned by Flavius Josephus (*Antiq. Jud.*, XVIII, 5, 2).
Since the body of the Baptist, according to tradition, was transferred by his disciples to Sebaste, M. was rarely a destination of pilgrimage. The annual liturgical pilgrimage mentioned by Fr. Boniface of Ragusa, Custodian of the Holy Land in the 16th century (*Liber de perenni cultu Terrae Sanctae*, Venice 1875), lasted only a short time. The insecurity of the route, which remains impassable for motor vehicles even today, also contributed to this.
At M., besides the fortress, there was also a city. Today, the ruins of the fortress can be seen on an isolated hill called Mesnekeh, and those of the city, situated below, called el-Mukawer—a remnant of the ancient name—where two churches and ornamental crosses have been noted.