Eleazar of Modi'im

One of the three new characters I am adding to the Northwing Miniatures Jewish Revolt range in 2026 is “Eleazar of Modi'im”. Not much is known about this man, yet what information does survive suggests that he was among the most respected religious leaders of the Bar Kokhba War era.

Traditional Jewish texts record some of his supposed preachings, through which we can see some of the hardships faced by Jews during Emperor Hadrian’s crackdowns on the Jewish faith. A passage also survives that purports to be a record of Eleazar’s ultimate fate during the Bar Kokhba War. According to this, he died during the siege of Betar at the hands of the Jewish leader, Bar Kokhba himself, who was deceived by the Roman besiegers into thinking he was a traitor. Eleazar’s death at Bar Kokhba’s hands (technically his foot as he kicked Eleazar in a fit of rage, causing his death) resulted in a heavenly voice to declare that Bar Kokhba would die and the city would fall, events that marked the effective end of the revolt.

Even discounting the heavenly voice, this account was recorded at such a far remove as to render it nearly worthless as strict historical evidence. However, the fact that Eleazar is accorded such an important, albeit mystical, role in the end of the Bar Kokhba War in Jewish history indicates he might have played an important role of some sort during the revolt. Unfortunately, without more evidence it is not possible to say more than this.

While this miniature can, of course, be used to represent Eleazar, he could equally be used to represent any religious leader during the Jewish Revolts.