Amman Citadel

Written By: Gail Clifford | Published By: Weekend Notes | October 30, 2022

https://www.weekendnotes.com/amman-citadel/

The Citadel National Historic Site in Amman, Jordan, referred to as Jabal Al Khala, is one of Amman’s oldest known sites and one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited places. Perched atop one of the city’s High Hills, archaeological excavations reveal that this summit has been used as a settlement and a fortress for millennia, dating back 7,000 years, according to some estimates, to the time of the rise of civilization in Mesopotamia and the Nile Valley.

The Citadel is an astounding open-air museum where visitors can walk through time and see the relics of numerous civilizations. This site is associated with deities referenced in the Bible, such as. Melchom and witnessed numerous sieges, wars, and earthquakes.

perfectly with what you see at the site. From the entrance, with stones holding descriptors of the different empires through time, to the signage throughout, and the overview of the Roman Theater and the current structure of Amman City, you see how tradition meets modern life.

The Temple of Hercules (161-166 AD) visible from the entrance towers above the other structures. Son of Zeus and a mortal woman, Alcemene, Hercules was known for incredible strength. In Philadelphia (ancient city now Amman), Hercules was depicted on Roman coins minted in the city.

Statuary on the ground includes one of Hercules’ hands. It’s 13 meters high!

Abdel-Malik Ibn Marwan, the fifth Umayyad caliph, ruled from April 685 until his death in October 705, and is credited with having built Amman’s Citadel and Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock as he implemented currency reform in attempts to rid the Ummayyad of the Byzantine Empire.