2007-01 Field Trip Report Jarash.indd - Icomos

1

Getty Conservation Institute

Field Trip ReportBy F. LeBlanc, Head, Field Projects

Didactic Case Study of Values in the Management of an Archaeological Site in the Arab RegionJarash, Jordan, January - February, 2007

INTRODUCTIONThis fi eld trip report is not an offi cial report of our activities or of the interviews recorded during our mission to Jordan. It is only intended to give you a quick overview of what we did, the places we visited and the people we interviewed last week. Some names and titles may be incorrect or misspelled and interview state-ments may be incomplete; I apologize in advance for this. Our colleague May Shaer from the Jordan Department of Antiquities (DoA) and David Myers, GCI’s project manager, very successfully organized the mission.

Our team was made up of Jeanne Marie Teutonico, David Myers and me from the GCI, May Shaer from the DoA and Stacie Smith from the Consensus Building Insti-tute in Boston. Stacie is GCI’s case study specialist who will be writing up the case study. It will be published in English and in Arabic in print as well as on the GCI’s web site.

The organization of the mission required imagination, fl exibility and creativity. Jeanne Marie, David and I left LAX on Thursday afternoon, arriving in Amman late on Friday afternoon. Not long after our arrival, David received an e-mail from Sta-cie saying that she had missed her connection in NY because of bad weather. She would only reach us Sunday evening, a day after the mission was scheduled to begin with a full day of interviews in Amman with important people. The workweek begins on Sunday in Jordan. Without even blinking, May and David went to work to re-schedule the interviews of that day and reorganize the week’s program. In the end, it all worked out perfectly well.

First, some of background on our project.

BACKGROUNDThe GCI is collaborating with the Jordan Department of Antiquities to produce a

Jarash archaeological site in Jordan. It is the most complete Roman-era city outside Italy. The site is adjacent to the contemporary city. Here we see a view of the oval plaza, looking down the decu-menus, the main city street. Jarash was known as the “city of 1,000 columns”.

Map of Jordan showing lo-cation of Jarash and Petra

Jarash city and archaeo-logical site plan

Jarash is a 2000 years old Roman-era city.

Dr. Fawwaz Al-Khraysheh, Director-General, Dept. of Antiquities of Jordan, partner with the GCI on the Jarash Case Study project and the JADIS project (Jordan and Iraq heritage database project)

2

North Theater and Decu-menus. Drawing by John Stewart

The South theater seats 2000 persons and is used for performances at dif-ferent times of the year and fully during the annual Jarash Festival.

The collonaded street (De-cumanus). Anastylosis was used to restore the col-umns i.e. the archaeologi-cal reassembly of ruined monuments from fallen or decayed fragments (in-corporating new materials when necessary..

case study about the site of Jarash.

In 1998 the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) commenced a project examining the role of values in site management, with examples describing and analyzing the processes that connect theoretical management guidelines with management planning and its practical application. From 2001 to 2003, the GCI developed and published four case histories that illustrate the role of values in site management. The cases resulted from collaboration amongst professionals from the Australian Heritage Commission, Parks Canada, English Heritage, the U.S. National Park Service and the GCI. The case histories examined management at Chaco Culture National Historical Park in the United States, Grosse Île and the Irish Memorial Na-tional Historic Site in Canada, Port Arthur Historic Site in Australia, and Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site in England.

Building on this experience, the GCI prepared a case study examining the role of values in the management of a site in the Arab region. The purpose of this case study is to serve as a teaching resource for heritage educators that will help site managers in the Arab world to identify, understand and manage values in a context that is familiar to them. It will present multiple scenarios containing management challenges involving heritage values. The JDOA is responsible for providing the GCI with a limited number of background documents concerning the site and its management. The GCI has assembled a small team of professionals who visited the site of Jarash in February of 2007 to conduct its assessment.

The GCI hosted a meeting to prepare for this mission, September 23-24, 2006. GCI staff J. M. Teutonico, F. LeBlanc, D. Myers, J. Cody and K. Fong participated along with May Shaer (Jordanian Department of Antiquities) and Stacie Smith (Consensus Building Institute).

The Case Study Team at the South Theater in Jarash. From the left: D. Myers, Najeh Abu Hamdan, Mohammad Al-Balawnh, May Shaer, Stacie Smith, François LeBlanc, Jeanne Marie Teutonico.

THE JORDAN DEPARTMENT OF ANTIQUITIESThe Jordan Department of Antiquities (DoA) is the offi cial institutional authority mandated by law to be responsible for the protection, conservation and presenta-tion of antiquities. It reports directly to the Minister of the Ministry of Tourism and

May Shaer is responsible for international programs at the Jordan Department of Antiquities. Her offi ce or-ganized all the interviews and logistics for the Case Study.

3

Antiquities of Jordan.

The fi rst unit that took the role of a Department of Antiquities of Jordan was found-ed in 1924. Its main job was to supervise fi eldwork, in cooperation with foreign ex-peditions and archaeological missions, and to implement salvage excavations and limited consolidation and preservation works. The offi cial Department of Antiquities of Jordan was established in 1928.

The fi rst law of Antiquities was issued in 1924, under the British Mandate, for both Palestine and Jordan. The fi rst Jordanian Law was enacted in 1929, then renewed in 1947, and updated many times as in 1953, 1968, 1976 and 1988 with some further amendments in 2003 and 2005.

Trading in Antiquities was a legal practice until 1976. During that long period, many antique shops (bazaars) were licensed by the DoA. The bazaars had to keep reg-ister books to document the input and output of their traded goods. The role of the DoA was limited in this regard, to the work of checking and auditing the registers and to ensure the validity of the issued permits. In 1976, the law of antiquities was updated to include some essential and radical changes. One of the main changes made was to stop and prohibit the trading, exporting and importing of Antiquities.

The policy of the Department of Antiquities is the protection of antiquities, prefer-ring conservation measures that do not require physical intervention to the remains as the fi rst choice where possible. The second policy is for the presentation of antiquities, including research, survey, excavation and site management.

The DoA has inventoried some 20,000 sites of various periods of history and of dif-ferent levels of importance. The DoA is represented in the regions of Jordan by 12 major and 8 minor offi ces.

The DoA created the Madaba mosaic school in 1992. It is the fi rst school es-tablished in the Middle East dedicated to the science of mosaic restoration. The school enrolls a number of students each academic year to teach them in the fi elds of mosaic production and restoration, and is involved in several restoration projects in the city of Madaba, as well as in other parts of Jordan.

THE INTERVIEWS

Sunday, Jan. 28

Dr. Fawwaz Al-Khraysheh, Director-General, Department of Antiquities, Amman.

Dr. Khraysheh warmly welcomed the GCI delegation to Jordan and offered the full support of his department to ensure that the mission’s success. He began the interview by explaining to us why he had suggested Jarash for this case study. He considers that there is already a great deal of attention focused on the site of Petra by the international community. Many delegations and experts have studied the is-sues at Petra. Their recommendations are constantly the subject of debates among themselves and among various Jordanian institutions. An exemplary management plan has been developed for the site by the US National Park Service three years ago, but none of the recommendations have been implemented to date. Instead of adding another layer to these debates and recommendations, he preferred that the GCI focus its efforts on Jarash, the second most important antiquities site of Jordan, and a site that has been much less studied than Petra. The site is only 45

The archaeological mu-seum on site at Jarash. At the entrance one can view Roman mosaics that have been lifted and reset on reinforced concrete slabs.

The Cardo (major Roman street perpendidular to the Decumenus) looking west

The South Theater as seen from the last row of seats.

Dr. Al-Balawnh, Jerash Antiquities Inspector, Dr. Fawwaz Al-Khraysheh, Director-General, Jordan Dept. of Antiquities and David Myers, GCI Project Manager for the Case Study discussing values in May Shaer’s offi ce.

