Perched on a solitary hill overlooking the shimmering waters of the Dead Sea, Mukawir (ancient Machaerus) is a fortress steeped in biblical and historical significance. It was here that John the Baptist was imprisoned and eventually executed by order of Herod Antipas, following the famous dance of Salome. The ruins of the fortress offer visitors a powerful and austere scene: walls, towers, and cisterns that still seem to echo with voices from history. Yet it is the surrounding landscape—vast, silent, sacred—that leaves the deepest impression, as if each stone still carries the memory of a martyrdom that changed history. Mukawir is more than an archaeological site; it is a place for reflection on courage, truth, and testimony, central elements in the life of the Baptist. The ascent to the summit, through wild nature, becomes a small pilgrimage of the soul, echoing the message of the Gospel.