Amman Citadel
Amman airport is the global gateway to Jordan, with a capacity for more than 12 million travellers annually. Paraphrasing William Faulkner, to understand Jordan, you must initial comprehend a position like Amman. It’s one particular of the unusual nationwide capitals not situated on a river or port. The Eastern Mediterranean coast is identical to the Southern California coast. It is dry, but the coastal climate has higher temperatures of 65 in the wintertime and 85 in the summer time, just a very little hotter than San Diego but quite enjoyable. Mountains increase earlier mentioned the coastal plains, and past them is tough desert. In southern California, it’s the Colorado Desert, and in the Middle East, it is the Syrian Desert. Amman is in the highlands previously mentioned the coastal basic and rivers but higher than the harsh desert heat, type of like Julian, California.
Jordon doesn’t have substantial fertile river plains like Egypt or Mesopotamia or the Mediterranean trade routes like Greece, Rome, or Istanbul. Historically, Amman managed overland trade routes and farmed in the highlands when occasions had been great. When trade collapsed, the metropolis typically reverted to tribes of semi-nomadic herders. Amman’s survival depended on maintaining advanced relationships with some of the most highly effective empires in background. Most likely this is why some individuals call Jordan the “Switzerland of the Middle East”.
The Amman Citadel is an archeological web site at the center of downtown Amman on a person of the seven hills that in the beginning created up the city. The Citadel has a extensive background of profession by lots of great civilizations:
- 1200 BCE – Funds of the Kingdom of Ammon
- 8th century BCE – Neo-Assyrian Empire
- 6th century BCE – Neo-Babylonian Empire
- 3rd century BCE – Ptolemies
- 1st century BCE – Romans
- 3rd century CE – Byzantines
- 7th century CE – Umayyads
- 1516-1918 CE – Ottomans
These civilizations left their mark on the Citadel, such as the Roman Temple of Hercules, the Umayyad Palace, the Byzantine church, and the Ayyubid watchtower.
I was astounded to find a full-blown historic site surrounded by a planet cash. More than anything, I identified the Greco-Roman architecture straight away, and, judging from the hands, I could only picture how significant the Hercules statue should have been. Of course, I’ve manufactured that blunder right before in my youth, so I’ll reserve my judgment😉.
What I cherished most about the Amman Citadel have been the close by museums. The Jordan Archaeological Museum was set up in 1951, right in the center of the Citadel. It contains artifacts chronologically organized from prehistoric moments to the 15th century. It was evident that the museum was far too small, so the Jordan Museum was constructed in 2014. It is only a 20-moment stroll from the Citadel. Inside of its 10,000 square meters inside, you are going to discover ʿAin Ghazal statues, some of the world’s oldest human figures ever created, and the Copper Scroll, a person of the Useless Sea Scrolls.