4

mi. by car from Amman, the capital of the country and it is easy to get there. Petra on the other hand is 3.5 to 4.0 hours away by car or bus. He hopes with the help of the GCI to develop the management skills of his staff at Jarash.

The GCI is also collaborating with the Jordanian Department of Antiquities to de-velop the database of its national historic sites (the JADIS project). He considers this project to be one of the most important ones for his Department; it will help to link the efforts of his staff from offi ces all over the country. He has identifi ed a new director for this project (Catreena Hamarneh) and will do his best to staff her team with dedicated people who will follow its development and ensure sustainability over time.

Concerning the training of Iraqi professionals in Jordan, another project in which the GCI is involved with the World Monuments Fund and the DoA, he felt that we all together should be more demanding of the Iraqi authorities concerning the quali-fi cations of the participants or trainees. This, to ensure that the efforts and expens-es associated with this training program will have long lasting effects in Iraq.

What he considers to be important about Jarash is that it is the most complete Ro-man-era city outside Italy and it was part of the Decapolis, a loose alliance of ten free city-states under overall allegiance to Rome. He suggests that Jarash should be marketed as such and that it should be re-nominated to the World Heritage List (it was nominated in 1984 and deferred by the WH Committee), even though the issue of the road that splits the city is not settled yet. On this issue, he favors the construction of a tunnel, where the vehicular traffi c would go underground or below ground as it crosses the city while the site above is connected visually and physically with the modern city in which there are still very important archaeological remains.

More should be done at the site to keep it clean, safe and attractive. More should be done to educate the merchants and to offer better quality crafts to visitors. There are not enough activities on site to keep the visitors for extended visits and this needs to be addressed. He considers that the current site visit path should be changed; visitors should be dropped and begin their visit at the North Gate while the buses return to the parking at the south of the site to wait for them. Visitors should wander down the main Roman road until they reach the Hippodrome and Hadrian’s Gate at the south of the site. There they would spend time in the souve-nir shops, have refreshments before boarding the buses to return to Amman.

In terms of management, he would like to see his department set the agenda, the guidelines, and the conditions for protecting and interpreting the site but he does not want his staff to be involved in day-to-day management such as ticketing, cleaning, security and so on.

His long-term vision for the site sees the private sector active on and around the site; the local population engaged in preserving and promoting the site; Jarash be-coming a model city for developing Decapolis cities and the beginning of a Decap-olis heritage trail. While Jarash is being marketed as such to Europeans and other foreign visitors, the city and the region would be marketed for its natural heritage and its nice summer weather to visitors from the Arab region.

The Cathedral site.

Columns at the Cathedral site

This Roman mosaic is exposed to the weather; discussions are on-go-ing to decide if regular maintenance should be the preferred conservation approach or if a shelter should be built over it.

5

Mohammad Al-Balawnh, Jarash Antiquities Inspector.Mohammad made the trip from Dubai to Amman especially to be with us during this week. He was supervising archaeological digs in Dubai. He is responsible for antiquities for the governorate of Jarash. He supervises work at 50 sites, and 75 employees among which there are only three archaeologists. He also supervises the Jarash Restoration Project that is funded by the Dept. of Antiquities to restore the ruins at Jarash. There are approximately 100,000 visitors per year at the site, excluding the local people and participants to the annual Festival. Half of the visi-tors are from European countries while the other half comes from countries in the Arab region.

From his point of view, the main issues are: The lack of a management planNominating the site to the World Heritage ListThe lack of fundsThe lack of professionals such as archaeologists, researchers, engineers and architectsThe lack of equipment and machinery for restorationCirculation on the site (would like to change circulation so that visit begins at the North Gate)

His vision for the next fi fteen years sees Jarash inscribed on the World Heritage List, more than 500,000 visitors per year at the site, the city is modernized, there is a heritage preservation course at Jordan University and there are more profession-als working at the site.

Catreena Hamarneh, JADIS Project and Madaba Mosaic School.

Catreena accompanied our delegation to Madaba where she guided us through the archaeological park and the Mosaic School. The report of this interesting visit is further down.

Monday, Jan. 29

Ihab Amarin, Assistant Secretary-General for Technical Affairs, Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Amman.

Before 1994, there was not much interest for tourism in Jordan and no one really cared. Things changed in 1994 as the country leaders discovered the importance of this industry that represents 10% of the national GDP. In Jordan, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities is responsible for both of these activities. Antiquities refer to cultural assets that pre-date 1750 AD. In many countries, the antiquities de-partments rest with the ministry of culture but in Jordan, the Ministry of Culture is only responsible for things such as literature, dance and music and the post 1750 cultural heritage.

At Jarash, all activities outside the archaeological site are the responsibility of the Department of Tourism while all activities inside the site are the responsibility of the Department of Antiquities. But the biggest problem is that there is no clear “boss” responsible for the whole site.

There is a plan in Jordan to create a private-sector development company for the management of Jordan’s tourist attractions and archaeological sites. It is causing

••••

••

Dr. Mohammad Al-Bala-wnh is an archaeologist who supervises work at 50 sites in the Governorate of Jarash. He accompanied us during the entire week.

Ihab Amarin and Khaled Shboul from the Depart-ment of Tourism at the site of Jarash.

Catreena Hamarneh guided us through the archaeological site at Madaba and the mosaic school that she directed for many years. Now, she will manage the JADIS project to which the GCI and the WMF are collaborating.

6

worries among archaeologists and preservation-oriented NGOs. They fear that the plan - being implemented by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and Jordan’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities - may push economic de-velopment at the expense of Jordan’s archaeological heritage. Antiquities in Jordan represent 85% of tourism attractions. The tourism strategy adopted by the Ministry focuses on four areas: 1) tourism product development 2) necessary changes to national tourism and antiquities laws 3) human resources 4) promotion.

Instead of a government-held private-sector company, Mr. Amarin would prefer to see a new Department created within the Ministry of Tourism. He said that he would be happy if someone from the DoA assumed this single authority at Jarash as long as there were two senior assistants, one from the Dept. of Tourism and one from the Dept. of Antiquities. One of the issues associated with having such an authority under the Department of Antiquities is that by law, the department can-not contract out. Everything it does must come from its own budget and by its own employees. Contracting concessions, consultants, and service companies would be a problem in that context.

There isn’t a management plan at Jarash presently. One would need to be pre-pared and approved. But there is a problem with management plans and it is that very often, they are not implemented. He sited the case of Petra where the US Na-tional Park Service has helped the Jordanians to develop a complete and detailed management plan that was approved by every authority with responsibility at the site. But since its adoption three years ago, it has been sitting on a shelf with none of its recommendations being implemented.

Another issue in Jordan is the rate at which ministers of tourism change (seven in the last eight years). It is very diffi cult to develop and implement a national strategy with such turn around.

His vision for the next fi fteen years sees a Ministry of Tourism small but effective, managing well its sector but not involved in the infrastructure. For instance, at this time it is the Ministry that gives “stars” to hotels. This function should rest with the tourism board; the tourism industry should regulate itself.

Najeh Abu Hamdan and Eman Oweis, Jarash Antiquities Offi ce and Museum.

Eman is responsible for two museums and has been on site since 1990. She has developed four educational programs for children: a) mosaics b) stone cutting and dressing c) bread making d) the Roman soldier. They are prepared for children from grade 1 to 10. During the months of April and May, she hosts two groups per week at the site.

For the children to value the site, they have to get involved in activities that are re-lated to the site. At the beginning, the citizens of Jarash were not interested in the site. They were drawing no benefi ts from it, they did not understand it and simply saw a pile of old stones. Things have changed in recent years. She has used the children to reach and interest the parents. Now, she is developing new programs for families. The curriculum in the schools of Jarash now covers antiquities and the archaeological site of Jarash.

Eman’s fi fteen-year vision for the site is that every person in Jarash feels that the site is their own and helps to keep it clean, safe and works with site authorities to improve it; retired citizens become “friends of the museum” and help to support the

Najeh Abu Hamdan from DoA, supervisor at the archaeological site of Jarash.

