The Jordan Museum

The Jordan Museum
متحف الأردن

View of museum in 2014
Location within Jordan
Established 2014
Location Ras Al-Ein, Amman, Jordan
Coordinates 31°56′44″N 35°55′35″E / 31.945645°N 35.926515°E / 31.945645; 35.926515
Type Art museum, archaeological museum
Website jordanmuseum.jo/en

The Jordan Museum is located in Ras Al-Ein district of Amman, Jordan. Built in 2014, the museum is the largest museum in Jordan and hosts the country's most important archaeological findings.[1]

The museum presents artifacts from various prehistoric archaeological sites in Jordan, including the 7500 BC 'Ain Ghazal statues which are regarded as one of the oldest human statues ever made by human civilization.[2]

The collections in the museum are arranged in chronological order and also features lecture halls, outdoor exhibitions, a library, a conservation centre and an area for children's activities.[1] The museum was established by a committee headed by Queen Rania, which became the only museum in Jordan to implement modern artifact preserving technologies.[3]

Background

The Jordan Archaeological Museum was established in 1951 hosting Jordan's most important archaeological findings. However, the old site became too small and the idea of developing a new modern museum emerged in 2005.[3] A joint committee headed by Queen Rania, became responsible for developing the idea of a new modern museum by international standards. Construction started in 2009 and the museum was officially opened in 2014, spanning over 10,000 square meters.[3]

Location

The museum is located in the Ras Al-Ein area near downtown Amman, adjacent to the Greater Amman Municipality headquarters. The Museum is only a street away from major archaeological sites in Amman such as the Roman theater, Nymphaeum, Amman Citadel and The Hashemite Plaza.[1]

Major artifacts

One of the oldest human statues ever made by human civilization from 'Ain Ghazal on display at The Jordan Museum. Dating back to 7250 BC.[2]
4Q175 scroll, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls

The museum hosts animal bones dating back to 1.5 million years, 'Ain Ghazal lime plaster statues, Copper Scroll from the Dead Sea Scrolls, a copy of Mesha Stele. The Mesha Stele is a large black basalt stone that was erected in Moab and was inscribed by Moabite king Mesha, in which he lauds himself for the building projects that he initiated in Moab (modern day Al-Karak) and commemorates his glory and victory against the Israelites.[4] The stele constitutes one of the most important direct accounts of biblical history.[5] The original Mesha Stele is on display at the French Louvre Museum and Jordan has been constantly demanding its return.[6] The human statues found at 'Ain Ghazal constitute one of the world's oldest human statues ever made by human civilization dating back to 7000 BC. 'Ain Ghazal is a major Neolithic village in Amman that was discovered in 1981.[2] The Dead Sea Copper Scroll was found near Khirbet Qumran, which is an inventory of hidden gold and silver in specie, but also some vessels, presumably taken from the Temple in Jerusalem in circa 68 CE. It is written in a Mishnaic-style of Hebrew.[7]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Scrolling through the millennia at the new Jordan Museum in Amman". thenational.ae. thenational.ae. 2014-03-13. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
  2. 1 2 3 "Lime Plaster statues". British Museum. Trustees of the British Museum. Archived from the original on 2015-09-12. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
  3. 1 2 3 "متحف الأردن.. الإرث الإنساني والتطور الحضاري عبر العصور". Ad Dustour (in Arabic). 2015-10-19. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
  4. ↑ Chris A. Rollston (2010). Writing and Literacy in the World of Ancient Israel: Epigraphic Evidence from the Iron Age. Society of Biblical Lit. p. 54. Retrieved 2016-03-20.
  5. ↑ "The Mesha Stele". Department of Near Eastern Antiquities: Levant. Louvre Museum. Retrieved 2016-03-20.
  6. ↑ "Centre planning protest to demand return of Mesha Stele from Louvre". The Jordan Times. 2016-04-12. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
  7. ↑ "The Bible and Interpretation – On the Insignificance and the Abuse of the Copper Scroll". Bibleinterp.com. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
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