Three building phases were discerned in the structure. In the early phase, the structure was comprised of two plastered pools (A and B; Fig. 1) separated by a partition wall. In the intermediate phase, changes were made; the partition wall was widened and another wall that served as a walkway along the edge of Pool B was built to its east. Eight antilia jars and a terra cotta pipe were incorporated in secondary use in the northwestern wall of Pool B. These were placed on their sides and their openings faced the pool (Figs. 2, 3), forming small cavities. The incorporation of the antilia jars and the pipe in the wall of the pool indicate that the structure was used for breeding fish (piscina) during this phase.  
In the late phase, the openings of the antilia jars and the pipe in Pool B were sealed with a layer of plaster, and a new plaster floor was installed in the pool. Although fish were no longer raised in Pool B during this phase, the pool continued to be used. Pool A was divided into two small pools by the construction of a partition wall in the middle (Fig. 4). A channel (L19) built of medium-sized fieldstones was constructed in the pools; it led to a circular installation (L7) made of building stones in secondary use, located southeast of the partition walls between Pool A and Pool B. Burnt remains were found on the walls of the channel and in the installation.
 
Fragments of pottery vessels dating from the Roman to the end of the Byzantine periods were discovered in the soil accumulations above the intermediate and late phases of the structure and in disturbed loci on the surface. The eight antilia jars and terra cotta pipe integrated in secondary use in the wall of the pool in its intermediate phase date to the end of the Roman and the Byzantine periods. It seems that the antilia jars, which were originally used for drawing water from a well, were readily available nearby. They were suitable for use as cavities in the wall of the pool because their opening was narrow while their body was long and they formed deep cavities in the walls.
 
Raising fish in ponds was very common in the Roman world; the phenomenon first appeared in the last days of the Republic and during the early Roman Empire. Fish-breeding ponds were discovered in Italy and elsewhere throughout the Roman world. In Israel, they were found alongside aqueducts or near abundant sources of water, for example, near the aqueduct north of Caesarea’s city wall, next to the aqueduct in Nahal Tanninim, next to the Berenice aqueduct south of Tiberias, at ‘En Bikkura in Sataf and at Khirbat Sabiya in Samaria. Jars and amphorae were incorporated in the walls of these pools, except for the pool south of Tiberias, where small niches were built in the walls. The vessels integrated in the pool walls and the built niches were spaces that the fish could use for hiding and to protect themselves from the sun.
 
The fish breeding pond discovered in the excavation is located near a perennial water source, indicating that the local residents possessed a high degree of technical skill, which allowed them to engage in this branch of agriculture. Judging by the dimensions of the antilia vessels and the terra cotta pipe, it seems that their volume was suitable for raising St. Peter’s fish, which probably constituted part of the residents’ diet.