Eman Oweis is respon-sible for the two site museums at Jarash. She has developed many educational programs for children as well as adults and teachers.

Maysoon Al-Qafarneh, as-sistant to May Shaer has helped with logistics for this mission.

7

museum’s activities.

Najeh Abu Hamdan works for the Department of Antiquities. He regrets that all ticket money received at the site goes to the Jordan treasury and not to the De-partment of Antiquities. The foreign missions must pay 10% of their project bud-gets to the DoA and that money goes in a special fund to pay for extra security, fences, printing research results and some restoration work. But certain missions play games with them by not including such items as travel expenses and other indirect expenses in their budget, which reduces the size of their declared budget and therefore their contribution to the department. He believes that more benefi ts should go to the local population. He and his colleagues would really like to se Jarash nominated to the World Heritage List. The nomination was deferred in 1984 because the boundaries of the site were not clearly identifi ed, the site did not have a management plan and the restoration philosophy was not explicitly detailed. It is now on the Tentative List of Jordan, but no one knows when it will be nominated again.

Munir Hmaidan and Yousef, Jarash local band musicians.

We interviewed Munir and his colleague Yousef. They are both members of a small band of musicians who perform on site. Munir is the chief of the band. All band members are from Jarash and retirees from the Jordanian army. They have been playing at the archaeological site for the past two years. They don’t charge any-thing but do get tips from tourists. They have decided to create the band because through their travels to foreign countries, they have seen many places where such bands were playing to the enjoyment and appreciation of visitors. They are on site every day, from 10:00 AM to closing at 4:00 PM. Sometimes, they play at special Jordanian events and during 6 months of the year, they travel once or twice a week to Petra to welcome visitors from cruise ships brought to the site by tour operators.

They always perform during the Jarash Festival. From their experience in the Jor-danian army, they know how to play the national anthems of all the countries of the world. At the beginning, people from Jarash thought that they were a bit “original” but now, because of the praise by tourists, they are much more appreciated. They have decided to adopt an original Bedouin costume. The bagpipe is a traditional instrument of the Jordanian army band that goes back to the time when the British help to create the Jordanian army.

Khader Rabba’, On site restaurant owner.Mr. Rabba’ is the general manager of Jarash Restaurant House. It is located on the grounds of the archaeological site. He has been operating the restaurant for the

Yousef and Munir (band leader) sharing with our team what they value about Jarash and how they contribute to its animation.

Khader Rabba’ Owner and General Manager of the Jerash Rest House

Team interviewing the two musicians at the Jerash Rest House Restaurant.

Buffet in the Jerash Rest House

8

last eleven years. He realizes that Jarash is the second most important attraction in his country. According to him, 60% of visitors who come to Amman visit Jarash. 90% of his business comes from foreigners who come to visit the site. He closes the restaurant at the same time as the site because he wouldn’t do any business after hours. He described his yearly business in the following way: 3 months are bad; 1 is medium; 6 months are good and 2 months are very good.

His clientele is mostly Europeans. The tour operators bring them. In practical terms, if Jarash is included in the tour operators’ package, then they come to Jarash. Otherwise, they don’t. During the high season, he employs thirty persons and seventeen in the low season. Many of his employees come from Egypt. He hires them because they are cheaper to employ and they work longer hours. His annual rent of 40,000 JD is paid to the Department of Social Security. For his busi-ness to do better there would need to be more tourists and they would need to spend more time on site, see more things, and have access to better facilities.

Tuesday, Jan. 30

Sharifa Nofa Bint Nasser, President, Jordan Heritage Development Society.

Beginning in 2001, the Urban Development Corporation organized roundtables to prepare recommendations for the site of Jarash. After many discussions, it was agreed that the creation of an NGO (non-profi t org.) would be the best way to address many of the issues raised during the roundtables. The Jordan Heritage Development Society (JHD) was created in 2005.

There are many confl icting authorities responsible for various aspects of the site of Jarash (Governor, Mayor, tour guides, Min. of tourism, Dept. of Antiquities, etc.). But in the midst of all the issues raised, public awareness stood up as one of the top priorities. JHD developed an action plan for this. Clubs have been created in schools. The teachers are being trained on how to understand and appreciate the archaeological site and how it fi ts within Jordan’s heritage and how heritage should be taught to schoolchildren.

Ms. Bint Nasser’s vision for the next fi fteen years is that JHD becomes a solid pressure group; lots of people from Jarash are active at protecting the site; a sense of place has been regenerated; more jobs are created; residents benefi t from the site and the activities generated.

She sees the World Bank development projects as something positive and would like to extend the impact of the Jarash Festival in such a way that the locals can benefi t from it more than they presently do.

Khaled Shboul, Director of Tourism, Jarash Tourism Offi ce.Mr. Shboul said that Jarash is the best-preserved Roman era city archaeological site outside of Europe. It is remarkable and very well located. Its proximity to Am-man is a great advantage because it is easy to reach for a one-day visit. Its climate is also a great asset for Jordan. We should know that during the summer, it is very hot and humid in the southern parts of Jordan and in the adjoining countries. But Jarash remains cool and attracts many visitors during that time. They come for eco-tourism and to enjoy nature. Regrettably, the tourism infrastructure is weak, but the private sector has been invited to invest in the region by King Abdullah II. There are plans to build two new hotels in the Dibeen area and to improve several of the roads leading to Jarash. Most of the visitors to the region come from European

Sharifa Nofa Bint Nasser, Director of the Jordan Heritage Development Society helps to train teachers on the values of the archaeological site and how to teach this to schoolchildren.

Khaled Shboul is respon-sible for tourism activities at the site of Jarash

People eating in the Jerash Rest House restaurant. It is an on-site consession and the rent is paid to Dep. of Social Se-curity. The Tourism and the Antiquities Departments do not benefi t directly from the lease.

9

countries or the Arab region.

At the archaeological site, the Tourism Department is responsible for all aspects of tourism. This includes ticketing, concessions, tour guides, the visitor center, parking and health and safety issues. He has plans to develop a logo for products and crafts produced in the region, and plans to refurbish and modernize the visi-tor center and improve the site’s presentation (restore and relocate the site model, audio-visual presentations etc.).

From his point of view, the main issues at the site are:Involvement of the local populationQuality of the message to the visitorTourism infrastructure (there is only one motel with few rooms in Jarash) The site’s management structure

From a management standpoint, he is in favor of a single authority to manage the site. Presently, no one really knows who the boss is. This really affects the decision making process. He would favor a single site director with vested authority. The director can come from any department, (i.e. tourism or antiquities) but he should have to senior assistants, one from tourism and one from antiquities. It would be up to the director to mitigate or resolve issues that affect the site.

Dr. Ina Kehrberg-Ostrasz, Archaeologist, University of Sydney, Department of Archaeology.Dr Ina Kehrberg-Ostrasz is Director of the Jarash Archaeological Studies Centre/JASC, Jordan and directs the ‘Jarash Hippodrome Excavations 1984-1996 Re-search Project’. She received the White-Levy Grant/Harvard to edit the 1st volume by A.Ostrasz and write the 2nd volume of the hippodrome publications. She spe-cializes in Eastern Mediterranean/Near Eastern Classical ceramics.

Dr. Kehrberg believes that involvement in the archaeological site of Jarash from the local community is lacking because it gets little or no benefi ts from it and is not asked to participate in its decision-making process. Under the modern city, there are Ottoman ruins and some of the best specimens of the ancient city walls. She says that there is not enough being done for site presentation and interpretation.

