Jerash (Gerasa)
Gerasa · Ancient Jerash · Jarash
Hellenistic to Early Islamic (c.332 BCE–749 CE, peak 1st–3rd c CE)·Graeco-Roman / Nabataean / Byzantine / Umayyad·🇯🇴 Jerash Governorate, Jordan
About
About Jerash (Gerasa)
One of the best-preserved Greco-Roman cities in the Near East, Gerasa was a Decapolis city with colonnaded cardo, two tetrapylons, Hadrian's Arch (129 CE), Oval Plaza, Temple of Artemis and Temple of Zeus, and two theatres seating 5,000. Founded as Gerasa in Hellenistic period, flourished under Romans and Byzantines until destroyed by 749 Galilee earthquake and deserted until modern Circassian resettlement.
Why it mattersLargest and most complete Roman provincial city in Jordan; tentatively listed UNESCO 2004
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Extent of pre-Roman Iron Age settlement beneath Roman levels
- 02Cause and chronology of post-749 abandonment vs gradual decline
Theories
- 01749 earthquake + subsequent desertion theory widely accepted
- 02Trade route shift to Baghdad after Abbasid revolution
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Hellenistic foundation c.3rd c BCE; major Roman expansion 1st–2nd c CE
- Period
- Hellenistic to Early Islamic (c.332 BCE–749 CE, peak 1st–3rd c CE)
- Culture
- Graeco-Roman / Nabataean / Byzantine / Umayyad
- Purpose
- Decapolis trading city and provincial center on Via Traiana link
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
Hellenistic foundation c.3rd c BCE; major Roman expansion 1st–2nd c CE
Initial construction
c. 1225 CE
Abandonment
On the ground
Structures & features
32.2806° N · 35.8972° E · 600 m · 4 mapped features
Hadrian's Arch
monumental archTriumphal arch built for Hadrian's visit 129–130 CE
32.2723° N · 35.8914° EOval Plaza (Forum)
plazaElliptical colonnaded forum 90×80 m unique in Roman world
32.2814° N · 35.8946° ETemple of Artemis
templeMajor sanctuary on central hill with 11 surviving Corinthian columns
32.2819° N · 35.8920° ECardo Maximus
street800 m colonnaded main street north-south
32.2808° N · 35.8935° E
Gallery