While based in Amman we took a day trip north of the city to visit Jerash, the site of a former Roman colony.  Surprisingly the site is not a UNESCO World Heritage site; it is huge and very well preserved and should be on the list.  Our local guide, Nurwa, told us that at any given time there are eight to nine active archaeological teams working on the site and as we walked around I could see why– so much to uncover and investigate!

A view from the top of the amphitheater. You can see how the modern city abuts the ancient ruins.

As we entered the site we had a great view of the main Forum which anchored one end of the main Roman Cardo road that mapped a north-south line through the ruins.  Many of the columns still stood, some even with lintels still placed across, allowing me to easily imagine the oval plaza crowded with the chariots and pedestrians who lived here in the second century, more than 1800 years ago.  Actually, the site was occupied 400 years earlier by the Greeks, before the Romans appropriated it to turn Jerash into a major base of operations in the area.  As we walked towards the Forum we passed by an amazing well preserved hippodrome.  Stopping for a moment to enter the arena, at one end the starting gates, from which the charioteers emerged still stood loomed over the field.  A center rail bisected the oval track providing a feel for the tight turns that had to be navigated during the race.  Some of the spectator stands were still intact as well.  Next to the hippodrome was another several thousand seat, three-tiered amphitheater.  Interestingly, carved on the front of some of the first row seats were Greek letters used as seat locater marks so ticket holders could find the correct seats.  Some things remain constant through the millennia!

Note the Greek letters inscribed on the seats. Markings for ticket holders to find the right spot.

After exploring the amphitheater we continued on a clockwise exploration of the site and passed several old churches as we made our way to the remains of the temple of Artemis.  The temple, a remnant of the Greek occupancy, still had a dozen or so of the 70 ton collums in the main alter area still standing, somehow having survived the numerous earthquakes that have rocked the area over the intervening centuries.  The terminus of the temple, the main plaza that surrounds the alter and is accessible to the public, was defined by a large rectangle of broken columns surrounding the alter area.  Again the area was so well preserved that I could picture toga-clad residents scurrying across the terminus under the stern gaze of the temple priests who guarded access to the alter area.  The temple sat on the high point of the site and and broad stairs led down the hill to the main Cardo road.  Looking across the whole of the site from the high point on the alter it was strange to see the juxtaposition of modern against the ancient.  I even noticed a goat herder and some goats roaming through grassy areas that no doubt had more ancient structure buried underneath.

The view down the main north-south (Cardo) road.

After finishing our tour of the Artemis temple we continued down the hill to intersect the Cardo road, which was still remarkably intact and paved with uneven stones inscribed with grooves from the constant chariot traffic.  Along the road, built slightly off of the road grade, were rows of small rooms defined by squat stone walls.  These small spaces were once occupied by vendors and merchants hoping to catch the attention of the traffic passing on the busy thoroughfare.  About halfway between the north and south gates that marked the terminus of the site, we stumbled across a pubic water fountain set in a niche on the west side of the road.  Another detour on the west side of the road was an open circular area surrounded by a series of small rooms and fronted by columns.  Apparently this was the produce market.  Again because of the state of preservation it was easy to image people scurrying hither and yon, stopping by the small stalls to haggle for vegetables or meat.

Returning the the Cordo, or main north-south road, a short leisurely stroll found us at the south end of the road, which  terminated at the oval Forum we had seen from the hilltop when we entered the site to start our clockwise journey.  The Forum, up close, was even more impressive and I marveled at the size of the columns and the expanse of the main plaza, still in great shape after thousands of years.  Jerash is definitely a site worth seeing and I could have probably spent even more time there, sitting on a rock thinking about what life might have been like at the height of its glory.  However, part of being in a group means that the schedule is pre-set so after stopping to purchase some fresh juice from a vendor at the entrance we were off to a nearby small town of Seuk to have lunch at a woman’s co-op that was based in an abandon church.  (The lunch was delicious, by the way!)