Concerning the scientifi c research on site, she said that it was a bit like the United Nations here at the beginning in the 1980s. There were several delegations from different countries and everyone was guarding its “piece of the pie” while not much information was exchanged. Tourism and historic studies do not generally form a happy marriage. Jarash is not an exception. There are currently several on-going restoration projects on site, but they are not well interpreted or presented. John Stewart, a conservator from the UK who has done work at Jarash, had suggested a creative way of presenting the excavations without restoring them. If the excava-tions had been well managed within the framework of the site’s overall manage-ment approach, then the site would be better presented to visitors and there would be less need for costly restoration. Regrettably, the agenda of foreign institutes does not often mesh with the government’s priorities.

She knows that there are many sophisticated people in the modern city of Jarash that are interested in contributing to the sites’ research and development. Some-thing should be done to make use of this resource. The local people are very reserved but if they understand that you are doing something positive for their com-munity, they will participate. Jarash is “all” of Jarash. The archaeological site should

••••

Dr Ina Kehrberg-Ostrasz is Director of the Jarash Archaeological Studies Centre/JASC, Jordan and directs the ‘Jarash Hippo-drome Excavations 1984-1996 Research Project’.

F. LeBlanc, GCI Head of Field Projects at Petra.

Stacie Smith from the Con-sensus Building Institute in Boston is the consul-tant hired by the GCI to structure and write-up the Jarash case study.

10

be integrated into the daily life of the local population. For instance, the Hippo-drome could become a sports arena and the souvenir shops could use the restored stalls there. Patience is required to integrate the local people into the larger long-term project.

Abdulmajid Mjali, Jarash Rehabilitation and Excavation Project.

Abdulmajid Mjali is a giant man responsible for the Rehabilitation and Excava-tion Project. He is responsible for the restoration of most of the structures on site, including the hippodrome, most standing columns, the North Theater (seats 3,000), the South Theater (seats 2,000) and the North Gate. He worked on the ancient bridge reconstruction and supervises the restoration work at the West Baths. He supervises a staff of 50 workers, administrative staff and 6 car/truck drivers. He studied as an architectural draftsman and specialized early on in restoration of ancient structures.

What is important for him is to preserve everything that is found on site, no mat-ter from what period or culture. There are remains on site of structures from major religions (Islam, Catholic, Jewish) and they all need to be restored and presented to the public.

Yousef Zreagat, Director, Dibeen Forests Reserve Nature Park.

Mr. Zreagat explained to us that the RSCN (Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature) is a non-governmental organization created to manage the Dibeen for-ests. Mr. Zreagat can name all the fauna and fl ora species in the park. The orga-nization’s focus is on eco-tourism. There are three basic principles that guide his organization’s activities: a) keeping biodiversity and wildlife b) keeping the values and culture of the local community and c) using ecotourism for local community benefi ts. During the past three years of its existence, the organization has worked closely with the local community to develop the local crafts, offer employment to manage various aspects of the forests and market the region as a tourism destina-tion. The RSCN now has 21 employees, all local people; the forests have been cleaned up especially from garbage left by visitors who come to picnic during the weekends and local crafts (textiles, ceramic replicas, embroidery) are being sold through thirty two “Wild Jordan” shops across the country.

Abdulmajid Mjali is in charge of most of the res-toration work on site.

Yousef Zreagat is the Director of the Dibbin For-ests Reserve Nature Park.

Hand drawing by Abdulma-jid Mjali

The Tetrapylone during and after restoration work by Abdulmajid Mjali’s team.

11

RSCN believes that Jarash archaeological park is a major tourist attraction for the region and it wants to work more closely with the authorities responsible for the site to expand the region’s tourism potential and offer new attractions based on the region’s rich natural heritage that will help to extend the visitor’s stay in the region. He pointed out his collaboration with DoA to identify Roman era remains in the park.

Wednesday, Jan. 31

Mohammad Al-Rawashdeh, Governor, Governorate offi ce of Jarash.

Mr. Al-Rawashdeh is the governor of the state or province of Jarash that comprises the city of Jarash and many other smaller towns and villages. His responsibilities include such areas as infrastructure for the entire governorate, safety and public health. The population of the governorate is approximately 150,000 inhabitants and Jarash has a population of 50,000.

He shared with us that for him, Jarash is a single entity comprising ancient Ro-man era remains and a modern population. It is true that it is famous essentially because of the archaeological remains. Jarash was known to be “the city of 1000 columns”; we currently have 200 that were restored through anastylosis. There is still a lot of work to be done. The site is also famous for Hadrian’s arch, the Hip-podrome, the temple of Zeus and other archaeological remains that have been brought back to life. There were 169,000 visitors last year, and the Governor is re-sponsible for their safety and security. There are also many challenges concerning the infrastructure to accommodate these visitors: roads need to be improved, water and sewers need to be upgraded, electricity needs to be supplied and new hotels need to be built. There is a $17 million USD project underway with the World Bank to invest in all of those sectors.

One of the important issues from his point of view is to open up the archaeological site, create a physical link between the site and the city. Presently, the archaeologi-cal site is surrounded by a fence and is closed to visitors and local people at the end of each day. There is a major north-south road that separates the site from the modern city. But there is still a great deal of unexcavated remains under the mod-ern city. Eventually, all of this needs to be linked and part of the same entity. Some

David Myers and GCI graduate intern Mona Hess at the Hyatt Hotel where our delegation was staying.

One of the logos being re-viewed for potential use to identify regional products and activities. This one would be for Madaba.

Map of the Governorate of Jarash.

12

have suggested tunnels or bridges to link the modern city and the site. Whatever the solution, something must be done and approved by the Governor, the Head of the Municipality and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MOTA). If Jarash is to be considered to be important to the whole of humanity, then it should be acces-sible to everyone and the residents should benefi t from it. The residents do not yet understand the “tourism mentality” and they must be educated gradually; they are very hospitable people who need to be exposed more often to visitors that currently are dropped at the site by tour operators for a quick visit and then leave.

His vision for the next ten years is that by that time, visitors will feel that they can be part of the community, that they are not considered to be outsiders; there is a program of awareness and education for the local children, the local population is welcoming and has no prejudice against visitors, and tourists stay longer in Jarash than they do now. Jarash also plays an important part in the national tourism strategy to have tourists visit the entire country and share in Jordan’s natural and cultural treasures.

Walid al-‘Etoum, Head of municipality, Jarash.

The meeting with the Head of municipality of Jarash (Mayor) was quite an event for our team. His offi ce is located on the second fl oor of a non-descript building in downtown Jarash. When we arrived, we were immediately taken to his offi ce. It is a large space, 30’ x 30’ with seating arranged on the entire periphery. There were already maybe a dozen people already in the offi ce, some seating, and some talking with him. We were invited to sit close to his desk. We were then offered the traditional hospitality tea or coffee while several conversations were taking place all around us (between people and on cell phones).

Then the Mayor welcomed us in Arabic while our colleague May Shaer did the sequential translation. She explained to the Mayor who we were and why we were here. Then the questions began. The fi rst one was “How do you see the site?” Without hesitation he said: “There is a big separation, both physical and admin-istrative between the archaeological site and the city”. The Dept. of Antiquities controls the site completely while we control the city. We have been discussing this issue for more than ten years. This separation affects cultural values. The site should be used and valued more by the local population. People know that it has high value but they don’t appreciate it as a local treasure. There should be a com-mittee with authority to manage the whole site.” When asked what such a com-mittee could look like he answered: “Maybe something on the model of the Petra Regional Authority, which has a council that advises and makes decisions concern-ing the entire site and its surroundings”.

Then the discussion turned to the site boundaries, which everyone agreed was a problem because of the road. I asked him what should be done with the road? He then began to express what he said was his personal view on the subject and while he was doing this, several of the people in the room began to jump in and argue with him. Translation was impossible at this point. The discussion became quite animated. Then the Mayor pointed to a person next to us and asked some-thing that sounded like “What do you think?” That person answered, and the Mayor tallied his answer and pointed to the person next to him asking the same question. This was repeated until a dozen persons in the room were consulted while the Mayor seemed to keep a tally of the answers. It is at that point that we realized that the entire city council was present, listening to our questions and discussions and that what the Mayor had just done was to take a vote on what should happen with

Walid al-’Etoum is the Head of Jarash municipal-ity. He and City council members met with our Team in his offi ce.

