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Located in the upper Hulah valley, Banias was a small village through the Hellenistic period up to the time of Herod the Great. After the sudden death of Zenadoras in 20 BCE, Augustus transferred possession of Banias and the surrounding region to Herod. To show his thanks, Herod constructed a large temple in honor of Augustus in the region of Banias. The emperor cult temple in Banias was by no means the only cult temple Herod erected in his empire. Only several years earlier Herod had begun work on Caesarea Maritima, a whole city constructed in honor of Augustus. Herod was dedicated to Greco-Roman civilization, and the center piece of his new metropolis was a huge cult temple dedicated to Augustus and Roma. Herod built the city of Caesarea on a tiny, nearly deserted preexisting Phoenician foundation called Strato's tower. As Josephus says, "Along the coast Herod discovered a city in decay . . .This he rebuilt entirely in marble and ornated with a most splendid palace" (Jewish War I, 408-9). Caesarea stood as a symbol of Herod's friendship with Augustus, a town reborn through the grace of the rulers. The temple built in Banias represented a similar rebirth for the citizens of the tiny Hellenistic sanctuary of Pan. Herod began the transformation of Banias into an important stronghold and trade-center, which his son Phillip later finished.

After Herod's death in 4 BCE, and a long process of squabbling with his half-brothers Archelaus and Antipas, Phillip was awarded power of Gaulantis, Trachonitis, Batanaea and the region of Banias. A huge rivalry existed between the three heirs to Herod's empire, and all were vying for imperial favor. Phillip, like his father before him, chose to gain favor through building. Phillip sought out to build his own Caesarea. He chose Banias as the site. Banias belonged to the same general paradigm as Caesarea Maritima; it was a small, largely unimportant site ripe for renewal. As an extra benefit it even had two emperor cult temples erected by Herod the great himself already on site. Phillip quickly constructed a large settlement around Augustus' temple. According to Josephus, he renamed the town Caesarea in honor of Augustus and minted a series of coins in Banias featuring a picture of one of Herod's temples. (See Roller Duane: The Building Program of Herod the Great.) Through these coins, Phillip linked himself directly to his father's loyalty to Augustus. He also symbolically associates the accomplishments of his own building project with his father's -- Caesarea Phillipi was the Caesarea Maritima of a new age, and Phillip was the new Herod, or at least that was the message Phillip hoped to send to Rome.

When considering the origins of the temple at Omrit it is important to keep the history of Banias in mind. Banias is only a few short kilometers away from Omrit, and both lay on the same Roman road to Damascus. The fact that the second cult temple mentioned by Josephus has never been discovered in Banias itself suggests that it may have been built outside the city limits in the surrounding countryside. The temple at Omrit quite possibly may be the missing temple. We also must keep Phillip's influence in mind. Phillip conducted massive building projects in the area, and Omrit may one of these projects. If the temple is not Herodian it almost undoubtably dates to Phillip's reign between 1 BCE and 34 CE.