Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Jerash is considered one of the most important and best preserved Roman cities in the Near
East. It was the home of Nicomachus of Gerasa, said to be one of the greatest mathematician
in human history. His most famous book 'Introduction to Arithmetic' was written using Ar-
abic numbers then translated into Roman numbers. This topic was one of the main mathmet-
ics textbook for more than a thousand year.
Jerash was a most impressive site, with a great feeling of space. It contained a diverse range
of ruins, some of them in very good condition and excellently preserved.
The site boasted a large number of striking monuments: the Corinthium Column, Hadrian's
Arch, a hippodrome, two immense temples (to Zeus and Artemis), a unique oval Forum sur-
rounded by a largely intact colonnade, a long colonnaded street, two theatres, two baths, a
scattering of small temples and an almost complete circuit of city walls.
Recent excavations show that Jerash was continuously inhabited from as early as 3,200 BC.
The Romans conquered the city in 63 BC, contributing to an extended period of economic
development and a continuing construction programme that resulted in some of the magni-
ficent structures we had seen.
The Emperor Hadrian visited Jerash in the year 130 and the triumphal Arch of Hadrian was
built to celebrate his visit. A Latin inscription on the gate also records a religious dedication
by members of his Imperial Mounted Bodyguard.
From 350 AD, a large Christian community lived in Jerash, and between the 4
th
and 6
th
Cen-
turies a number of churches, a Cathedral and a Synagogue were built, many with superb
mosaic floors. One of these mosaics can still be seen.
But the good times were not to last and the Persian invasion in 614 AD caused the rapid
decline of Jerash and a major earthquake in 746 AD finished the job, destroying much of the
city and its surroundings.
From Hadrian's Arch a line of gates could be seen on both sides of the Forum. The view was
quite spectacular.