Interior of the Jarash Archaeological site Visi-tor reception center. The banners describe the site’s history.

Streetscape of the modern city of Jarash.

Streetscape of the modern city of Jarash.

13

the road. It seems that six councilors voted to keep the road in its present location with possibly alternatives such as bridges or tunnels to link the modern city with the archaeological site and fi ve voted for removing it completely and re-routing it altogether.

In the end, they all agreed that the connection between the site and the city was something of paramount importance for the future of the site. Even though this would create challenges related to free access to the site by the population, the Mayor’s personal opinion was that if Jordanians believed that Jarash was a site deserving World Heritage status, and then it follows that the entire population of Jarash should feel engaged and responsible for its preservation. Yes, it would need to be managed in a different way then it presently is, but lets remember that for a long period of time, the archaeological site and the modern city were connected. The conversation ended by the Mayor explaining to us that his city is made up of people from many different origins and cultures: Circassian, Palestinians, Arme-nians, Kurds and others. They are all very good and welcoming people who have something to share with visitors and will benefi t from the direct contact with them.

Feeling good and energized by all this discussion, I asked the Mayor if we could take a picture with him and his entire council…, which he graciously accepted.

Case Study Team with Mayor and Council members of municipality of Jarash.

Mohammad al-Momani, Director, Directorate of Education, Jarash.

Mr. Al-Momani is responsible for education for the entire governorate. This com-prises 53,000 children spread in 153 schools across the governorate.

Mr. Al-Momani shared with us his personal interest in history and antiquities. He is convinced that the archaeological site of Jarash is very important to the whole community and that it is through education that the population will understand its importance and preserve it for future generation. Since there is not enough un-derstanding of this importance by the population, he has actively participated to the activities of a recently created non-profi t organization (JHD) that aims to train teachers on the history and importance of Jarash.

For him, heritage sites are like oil wells in that they generate a great deal of eco-

The Cardo looking east to-wards the modern city that is cut from the archaeolog-ical site by a major road.

Streetscape of the modern city of Jarash.

14

nomic benefi ts; but their cultural value far exceeds the value of oil. Archaeology generates dollars but also knowledge. The knowledge created at Jarash belongs to the whole of humanity.

When asked how he would describe the site, he said that it is a combination of his-tory and modern civilization. Jarash is a multi-layered site, and the modern city is only an additional layer that contributes to the whole.

The Case study Team in the offi ce of Mohammad al-Momani.

As far as Mr. Momani is concerned, the issues at Jarash are:Taking good care of the antiquitiesShowing more remainsPresenting them and interpreting them in a better wayIncreasing international awareness of its importanceGetting professional and fi nancial assistanceDeveloping local crafts and markets for themEducate the present and next generation of residents

Stellan Lind, Director, Roman Army Experience.

Mr. Lind, a retired Swedish professional from the pharmaceutical industry, realized a childhood dream of recreating Roman chariot races such as the one he had seen in the fi lm Ben Hur. He recruited several partners and created a small company. On the basis of solid historical research he was able to recreate very accurate replicas of Roman chariots, military clothing, swords, shields, etc.

He recruited and trained 70 local people who were all Jordan army veterans. In Jordan, army soldiers retire at the age of 34; they don’t get a great pension, so this came to them as a great opportunity. The Roman Army and Chariot Experi-ence (RACE), in co-operation with the Jordan Ministry of Tourism and the Jordan Tourism Board, began to offer a two-hours show in 2005. It takes place in the ruins of the Jarash Roman hippodrome. It features Roman Army warfare techniques, including war machines in action and gladiators, in addition to seven lap races with Roman chariots. Both bigae and quadrigae are featured in realistic racing so as to bring to life events known to have resounded within this historic arena.

A stable of twenty horses with chariots, harness and colorful costumes with sound effects, commentary, and lighting give the visitor a thrilling glimpse of the spectacle as experienced by the citizens of Roman Gerasa (Jarash’s ancient name) nearly two thousand years ago.

•••••••

Stellan Lind is the Director of the Roman Army Ex-perience, a private sector investment in animation at the Hippodrome of Jarash.

RACE The Roman Army Chariot Experience is a recreation of Roman chariot races such as the one in the fi lm Ben Hur.

All chariots and cos-tumes details were fully researched. Form and material were accurately recreated.

15

Obviously, the archaeological site of the hippodrome is essential to the success of his business. Though everyone loves this show, making it a business success is not easy. There are constant negotiations with various government agencies or ministries, the tour guides, the tour operators, the neighbors who might complain (but do not) about the sounds and smells etc.

Mr. Lind has in mind that this type of animation could be carried out at other areas of the site and he is looking into the possibility of developing new projects in this sense. He considers that by employing local people and offering the local residents the possibility to see the shows at no cost, he is contributing to making the local population understand and appreciate better their history, and sharing in the ben-efi ts generated by the tourism industry.

“Jarash is the only place in the world where Roman army, gladiators and chariot racing performances can be experienced in a genuine Roman setting. It is a truly exciting and unique experience that you will want to see again”.

Yasser Shahan (Green Valley), Ahmad Mohd Kurdi (Abu Ahmed), Jafar Bani Mustefa (Golden River) Restaurant owners, Jarash.

These three restaurant owners operate businesses just outside the archaeological site of Jarash. They were delighted to have the opportunity to share their opinions with us concerning the Jarash archaeological site and its impact on their business because they are never invited to do so. This is one of the fi rst things that they would like to see changed in the site’s management. A mechanism should be creat-ed to directly involve the business community in the decision-making process. This would also contribute greatly in making them feel closer to the site and contributing to its preservation and promotion.

They had just heard about our meeting at City Hall and wanted to share with us their opinion concerning the road that separates the site from the modern city. They felt that closing the road was a bad idea. It is a lifeline for the city. The road from Amman to Syria once passed through the town. Then a new road was built away from Jarash and a large part of their business vanished. They are afraid that the same thing will happen if the current road is closed.

At the Hippodrome, look-ing at the area where the races are held and the horses are kept.

16

When asked if a tunnel or sunken road would be a better alternative, they said that they thought it would be a better solution than bridges that would go over the road. If this solution is adopted, then the government should compensate the displaced businesses.

Another point of contention with them is that they have to give kickbacks to the tour operators if they want them to bring tourists to their restaurants. Sometimes, this represents up to 50% of the gross amount paid by tourists.

Jamal Awad Khalaf, artist and souvenir shop owner.

There are 25 active souvenir shops at the site. The souvenir business at the archaeological site of Jarash has been steadily going down since the year 2000 according to Jamal. Is it because of the wars and tensions in the Middle East? Because the site is not well marketed? Because of the location of the shops on site? It is diffi cult to pinpoint one cause. He suggests that more efforts are neces-sary from the Jordan Tourism Department to promote Jordan as a safe destination for tourists. Asked about the circulation of visitors on site, he insists that having the shops near the entrance ticket outlet is crucial for the success of their business. If the circulation is changed and visitors enter from the North Gate, he believes that this will reduce the amount of business done by the souvenir shops.

Ajwad Hassan Atmah, Jarash Jabal Al Atmat Cultural ForumMr. Atmah is a retired postal worker, volunteering for the Atmat Cultural Forum that was created in 1998. It is the only forum that took the archaeological site as part of its work; it is an institutional framework for people who work in culture in Jarash. It focuses on literature and archaeology and organizes seminars, lectures, poetry recitals and various cultural activities for the youth.

From his point of view, the whole site at Jarash is the most important thing to pre-serve. This includes not only the existing archaeological site, but also the remains that are in the modern city of Jarash. He feels that the city side of the site should be integrated with the archaeological site. There is a lack of understanding and knowledge of local people about this treasure. To change this situation, there is a need to give children a strong cultural base and knowledge about the history and value of the site and the local culture. Lets create a generation of children that will see and understand that this site offers both economic and intellectual benefi ts to them.

