

A cave on the Jordanian shore of the Dead Sea near Zara

Sinkholes pock-mark the emerging shoreline of the Dead Sea near Ein Gedi

Pier of the dock for the lifeguard boat based near Ein Gedi on the Israeli side of the Dead Sea shore

Tourists on the beach at Dead Sea resort of Ein Bokek

Families from Amman enjoying the Jordanian coast of the Dead Sea at 'Amman Beach' park

Young men from Amman enjoying the mud on the Jordanian coast of the Dead Sea at Zara spring

Ruins of Lido Hotel on north end of the Dead Sea with a panoramic mural from 1973 based on an old crusader's map

Abandoned water park near New Qalya Beach on the West Bank part of the Dead Sea coast

Pumping station on the Lisan Peninsula which separates the Dead Sea into two parts

Earthen dikes separating salt evaporation ponds along the Israeli shore of the south lake of the Dead Sea

Waters stained brown with Potassium Sulfite cascade from one evaporation pond to another

Drying facilities of potash plant at Arab Potash Company

A factory for processing edible salt near the Arab Potash Company on the southern part of the Dead Sea

Bedouin family living in the hills above Sweimeh on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea

Ruins of Mukawir, with the Dead Sea and the shore of the West Bank in the background

Sink holes caused by fresh ground water dissolving salty layers beneath the surface, causing cave-ins

A shaft of midday sunlight falls on a pool of fresh water in the lower section of Wadi Hidan

Sunbathers afloat at the beach resort of Ein Bokek, on the Israeli side of the Dead Sea

Beach resort of Ein Bokek, where a favorite pass-time is floating on one's back in the water to experience the lake's hyper-saline buoyancy

Russian family from Moscow taking souvenir photos on salt accretions beside a dike in the Dead Sea Works

Masada, the ancient city that has become a symbol for the state of Israel

Greek Orthodox monastery of Mar Saba overlooking the Kidron Valley in the West Bank east of Bethlehem

A group of nuns visiting the Greek Orthodox monastery of Mar Saba overlooking the Kidron Valley

Hyper-saline waters seep out of the ground, forming a slow moving brown river on the north side of the Dead Sea's south lake

Small bay of turquoise-colored water formed by the break of a dyke in an evaporation pond of the Arab Potash Works