Amman, Jerash and Mount Nebo

After the relative flatness of the Egyptian Nile, it was a surprise to see that Jordan is quite mountainous. Our first tour in Jordan was Jerash, where remains from Neolithic times (7000 BC) have been found. However, most of what can be seen today is Roman. Just inside Hadrian’s arch is the Hippodrome where it is easy to imagine chariots racing.

As we wandered North, we picked up our guide and quickly entered the Oval Plaza. Despite the slope, the line of columns formed a level lintel which would have supported a shady roof.

An interesting challenge when combined with the plaza’s oval shape.

The plaza led to Cardo Maximus (the main North-South street, which forms an axis for the city). The road pavement was somewhat uneven due to the 749 AD earthquake. Thankfully, some of the columns survived whilst others have been re-erected. They would have supported a roof over a colonnade of shops. Quite a long mall!

Despite the upheaval, the ruts formed by carts were clearly visible. What was a surprise was a series of manholes for accessing a stormwater system. This was used mainly for irrigation. 

Further up the road, one even still has its lifting eye intact. 

Although some of the lintels look a little precarious, the use of corbels to support what was quite a load was impressive. It is worth zooming in to see how the column ring and corbel were carved from a single piece of stone.

Where the Cardo Maximus (North-South road) met the Decumanus Maximus (East-West road) was a round plaza. There was a monument here but all that remains are the four supporting pedestals. These supported columns of pink granite supplied from Aswan.

Of course, such a city had to have a theatre. This one sat about 6000 patrons.

Standing on the stage and moving around to find the exact point where your voice resonated was fun and really underpinned the accuracy of the construction. The detail, even at the bottom of the steps, was elaborate as our guide was keen to point out. 

Again, we had an excellent guide who, being in our age group, knew the pace to set. He also had relatives in, and had been to Canada. As a result, Pam ensured he was suitably sidetracked from archaeology discussions on more than a few occasions!

The Northern end of the Cardo Maximus was interesting as the capitals on one side were Corinthian, on the other, Ionic (which suggests the Greeks may have had some input).

There was the occasional stall set up. These operators seemed to have been selected for their language and soft-selling skills. Needless to say, they were successful as we came away with necklaces and a Shemag.

Our afternoon visit was to a few sites in Amman. We started walking along the walls of the Citadel with its 360 views of the city. There were many murals, including this one painted in 2021, entitled “The Column Mural”, depicting a man carrying the base for a column.

The focal point of the Citadel is the Umayyad Palace with its blue dome. 

Inside, the brown timber contrasts well with the grey stone. An intricate piece of joinery atop some similarly intricate stonework. Although restoration has played its part, the design and tradecraft are clearly evident.

As we stood appreciating the roof, music filtered through.  In the corners of the building were a series of small chambers with arched ceilings. In one, we encountered four visitors who were taking advantage of some wonderful acoustics. The resonance of their voices and ambience would have had us standing in awe for the rest of the afternoon until I was reminded that we had 5 minutes to get back to our driver!

A short drive resulted in a second musical event. This was at the theatre and of course, I felt obliged to find the musical focal point. That did not take long as it was marked on the floor! As we wandered, an Italian group entered and a rotund, jolly man stood on the spot and sang some opera with the rest of his cohort singing the chorus.

Unfortunately, the moment was short and so captivating that it did not occur to me to make a video! The small seated audience certainly appreciated the ad hoc entertainment with spontaneous applause and some whistles.

The next day, we headed South along the Road of the Kings. Our first stop was to a beautiful Byzantine (Greek) church, where, as we entered, the chandeliers drew the eye to the striking ceiling decoration.

As we continued, the light from the windows came into play and the new focus became the spectacular mosaic floor.

It is the Madaba mosaic map, which depicts part of the Middle East and contains the oldest surviving cartographic representation of the Holy Land and Jerusalem. It dates back to the sixth century AD and is in remarkable condition.

Our last stop en route to South Jordan and Petra was Mount Nebo. Here, a cleverly designed museum enabled visitors to wander along raised walkways over numerous mosaics. There were more on the walls, which stood out due to great lighting and lime-washed timber walls. Certainly, by some margin, the best display of mosaics we have ever seen.

However, manmade attractions were gazumped by the natural beauty of the view. Mount Neno is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land and what a view it is.

The distances in this area are so small. It is a sobering thought that a mere 50 kms away is Gaza with its war and here we were looking across a peaceful Jordanian valley towards the West Bank.