As a long-term vision, Mr. Atmah foresees that the site or the destination that is marketed nationally and internationally includes both the archaeological site and the modern city, that a single authority manages the site and that the community would be part of the life of the site.

Thursday Feb. 1

Jeryis Samawai, Director, Jarash Festival, Ministry of Culture, Amman.

Jarash Festival is an international festival that was established in 1980 as a pro-posal introduced by Her Majesty Queen Nour Al-Hussein. Soon after, the fi rst Jarash Festival was launched in 1981. First and foremost, Jarash Festival is a cultural activity to celebrate the art and culture of Jordanians. With time, it has become one of the most important tourist attractions in the country. The three-week event draws up to 225,000 visitors each year who come to listen to poetry and

Jamal Awad Khalaf, artist and souvenir shop owner standing proudly besides one of his paintings.

Typical souvenir shop at the entrance to the site, near the ticket offi ce.

Ajwad Hassan Atmah, a retired postal worker volunteering for the Atmat Cultural Forum.

The Jarash Festival draws a quarter of a million visi-tors per year.

17

music, and watch folkloric as well as ballet dancing.Jarash Festival takes place in the ancient city of Jarash. The whole city with its theaters, temples, plazas and forums opens for the artists and audiences. There are seven theaters, which represent the seven arts. Many international artists, musicians, poets and superstars have participated in previous years. Time, space and light are mixed together here where the ancient spirit is recreated in a form of rhythmic unity of aspirations for freedom, prosperity, and good life. This is the message of the Jarash Festival: to celebrate life in jubilation, life as a value and symbol.

Mr. Samawai believes that the archaeological site offers a unique heritage back-drop for the Festival and that all festival activities should respect and not damage the precious heritage remains. If the infrastructure (roads) that leads to Jarash was improved, he believes that this would help the Festival to become even more suc-cessful.

Dr. Jean-François Salles, and Chrystelle March, Institut Francais du Proche-Ori-ent, Amman.

This French Institute is responsible for the archaeology and restoration of the Sanctuary of Zeus, which comprises the high and low temples. It comes as no surprise that they consider the archaeological values as the most important ones for the site of Jarash. The site is known to be one of the most important Roman era cities in the Middle East. They consider that there is still one more century of research to be done at this site.

We all talked about the application of international conservation principles for the restoration of the site. Even though there is a lot of cooperation between all inter-vening parties or teams of specialists at the site, international conservation prin-ciples such as “reversibility” and “no conjectural restoration” are not always applied rigorously, if at all. Reversibility means that restoration work can be undone without damaging the original material; no conjectural restoration means that restoration work stops when there is no more solid or scientifi c evidence to support it, or in other words, when “guessing” begins.

Ms March suggested that a pilot restoration project be undertaken on site with participation from all teams that work there. This could be a good educational activity to bring everyone closer to a common and internationally accepted way of restoring the monuments at the site of Jarash. It was acknowledged that while the professionals stop restoring a structure when they reach a point where they be-gin to guess, the tourists see things differently. They all want to see the structures completely fi nished. This issue needs to be addressed by a good interpretation or messaging program on site to sensitize the tourists.

Ahmad El-Bashiti, Executive Director, Jordan Inbound Tour Operators Association (JITOA).

The Jordan Inbound Tour Operators Association was set up in 2003 to enhance the professionalism and profi tability of its members through effective representation in industry and government affairs, education and training, and by identifying and meeting the needs of inbound tourism. JITOA is a voice of action for its members, bringing tourism stakeholders closer together to provide a better product.

This private sector company has three functions: advocacy, certifi cation and mar-

The archaeological site of Jarash is a great backdrop for the Festival’s cultural activities..

Dr. Jean-François Salles and Chrystelle March in their offi ces at IFPO.

Interior of the on-site museum at the Temple of Zeus built with support from the French govern-ment.

Ahmad El-Bashiti, Execu-tive Director of the Jordan Inbound Tour Operators Association.

18

keting. Ahmad explained to us that the members of his association are trying to de-velop a new kind of tourism for Jordan. The classical approach is to sell a destina-tion, have the tourists come to a site, walk around, take pictures, and get back on the bus to move on to the next destination. The new approach is to develop special events at a destination and offer new experiences to the visitors (special dinners, interaction with the local population etc.).

He felt that Jarash still has a long way to go to offer such new products. There is no quality hotel available, the city’s infrastructure requires a lot of work and there are very few special events to attract tour operators and the tourists. 85% of tourism packages to Jordan offer Jarash as a destination, but for only a half-day excursion. In other words, the classical approach, and even that has its own challenges.

For instance, tour operators have their own guides who are certifi ed nationally. They accompany visitors through their entire journey. But in Jarash, they are not allowed to work. According to legislation, the tour operators have to hire the local guides. From their point of view, this cuts into their profi ts and contributes to mak-ing Jarash a less attractive destination. Ahmad also felt that there were too many bosses at Jarash. When you don’t really know who is in charge, then it is more diffi cult to plan effectively for activities and visits. There is also another “plague” that affects the industry: it is the “kickbacks”. Tour operators and guides will receive kickbacks from restaurants or retailers if they bring bus loads of tourists to their places. They vary from 25% to 50% of sales. This really digs into the profi ts of the local merchants and contributes to slowing down the development of the industry.

THE CASE STUDY

On the basis of all these interviews we decided that our case study would focus on four issues:

Visitor circulation. Where should visitor arrive, be dropped off and begin their visit of the archaeological site?Boundaries and connection with the modern city. Economic benefi ts and cultur-al values of tourism and the site distributed or shared with the local population.Restoration philosophy and messaging. What are the messages and how are they conveyed? The World Heritage nomination, the concepts of pride and grandeur.The management structure. Considering all the confl icting interests expressed during the interviews and the various tourism management studies being done by international experts, what should the site’s management structure be?

Those using the case study will be told that they have to prepare a management plan for the site of Jarash that addresses those key issues (or a few of them).

During the fi rst exercise they will be asked to:Identify all the stakeholdersDecide which ones they will want to interviewIdentify the values they expect to raise with them

During the second exercise, they will develop interview and synthesis skills:Subdivide participants into small groups and discuss issuesReport to the group by preparing a statement of signifi cance for the site

During the third exercise, participants will get more details on key issues and write recommendations. Each recommendation will be tied to values expressed during

1.

2.

3.

4.

•••

••

Stacie Smith of Consen-sus Building Institute and GCI’s David Myers in the souvenir shops at the Jarash archaeological site.

19

the interviews. MADABA MOSAIC SCHOOL

Madaba is an ancient town of the Jordanian Plateau, which was resettled by Christian Arab tribes from the Karak region in 1880 A.D. It is located 30 km south of Amman. Christians and Muslims alike now inhabit it. A great deal of antiquity has been found here, much of which can now to be seen in the Museum and in the Archaeological Park.

The Romans made Madaba a typical provincial town, with colonnaded streets, fi ne temples and other buildings, large water cisterns and a town wall. The town contin-ued to fl ourish through the 8th century and beyond. The date of the mosaic fl oor in the church is 767 A.D. Traces of the Roman town can be seen in the long stretches of the paved street in Madaba’s Archaeological Park.

We visited the Mosaic School, which is located within the Archaeological Park. It was established in 1992 to provide qualifi ed Jordanian artisans for the production and restoration of mosaics, to perform restoration and periodic maintenance to ancient mosaics and to spread awareness of the importance of mosaics as histori-cal documents and artistic objects. It is the fi rst school established in the Middle East dedicated to the science of mosaics. The number of students has varied from 6 to 13 per year. The school will close this year while a new program is being de-veloped with international fi nancial aid especially from the USAID program to train mosaic conservators.

