Jordan Archives - Page 37 of 37

Gerasa, Then and Now

“Of Jerash we may say generally, it is the best preserved of all the ruined cities east of Jordan. The ruins are weather-worn and beaten with the storms of centuries; earthquakes have shaken down many once splendid buildings, but there were no traces of the destroying hand of man” (William Ewing, Arab and Druze at Home, 1907).

Gerasa, general view of ruins from north, mat02743

Gerasa (Jerash) from north, approximately 1920 to 1933

“It is very noticeable that the ruins of Jerâsh up to the present day have been but little disturbed.

There has never been any great Moslem city in its neighbourhood, and hence its columns remain in situ or, thrown down by the earthquake, sprawling along the ground, while the stones of the Great Temple of the Sun and of the theatres are fortunate in having been, as yet, unpilfered for building material. Further, since there is in these regions no sand to drift over and veil the outlines, and the frequent drought preventing the ruins from becoming masked by vegetation, all that remains stands out, white and glaring, in noontide, having that same appearance of recent desolation which is so striking a characteristic of a freshly cleared streets of Pompeii” (Guy Le Strange, “Account of a Short Journey East of the Jordan,” Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly Statement, 1885).

Gerasa city from south theater, tb052908616

Gerasa (Jerash) from south, May 2008

The top photo and both quotations are taken from the Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan volume of The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection (Library of Congress, LC-matpc-02743).

Tagged American Colony Photos, Jordan, Then and Now

View from Mount Nebo, Then and Now

What is your favorite view in the Middle East? I have a number of places that I aspire to be on the rare day when the air is crystal clear. Perhaps my top three viewpoints in Israel are Nebi Samwil, Mount Carmel, and Arbel. On the other side of the Jordan River, Mount Nebo ranks first.

Unfortunately, I have never been there on a really clear day.

The photo below was taken in the 1930s, when factories and automobiles were less troublesome to photographers. The view is from Mount Nebo, and you can see beyond the northern end of the Dead Sea to the Judean wilderness and even Jerusalem.

Dead Sea and Judean wilderness, view from Mt Nebo, mat03779

View from Mount Nebo with Dead Sea

I’m linking this photo to the highest resolution available (5200 x 3700 pixels), which will make it a slow download, but those of you with interest will be able to pick out a lot of detail.

For comparison, the photo below was taken from Mount Nebo on a more typical day.

The top photo is taken from the Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan volume of The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection (Library of Congress, LC-matpc-03779). The bottom photo is rotten and will never appear in one of my photo collections.

Tagged American Colony Photos, Dead Sea, Jordan, Then and Now

Amman, Then and Now

If you’re not a subscriber to the BiblePlaces Newsletter (or if it landed in your spam box), you may not know that the Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan volume of The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection is now available. Here is one of my favorite photos from the CD: This is an aerial view of Amman, looking down on the acropolis (foreground) and the ancient heart of the Roman city, including the theater. The acropolis is notable because it is almost untouched, whereas today it has roads, a museum, and many excavated areas. The area around the theater is now the center of a dense urban city. In biblical times, the city was known as Rabbah or Rabbath-ammon. In the Roman period, the city was called Philadelphia and was one of the cities of the Decapolis. My attempts to get in an airplane over the city have been unsuccessful, but the photo below will give you some idea of how the area has changed. Amman theater from the acropolis The top photo is one of 25 photos of Amman in the Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan volume of The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection (Library of Congress, LC-matpc-13641). The bottom photo is from the Jordan volume of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands.

Tagged American Colony Photos, Jordan, Then and Now

Drawing Israel’s Borders

The Jerusalem Post has an interesting article on the modern map of Israel and the man in charge.

Most Israelis and Jordanians are probably unaware that the border between their countries isn’t really fixed. The boundary runs directly through the center of the Jordan River, but should the river naturally change its course, so too will the border. It is one of many secrets held by Dr. Haim Srebro, director-general of the Survey of Israel center. For decades, Srebro has been working to give the State of Israel its final borders. When the peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan were signed, Srebro and his Arab counterparts worked behind the scenes, away from the limelight and photo-ops of leaders shaking hands, to draw up some of the Middle East’s best-known frontiers. "The Jordan River is constantly changing. If it alters its route naturally, according to our agreement with the Jordanians, we recognize the change. But if the river is redirected artificially and suddenly, the border remains fixed," he said this week, speaking from his spacious office at the Survey of Israel’s Tel Aviv headquarters…. Jordan is now working to develop a $27 million complex in Aqaba, complete with hotels and lagoons, funded largely by investment from the Gulf states. The proximity of the development to the Israeli border means that Srebro and Sagarat have had to be called in for advice. "The border fence isn’t actually on the border. It’s on Israel’s side, meaning that the Jordanians could have crossed into Israel without knowing it. That’s why they are now building a border fence on their side, too," Srebro explained. During the 1979 peace negotiations with Egypt, Srebro employed the cutting edge technique of using bridged straight aerial photographs (known as orthophotos) to draw up a new border between the countries following Israel’s withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula. "I told the Egyptians, we’ll do something together. Let’s set up a committee, so that you can check on us and we’ll check on you," Srebro recalled. At first, the Americans, who were brokering the talks, handed both sides an abstract map of the new proposed border, but Srebro said the map, which lacked any physical features, was useless. "For the first time in a peace treaty, aerial photographs were used to plan a border," he said. The Egyptians were so pleased with the result that they sent Srebro a statue of Nefertiti to thank him.

The complete article is here.

Tagged Egypt, Jordan, Technology

New Excavation Blog: Tall Jalul

In my opinion, one of the sites in Jordan with the most potential is Tall Jalul. The largest tell south of Amman, Jalul has not yet been identified with a biblical site (and there are plenty of names to choose from). Five seasons of excavations have been conducted since 1992, and the site was occupied from the Late Bronze Age to the Persian period. Discoveries include a paved approach ramp, two gatehouses, large tripartite building, clay figurines, and engraved seals. You can read a longer summary here.

Excavations for the 2009 season will commence on May 25 and you can follow along on the new Tall Jalul Dig Blog. They have already made several interesting posts, including a couple of (large) PowerPoints about the previous excavation seasons. Among the interesting slides, there is a good aerial photograph of the tell on slide 27 of part 2.

Tall Jalul paved approach ramp to city gate, June 2004

Tagged Excavations, Jordan