Jerash

For my birthday Ben and I went to Jerash. An ancient city with a history that goes back to 7000 B.C. It was conquered by the Romans 63 B.C. and inhabited until a strong earthquake destroyed a large portion of the city in the 8th century A.D.  This is one of the best preserved Roman cities in the Near East and the size of the site as well as the preservation of the standing structures was epic. 

Hadrian's Arch. This is the entrance to the ancient site. 

 The well preserved floor of a 5th century church that sits atop 1st century tombs. 

 Sitting in the stands at the Hippodrome. This is the smallest hippodrome in the Roman Empire but also the best preserved. Historically it was used for gladiator fighting and chariot racing. 

 This site is pretty hands on. You can touch and climb anything. 

This is the south gate and the entrance to the city.

A 2nd century oil press in excellent condition. 

A little door and the stairs leading down to the oil press. 

 Romans really planned out their cities. This oval plaza was built to connect the main road to the road leading to the temple of Zeus. There were many such intersections throughout the city and it is a testament to how important logical road construction was even in ancient times. 

 The Cardo. A 2nd century street that is lined with columns the entire length of the street. 

 There were several side streets leading off of The Cardo. This area is the Macellum or the food market.

 Jerash was a very developed city and had a sewage system. Here is an ancient man hole cover. How cool. 

 Modern day Jerash. There is just a road separating the ancient city from the modern one. 

Okay this is pretty cool. A hydrolic stone saw machine. This ancient saw was used for cutting large pieces of stone. This is the oldest machine found to date that implements a crank shaft system. The original stone is still there but a replica water mill and other parts of the device have been rebuilt to show what it would have looked like in ancient times. 

 There are two temples to roman gods in the area. The temple of Artemis, and the temple of Zeus. Here Ben and I are standing at the base of the temple of Artemis. 

 Jerash boasts two amphitheaters. Here I am standing on the stage of one of them.  

The view leaving the amphitheater.

 The far end of the Cardo ends with a gate leading out of the city. This would have been a well fortified city in its time. 

 The detail of the stone work that still remains is so impressive. It is crazy to think that this is almost 2000 year old stone work. 

 This was an ancient water fountain that provided fresh water to the city via aqueducts. 

 Here is the view from the temple of Zeus looking down the Cardo to the other end of the city. 

I will say I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when visiting Jerash but I was happily surprised with how epic it was and it history that is holds. The middle east just keeps amazing me with all the wonderful and amazing things it has to offer. My recommendation is that if you are in Jordan and have the time definitely visit Jerash.