BRIEF HISTORY OF JARASH

Jarash, located 40 km north of Amman and nestled in a quiet valley among the mountains of Gilead, is the grandeur of Imperial Rome being one of the largest and most well preserved sites of Roman architecture in the World outside Italy. To this day, its paved and colonnaded streets, soaring hilltop temples, handsome theaters, spacious public squares and plazas, baths, fountains and city walls pierced by tow-ers and gates remain in exceptional condition.

This fascinating city makes a great day-trip from Amman, particularly in spring, when the wildfl owers are in bloom. The drive will take you less than an hour, but will transport you 2000 years back in time.

Within the remaining city walls, archeologists have found the ruins of settlements dating back to the Neolithic Age, indicating human occupation of this location for more than 6500 years. This is not surprising, as the area is ideally suited for human habitation. Jarash has a year-round supply of water, while its altitude of 500 meters

Shelter over ancient Ro-man mosaics

Roman mosaic at Madaba

Mosaicist creating new mosaic in retail store downtown Madaba

Mosaic from the Mosaic School at Madaba.

20

gives it a temperate climate and excellent visibility over the surrounding low-lying areas.

The history of Jarash is a blend of the Greco-Roman world of the Mediterranean basin and the ancient traditions of the Arab Orient. Indeed, the name of the city itself refl ects this interaction. The earliest Arabic/Semitic inhabitants named their village Garshu. The Romans later Hellenized the former Arabic name into Gerasa, and at the end of the 19th century, the Arab and Circassian inhabitants of the small rural settlement transformed the Roman Gerasa into the Arabic Jarash.

It was not until the days of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC that Jarash truly began to develop into a sizeable town. But it was during the period of Roman rule that Jarash, then known as Gerasa, enjoyed its golden age.

The fi rst known historical reference to Jarash dates back to the 2nd or early 1st century BC. This reference is attributed to Josephus, a historian from the Holy Land, who referred to it as the place to which Theodorus, the tyrant of Philadelphia, removed his treasure for safe keeping in the Temple of Zeus. Shortly afterward, Theodorus lost Jarash to Alexander Jannceus, a religious priest.

Soon after Rome took control of Syria, Emperor Pompey, in 63 BC, named con-quered Jarash as one of the great cities of the Decapolis League. This brought great economic benefi ts to Jarash and trade fl ourished with the Nabataean Empire based in Petra.

In 106 AD, Emperor Trajan annexed the wealthy Nabataean Kingdom and formed the province of Arabia. This brought even greater trading riches pouring into Jarash, which enjoyed a burst of construction activity. Granite was brought from as far away as Egypt, and old temples were rebuilt according to the latest architectural fashion.

The city received yet another boost in stature with the visit of Emperor Hadrian in 129 AD. To honor its guest, the citizens raised a monumental Triumphal Arch at the southern end of the city. Jarash’s prosperity reached a peak in the beginning of the 3rd century, when it was bestowed with the rank of Roman Colony. During this “golden age”, Jarash may have had a population of 20,000 people.

The ancient city preserved today was the administrative, civic, commercial and cultural center of this community, while the majority of the city’s citizens lived on the east side of Jarash Valley.

As the 3rd century progressed, shipping began to take over as the main route for commerce. Jarash fell into decline as its previously lucrative trade routes became less traveled and therefore less valuable.

By the middle of the 5th century, Christianity had become the major religion of the region and numerous churches were constructed in Jarash. Many churches were constructed of stones taken from pagan temples - and the remains of several can be seen today.

Jarash was hit further by the Persian invasion of 614 AD and the Muslim conquest of 636 AD. A series of earthquakes in 749 AD did serious damage to the city and hastened its decline, and its population sank to 4000.

The Mosaic School at Madaba

David, Catreena and Jeanne Marie looking at fl oor mosaic being re-stored at Mosaic School

Local and regional stone samples display for select-ing stones for restoration or creation of new mosaic.

Camels are a traditional way of getting around in these hilly surroundings and are still being used today by the Bedouins.

21

The Crusaders described Jarash as uninhabited, and it remained abandoned until its rediscovery in 1806, when Ulrich Jasper Seetzen, a German traveler, came across and recognized a small part of the ruins. The ancient city was buried in sand, which accounts for its remarkable preservation. It has been gradually re-vealed through a series of excavations, which started in 1925, and continue to this day. Jarash has become one of the most important tourism destinations in Jordan.

BRIEF HISTORY OF PETRA

This unique city, with its monumental façades sculpted out of solid rock, is a large, open art gallery produced by a gifted people, the Nabateans. They were by no means its fi rst, nor last, inhabitants. Archaeological research has revealed traces of human use of the area across all periods, but there is no doubt that it is during the time when the Nabateans were living that Petra became the intriguing place that we know today.

Petra, located in the southwest Jordan, is halfway between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea in a mountainous region, named the Shera` mountains. These moun-tains dominate the Wadi `Araba to the west. For over 200,000 years Petra has been a place for human habitation: the prehistoric periods are well documented, as are the later Islamic periods. Remains of Paleolithic campsites, together with fl int artifacts some 80-40,000 years old have been found in the surrounding hills. About 13,000 years ago, an early seasonal village was established at Beidha, just north of Petra. At about 7,000 BC, the site was rebuilt and occupied year-round by a group of Neolithic farmers. The presence of mineral resources also made the re-gion important. Both bitumen and copper, the metal that opened up for humankind the technology of metals, have been mined and marketed since the most ancient times.

In the fi rst millennium BC, the Edomites rose to prominence. During the 7th cen-tury BC, they built settlements, some fortifi ed, in the mountains. Most notable of these are Umm al-Biyara and Tawilan, high above the Petra basin. Subject to Assyria, Babylonia and then Persia, Edom in the 3d century BC became a nucleus of an Arab state, the Nabataean kingdom. The Nabateans made Petra the capital of their rich and powerful kingdom, fi lling it with spectacular buildings and carved façades, and making water fl ow to every corner of it. In AD 106, the Nabateans acquiesced to the Roman general, Trajan. Petra became part of the Roman Province of Arabia. After the transfer of the capital of the Roman Empire to Byz-antium in 330 under Constantine, Petra became the seat of a bishopric and by the 5th century AD, the administrative centre of the Byzantine province of Palaestina Tertia. Though Petra’s wealth had gradually declined -- because of the redirection of trading goods via sea routes, and because of the greater traffi c on the northern land routes that passed through Palmyra -- it remained a prosperous and important centre, and a provincial capital. The papyrus scrolls, recently found in the Petra church, show a fl ourishing economic and social life there throughout the 6th centu-ry. It was not until the next century, in the years following the Islamic take-over that trade routes were re-directed and Petra declined further.

In the early 12th century, when the Crusaders fi rst ventured across the rift valley from their capital of Jerusalem, it was to Petra that they came in recognition of its strategic advantage and established an outpost to defend their eastern border. The fortress they built here, known as Moses’ Valley, now Wu’eira was the last of all the eastern fortresses to be abandoned when the Crusaders withdrew to the Mediterranean in 1189. It was taken over by Salah al-Din. From then on Petra

The visit at Petra begins with this long walk through the SIQ (The Passage), a very narrow passage between two massive cliffs that are almost touch-ing each other at certain points.

Mona Hess and I visited Petra on a rainy day and the SIQ was fi lled by ap-proximately two inches of running water. We had to jump from one stone to the next all the way in order not to ruin our shoes.

At the end of the long walk the reward is to see this magnifi cent tomb, the Treasury revealing itself gradually as you approach it.

22

dropped out of western consciousness. With the abandonment of the site of Petra and the destruction of the water collecting and supply systems that made it pos-sible to live further down the valley, the stable settlement remained in the moun-tainous areas, along the circle of springs in the traditional villages surrounding the Petra Archaeological Park.

People continued for a long time to use the traditional stone Arab houses, to culti-vate the land on terraces and to keep the water supply system working. It was not until 1812 that Petra was once again visited by a westerner, by the Swiss explorer, Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. Travelers that followed gave vivid descriptions of its monuments and the conditions of the country during the Ottoman rule.

