Editing Masada (section)

==Geography==
The cliff of Masada is, geologically speaking, a [[horst (geology)|horst]].<ref name="NatGen2">{{cite journal |title= Genomic analysis of 6,000-year-old cultivated grain illuminates the domestication history of barley: Supplementary Text and Figures |author= Martin Mascher|display-authors=etal|journal=[[Nature Genetics]] |date=18 July 2016 |volume= 48|issue= 9|pages= 1089–93|publisher= Macmillan Publishers |doi=10.1038/ng.3611 |pmid= 27428749|s2cid= 11574248|issn=1061-4036 |url= http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/vaop/ncurrent/extref/ng.3611-S1.pdf |access-date=12 August 2016}}</ref> As the plateau abruptly ends in cliffs steeply falling about {{convert|400|m|abbr=on}} to the east and about {{convert|90|m|abbr=on}} to the west, the natural approaches to the fortress are very difficult to navigate. The top of the mesa-like plateau is flat and [[rhomboid]]-shaped, about {{convert|550|m|abbr=on}} by {{convert|270|m|abbr=on}}. Herod built a {{convert|4|m|abbr=on}} high [[casemate]] wall around the plateau totaling {{convert|1300|m|abbr=on}} in length, reinforced by many towers. The fortress contained storehouses, [[barracks]], an [[Armory (military)|armory]], a palace, and a series of [[cistern]]s (capacity around 40,000 cubic metres) that were refilled by [[rain]]water – with the runoff collected from a single day's rain allegedly able to sustain over 1,000 people for 2 to 3 years.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 4, 2019 |title=Masada |url=https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-middle-east/masada |website=www.history.com}}</ref> Three narrow, winding paths led from below up to fortified gates.<ref>Masada desert fortress. (1991). Retrieved January 26, 2023, from https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/masada-desert-fortress</ref>