Jerash in modern Jordan was one of the ten cities of the Decapolis. Founded by the Seleucids on a site occupied from prehistoric times, it became a Roman city in 63AD.

Jerash’s history can be read in its archaeological remains, which are excellent owing to its long abandonment. Archaeologists have revealed many of its classical Roman civic features, which show the development of Jerash as a Roman town while still maintaining its Syrian character.

An Ancient Jordanian City 

Situated 48km north of Jordan’s capital Amman, the area around Jerash was occupied from prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found evidence of the earliest settlement around the area of the south gate. It is estimated that this early site dates to around 1600BC or the mid-Bronze Age.

The Seleucids first built the city of Gerash or Gerasa as it was known in 170BC. Occupying what became the south of the Roman city, this original settlement centred on the mound of the temple of Zeus. But the city was not merely a Greek colony. Coins and inscriptions in Greek and Nabatean show that these eastern traders had a considerable influence in Gerash.

Jerash became a Roman city in 63AD and it was then its expansion began. By the second century AD, one hundred hectares were contained within its city walls.

Although it began to decline in the mid-third century, Jerash remained important as a Christian city, maintaining its prosperity with farming, mining and trade. However, its ultimate decline began in the seventh century when it was taken by the Arabs and the city was abandoned.

Unlike many ancient cities, Jerash was not resettled until 1878. This meant that the ancient buildings were left to the elements and not robbed of their stone. This has allowed archaeologists to reconstruct a picture of the buildings from the remains on the site.

Temples in Jerash

Jerash had several temples. Many were dedicated to Greco-Roman deities such as Nemesis. However, many of these ostensibly classical deities were Hellenised versions of local gods. Dionysus, for instance, is believed to have been affiliated with the Nabataean god Dusares.

Of the temples in the city, the best-preserved and most studied are the temples of Zeus and Artemis.

·      Temple of Zeus. Set on a mound overlooking the oval forum and the southern entrance to Jerash, the temple of Zeus marked the central point of the Hellenistic city. Archaeologists have identified three clear phases. The first two date to the early first century AD, with inscriptions showing that rebuilding work was financed by substantial donations made by local traders — a testament to Jerash’s prosperity.

The current remains date to Jerash’s Roman revamp in the second century AD. Although the temple itself was built on a natural hill, its sacred precinct was artificial and supported on a series of vaults that still survive. The Roman rebuild preserved the Syrian design and layout of the temple, indicating its continued importance to the local population.

·      Temple of Artemis — Artemis may have been the daughter of Zeus in Greece, but in Gerash she was the city’s patron deity. This suggests that the Artemis of Jerash is another example of a Syrian deity in disguise. 

The sanctuary of Artemis was much larger than that of Zeus. It was also the first to be renovated in the second century. Work began in 150AD. Little remains of the naos or house of the goddess within the temple, although archaeologists have deduced it was lined with marble. Hooks have been found on the inner walls that would have held the slabs in place before they were removed and utilised in Jerash’s nearby Christian churches.

But the Christians did not destroy Artemis’s complex as they did other pagan temples elsewhere. Instead, this was left to nature. But the vast temenos and its monumental entrance or propylaea remain, giving a good idea of the extent and grandeur of the sanctuary in its heyday.

Roman Jerash’s Theatres

Jerash had two Roman theatres dedicated not only to entertainment but also to the city’s government.

·      The South Theatre. Built in the 90s AD, this is the oldest theatre in Jerash, completed in the early second century AD. Designed purely for entertainment, it is one of the most impressive of its type and could seat around three thousand people. The lower rows of seats were numbered, suggesting that some of those seats were available for reservation — or naturally reserved for the local dignitaries recorded on inscriptions as funding the building work.

·      The Northern Theatre. Built during the Roman redesign of the city in the 160s AD, the north theatre is smaller than its southern counterpart. Its lower seats are marked in Greek with the names of the Jerash’s voting tribes, suggesting it may have operated as a council chamber.

By the third century, the theatre’s function had changed. More upper rows were constructed, expanding its capacity to 1600 people. The orchestra was also decorated with reliefs of women and boys dancing and making music, suggesting its function was now one of entertainment.

Other Roman Architecture

·      The City Walls. The original walls of Jerash were a metre thick, but in the fourth century AD, they were strengthened and expanded until they were three metres thick — a reflection of the instability of the empire.

·      The Arch of Hadrian. A Roman triumphal arch built outside of the southern extent of the city, the Arch of Hadrian was built in 130AD to commemorate the visit of the emperor Hadrian. The arch’s sides remained untrimmed, suggesting it was designed to fit within new city walls. Abutments were added later when these new walls were never built. The Romans may have planned to expand Jerash, but those plans never came off.

Resources

Browning, I, 1982. Jerash and the Decapolis. Chatto & Windus: London

Gates, C, 2003. Ancient Cities: The Archaeology of Urban Life in the Near East and Egypt, Greece and Rome. London: Routledge