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Description

Evidence suggests that the Amman Citadel has been inhabited since the Neolithic Period and that it grew into a large town by the Bronze Age (3000 BCE). The town had walled fortifications of which only some of the walls remain today. As it now stands, the Citadel originates from the Roman, and then Byzantine and Umayyad Periods.

The two most distinguishing features of the Citadel are the Temple of Hercules and the domed Umayyad Palace. The original Bronzer Age temple was probably dedicated to the Ammonite god, Milcom, and the current temple was built over it between 165-166 ACE, dedicated to the Roman Co-emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. Two pieces of a very large statue of Hercules (an elbow and a hand), which would have stood over 9 meters tall, have been found next to the temple.

The Umayyads controlled the Citadel from 720-750 ACE when it was transformed into an administrative complex. The dome you see today is actually a reconstruction by Spanish archeologists over the last decade.

Description

Evidence suggests that the Amman Citadel has been inhabited since the Neolithic Period and that it grew into a large town by the Bronze Age (3000 BCE). The town had walled fortifications of which only some of the walls remain today. As it now stands, the Citadel originates from the Roman, and then Byzantine and Umayyad Periods.

The two most distinguishing features of the Citadel are the Temple of Hercules and the domed Umayyad Palace. The original Bronzer Age temple was probably dedicated to the Ammonite god, Milcom, and the current temple was built over it between 165-166 ACE, dedicated to the Roman Co-emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. Two pieces of a very large statue of Hercules (an elbow and a hand), which would have stood over 9 meters tall, have been found next to the temple.

The Umayyads controlled the Citadel from 720-750 ACE when it was transformed into an administrative complex. The dome you see today is actually a reconstruction by Spanish archeologists over the last decade.