BRIEF HISTORY OF AMMAN

Amman, the modern capital of Jordan, is one of the oldest inhabited places in the world. Recent excavations have uncovered homes and towers believed to have been built during the Stone Age. With many references to it in the Bible, Amman was known as Rabbath-Ammon, the capital of the Ammonites, it was also referred to as “the city of waters”.

In the 3rd century B.C., the city was renamed Philadelphia after the Ptolemaic ruler Philadelphus. The city later came under Seleucid as well as Nabatacan rule, until the Roman General Pompey annexed Syria and made Philadelphia part of the Decapolis League – a loose alliance of initially ten free city-states under overall allegiance to Rome. Under the infl uence of the Roman culture, Philadelphia was reconstructed in typically grand Roman style with colonnaded streets, baths, a theatre and impressive public buildings.

During the Byzantine period, Philadelphia was the seat of a bishop and therefore several churches were built. The city declined somewhat until the year 635 AD. As Islam spread northwards from the Arabian Peninsula, the land became part of its domain. Its original Semitic name Ammon or Amman was returned to it.

Amman’s modern history began in the late 19th century, when the Ottomans re-settled a colony of Circassian emigrants in 1878. As the Great Arab Revolt pro-gressed and the State of Transjordan was established, King Abdullah I, founder of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, made Amman his capital in 1921. Since then, Amman has grown rapidly into a modern, thriving metropolis of well over a million people.

Towering above downtown Amman, the ancient Citadel is the site of ancient Rab-bath-Ammon and excavations there have revealed numerous Roman, Byzantine and early Islamic remains.

Remains of the 7000 seat theater near the opening of the valley. It was originally constructed by the Nabate-ans but was rebuilt by the Romans in the early 2nd century AD

The Nabateans not only built tombs for their lead-ers in Petra, but they also carved dwellings out of the rock for themselves.

The Urn Tomb at Petra is a magnifi cent piece of architecture.

This tomb is being re-stored with technical and fi nancial support from the German government.

23

THE MYSTERIOUS NABATEANS

Before Alexander’s conquest, a thriving new civilization had emerged in southern Jordan. It appears that a nomadic tribe known as the Nabateans began migrat-ing gradually from Arabia during the sixth century BCE. Over time, they aban-doned their nomadic ways and settled in a number of places in southern Jordan, the Naqab desert in Palestine, and in northern Arabia. Their capital city was the legendary Petra, Jordan’s most famous tourist attraction. Although Petra was inhabited by the Edomites before the arrival of the Nabateans, the latter carved grandiose buildings, temples and tombs out of solid sandstone rock. They also constructed a wall to fortify the city, although Petra was almost naturally defended by the surrounding sandstone mountains. Building an empire in the arid desert also forced the Nabateans to excel in water conservation. They were highly skilled water engineers, and irrigated their land with an extensive system of dams, canals and reservoirs.

The Nabateans were exceptionally skilled traders, facilitating commerce between China, India, the Far East, Egypt, Syria, Greece and Rome. They dealt in such goods as spices, incense, gold, animals, iron, copper, sugar, medicines, ivory, per-fumes and fabrics, just to name a few. From its origins as a fortress city, Petra be-came a wealthy commercial crossroads between the Arabian, Assyrian, Egyptian, Greek and Roman cultures. Control of this crucial trade route between the upland areas of Jordan, the Red Sea, Damascus and southern Arabia was the lifeblood of the Nabatean Empire.

We still know comparatively little about Nabatean society. However, we do know that they spoke a dialect of Arabic and later on adopted Aramaic. Much of what is now known about Nabatean culture comes from the writings of the Roman scholar Strabo. He recorded that their community was governed by a royal family, although a strong spirit of democracy prevailed. According to him there were no slaves in Nabatean society, and all members shared in work duties. The Nabateans wor-shipped a pantheon of deities, chief among which were the sun god Dushara and the goddess Allat.

As the Nabateans grew in power and wealth, they attracted the attention of their neighbors to the north. The Seleucid King Antigonus, who had come to power when Alexander’s empire was divided, attacked Petra in 312 BCE. His army met with relatively little resistance, and was able to sack the city. The quantity of booty was so great, however, that it slowed their return journey north and the Nabateans were able to annihilate them in the desert. Records indicate that the Nabateans were eager to remain on good terms with the Seleucids in order to perpetuate their trading ambitions. Throughout much of the third century BCE, the Ptolemies and Seleucids warred over control of Jordan, with the Seleucids emerging victorious in 198 BCE. Nabatea remained essentially untouched and independent throughout this period.

Although the Nabateans resisted military conquest, the Hellenistic culture of their neighbors infl uenced them greatly. Hellenistic infl uences can be seen in Nabatean art and architecture, especially at the time that their empire was expanding north-ward into Syria, around 150 BCE. However, the growing economic and political power of the Nabateans began to worry the Romans. In 65 BCE, the Romans ar-rived in Damascus and ordered the Nabateans to withdraw their forces. Two years later, Pompey dispatched a force to cripple Petra. The Nabatean King Aretas III

Part of the archaeologi-cal museum at Petra is located in the cave that you see in the middle of the cliff.

This sedimentary rock comes in many beautiful colors. The local craftsmen grind it to a fi ne powder that they use to make the sand bottles that you see below and that they sell to tourists.

Tourist guide Talal and his cousin Mohamet (sand bottle maker) in Petra.

24

either defeated the Roman legions or paid a tribute to keep peace with them.

The assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC augured a period of relative anarchy for the Romans in Jordan, and the Parthian kings of Persia and Mesopotamia took advantage of the chaotic situation to attack. The Nabateans made a mistake by siding with the Parthians in their war with the Romans, and after the Parthians’ de-feat, Petra had to pay tribute to Rome. When they fell behind in paying this tribute, they were invaded twice by the Roman vassal King Herod the Great. The second attack, in 31 BCE, saw him take control of a large swath of Nabatean territory, including the lucrative northern trading routes into Syria.

Nonetheless, the Nabateans continued to prosper for a while. King Aretas IV, who ruled from 9 BCE to 40 CE, built a chain of settlements along the caravan routes to develop the prosperous incense trade. The Nabateans realized the power of Rome, and subsequently allied themselves with the Romans to quell the Jewish uprising of 70 CE. However, it was only a matter of time before Nabatea would fall under direct Roman rule. The last Nabatean monarch, Rabbel II, struck a deal with the Romans that as long as they did not attack during his lifetime, they would be allowed to move in after he died. Upon his death in 106 CE, the Romans claimed the Nabatean Kingdom and renamed it Arabia Petrea. The city of Petra was rede-signed according to traditional Roman architectural designs, and a period of rela-tive prosperity ensued under the Pax Romana.

The Nabateans profi ted for a while from their incorporation into the trade routes of the Roman Near East, and Petra may have grown to house 20,000-30,000 people during its heyday. However, commerce became less profi table to the Nabateans with the shift of trade routes to Palmyra in Syria and the expansion of seaborne trade around the Arabian Peninsula. Sometime probably during the fourth century CE, the Nabateans left their capital at Petra. No one really knows why. It seems that the withdrawal was an unhurried and organized process, as very few silver coins or valuable possessions have been unearthed at Petra.people.

The Urn Tomb site at Petra, World Heritage site

Tourist guide Talal in front of a tomb in Little Petra. This site is approximately 8 km away from the main World Heritage site of Petra. It is close to a new village built by the state to house the Bedouins who used to live on site at Petra in the traditional houses.

The Nabateans were mas-ters at managing water in this rugged and dry coun-try. Water was collected in a clever way from the sur-rounding cliffs and stored in cisterns carved out of the rock. The rainwater cascades down the stairs that you see in the picture, then follows a small chan-nel at the bottom and falls into the cistern the big opening of which can be seen in the picture.