Athena Review Image Archive ™
Jerash: Temple of Artemis
Jerash: Temple of the Sun or Artemis (photo: Bell Archive A-453)
Jerash, located 34 km north of Amman in northern Jordan on the Chryorhoas River, was a major Hellenistic and Roman site between the late 2nd century BC and early 4th century AD.
This photo taken by Gertrude Bell in 1900 identifies the structure known as either the Temple of the Sun or the Temple of Artemis, the patron deity of Jerash. Construction of the temple occurred between AD 150-180. It as a focal point of the city center, with a long (500 m) processional way starting in the eastern end of the city and crossing the river on a bridge, then ascending a staircase to a triple gate and colonnade to the temple court (124 x 88 m in area). The temple had six Corinthian columns in front and eleven on the sides.
This photograph (A-453) is in the Bell Archive at Newcastle University.
[source: Aubin, Melissa M. in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East (1997), vol.3, pp. 215-219].
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