Umm ar-Rasas is an archaeological site in central Jordan. It lies southeast of the city of Madaba, which is 19 miles (30 kilometers) south of Amman, Jordan’s capital. Umm ar-Rasas was a military camp and city from the A.D. 200’s into the 800’s. Today, the sprawling site is most famous for the well-preserved mosaic floors of the city’s early Christian churches. Mosaic artwork involves small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other material set into mortar. Umm ar-Rasas—sometimes spelled Um er-Rasas—is also known as Kastrom Mefa’a or Kastron Mefaa.
Roman soldiers built a camp at Umm ar-Rasas in the A.D. 200’s. The camp grew into a thriving walled city under Byzantine rule (see Byzantine Empire). The rectangular city declined and was abandoned some time in the 800’s. The town lay largely buried by sand and rubble until archaeologists began excavating it in the 1980’s. Most of the city remains buried. However, a number of buildings, churches, and stone arches have been unearthed.
The floor of the city’s Church of St. Stephen features a large mosaic dating from the 700’s. The mosaic includes picture maps of major cities of the region, including Amman, Gaza, and Jerusalem. The mosaic also shows hunting and fishing scenes. The work is signed and dated by the artists who created it. Other churches at Umm ar-Rasas also have intricate mosaic floors. Such floors were a common feature of early Byzantine Christian churches.
Umm ar-Rasas has the only known surviving stylite tower from the Byzantine era. Stylites were Christians who lived atop pillars and practiced self-denial (see Asceticism). The square tower at Umm ar-Rasas stands 46 feet (14 meters) high, yet it has no inner staircase. A stylite monk reached the top—the spare living quarters—by climbing a ladder.
Umm ar-Rasas was named a World Heritage Site in 2004. Such sites are places of unique cultural or natural importance as designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). A visitors’ center officially opened at the site in 2012.
See also Simeon Stylites, Saint.
