Chrysorrhoas River
JERASH’S INCORPORATION INTO the Roman Empire heralded a high period of splendor for the
Hellenistic city. The illustration shows the settlement as it probably looked in the second
century A.D., the period in which many of its impressive monuments were built. Ringed with
groves of fruit trees, Jerash was very prosperous, benefiting from iron-ore deposits and rich
agriculture in its hinterland. The city was built on two low hills, either side of the Chrysorrhoas
River. After Trajan’s accession the ancient King’s Highway became the Via Nova Traiana (New
Trajan Road), whose north-south trade brought prosperity, foreign customs, and diverse
languages in the early second century. By this period, Jerash’s layout was fully Romanized:
The main entrance was by the South Gate and led directly to the Oval Plaza and the main
street, known as the Cardo Maximus. This impressive, colonnaded avenue crossed the entire
city from south to north. Its construction dates back to the first century A.D. (although it was
modified on several occasions later). The Oval Plaza is from the same period. Traffic would
have moved along this great avenue, changing direction at one of the tetrapylons, the four-
columned monuments that connected the south-north Cardo Maximus with the Decumani,
the roads that crossed the city from east to west.A ROMAN CITY
Temple of ArtemisSouth Tetrapylon