Arriving in the modern town of Jerash today, with its provincial streets and small market gardens, there’s little to suggest its illustrious past. But the moment you cross from the new town into the ancient city boundaries, marked by the imposing Hadrian’s Arch, it becomes immediately apparent that this was once no ordinary backwater but a city of great wealth and importance. And how did Jerash, which was never on a major trade route, come to be so important? The answer lies in the soil. Whatever route you take to reach the town, and at whatever time of year, you will pass the ubiquitous fruit stalls that characterise the area. Figs, apples, plums, berries, and most especially olives all grow prodigiously in the surrounding hillsides, and the surplus of crops helps the local farming communities to prosper just as in ancient times.

Jerash is cleaved in two by a deep and cultivated wadi. Today, as in the days of the Romans, the bulk of the town’s inhabitants live on the eastern side of the wadi. The walled city on the west side of the wadi, graced with grand public monuments, baths and fountains, was reserved for administrative, commercial, civic and religious activities. The two were once linked by causeways and processional paths and magnificent gates marked the entrance. Access to the remains of this walled city today is through the most southerly gate, known as Hadrian’s Gate or the Arch of Triumph.

While there are certainly other surviving Roman cities that boast similar architectural treasures, the ancient ruins at Jerash are famous for their remarkable state of preservation. Enough structures remain intact for archaeologists and historians, and even the casual visitor, to piece together ancient life under the rule of an emperor.