Temple of Hercules

One might ask how the Temple of Hercules stays prominent amidst so many other points of attraction. The Jordan Archaeological Museum, for example, is located on the same hill and is undoubtedly noteworthy even if only for the fact that it is home to the sole copper Dead Sea Scroll that has ever been discovered as well as the curious 'Ain Ghazala figurines, which are among the earliest human sculptures ever created and date to the Neolithic.

There are no close modern structures that could quickly interfere with the romance of the sight of Temple of Hercules, and beyond that would be Amman spread below the hill. It is a collection of crumbling rock foundations and aged bricks that are nevertheless defiant of the passage of time. Some of the original structure's columns are still standing today, and two still have the lintels they once supported, forming a sort of trabeate arch where many tourists have posed for pictures.

Highlights:

• The temple is flanked by a large portico-lined temenos (holy precinct). It was placed on a sizable, specially constructed stone podium to be seen from the lower city. It is believed to have been erected over the site of an ancient temple dedicated to the Ammonite god Milcom.
• It is said that this enormous figure was 13 meters tall, making it at least as tall as the temple. It most likely used to be next to it, and now that it is so close to the temple's ruins, you may take a picture of the sculpture's remains with the temple's ruins in the background. Only the elbow and one of the hands remain in the ancient sculpture's ruins, which represents the power of the Roman hero.The other temple relics are two full pillars and the remnants of four other pillars.
• The temple's nearby inscription places its construction around 160 CE.
• The statue and the temple, destroyed by an earthquake, are two of Jordan's most significant Roman artifacts.
• At the Temple of Hercules, sunrise and sunset reveal the entire temple drenched in the sun's slanted rays, with the 10-meter columns' shadows tracing out to one side on the ground.

Imagine the gigantic columns to be intact as you walk around them. They once formed the entrance to the temple's inner sanctum and rose to a height of 33 feet (10 meters).

The huge hand-carved marble sculpture is one of the most intriguing things about the location. According to some scholars, the well-groomed hand belonged to a 40-foot (12-meter) tall Hercules statue. The hand, according to others, would have belonged to a statue of a lady since it is too feminine.

Before you go, spend some time learning about the hill's rich past. Jabal Al Qala'a hill, which rises 2,788 feet (850 meters) above sea level, has been inhabited since the Bronze Age for a long period. The Romans cleared the area and started building their town as soon as they arrived, and the ruins yielded many far older antiquities.