Yesterday we started the day with a
mystery site. Dr. Wright wanted us to
use our powers of observation, even though it was quite early in the
morning. It was a very peculiar site. The architecture didn’t seem to fit with
anything that I could think of very well.
The site almost had a Herodian flare to it. It was difficult, also, to nail down a
specific function for the building. When
we sat down to discuss the site we came up with some interesting ideas, and
when Dr. Wright explained the history of the site and the confusion behind its
architecture I realized just how strange it really was. Apparently Hyrcanus built the structure
before the Maccabean Revolt, and Herod was strongly influenced by the design
and style. Evidence for this comes from
the writings of Josephus, giving the site the name “Tyre.” It seems to have been a pleasure palace
surrounded by water, giving the site an island-like appearance. The artistic reconstruction that was
published in an archaeological magazine depicted something quite
extraordinary.
Afterwards
we went to Jerash, the city of a thousand columns. On the way in, Jason and I ran into a
shopkeeper who had a stringed instrument with Middle Eastern designs on
it. We inquired about the instrument and
he picked it up and began to play a simple melody while singing random things
about the United States. It was funny,
in a strange way.
We
entered through Hadrian’s arch, which reminded me of the Ecce Homo arch in
Jerusalem, as it has similar features and a similar reputation. The architecture in the city was
magnificent. I climbed up on top of the
Temple of Zeus and took some pictures of the Cardo and the sea of columns that
surrounded it. When I finally climbed
down I ran over to the theatre just in time to see a bunch of Arab men marching
out into the center of the theatre with bagpipes, dancing to the tunes of
Christian hymns. We continued to see
more temples and more columns, along with an ancient church and an ancient
mosque.
Next
we went to Amman to see the museum, which was a little disappointing. There was, however, a statue of an Ammonite
king, which was very interesting, some fragments of an important text from Deir
Alla, and some very intriguing statues.
The statues were of a figure that seemed to have two heads, perhaps
depicting a male and female essence. A
possible interpretation of this find would be that it reflects a common tradition
of Genesis, although with a peculiar interpretation. It may be a depiction of God creating man and
woman, and there having been a special unity between them. According to this interpretation/view of
creation, this would explain the male and female genders to be two halves the
complete picture of humanity. We then explored the Tel of the ancient city of
Rabbah. The look out over the modern city
was especially beautiful. The weather
was just right and the layout of the city, with its houses built into the
slopes was perfect atmosphere. There
were several kids at the site flying kites and the scene reminded me of the
descriptions of the simplicity of childhood.
The Temple of Hercules had an interesting rocky escarpment jutting up
from beneath the floor. It was a part of
the bedrock that hadn’t been leveled, similar to the Dome of the Rock. Dr. Wright told us a Jewish Midrash about the
rock that resides where the 2nd Temple used to be. It was a pretty wild story, involving flying
rocks and the weaving of several biblical themes. Afterwards, we continued to walk around
through some Byzantine churches and a mosque.
No comments:
Post a Comment