Its 260 pairs of columns are Corinthian replacements for earlier Ionic columns and were once capped by aqueducts carrying water throughout die ancient city. The huge paving stones show grooves worn by chariots; the occasional holes were designed for the drainage of rainwater into a sophisticated sewage system. Massive sidewalk coverings protected pedestrians from the sun. but only traces of these cosmopolitan parasols remain. On the right, halfway down the Street of Columns, sits the Jerash Antiquities Museum. Tall display cases mounted along the walls have neatly arranged artifacts from the Neolithic to Ottoman periods. Coins, jewelry, theater “tickets” made of stone, and other household items highlight the museum’s small collection. (Open Sat.-Thurs. 7:30am-5pm. Free.)

Walking through the first intersection (named South Tetrapylon for its 4 slabs), look for the Cathedral and Nymphaeum to the left. The “crow-step” designs on these buildings and the Nabatean coins found here bear witness to the strong commercial links with the desert kingdom at Petra. The ornamental fountains of the Nymphaeum were used in an annual reenactment of the Miracle at Cana, where Jesus changed water into wine. Several hundred meters behind the cathedral, three churches possess the finest mosaics to survive Caliph Yazid n’s attempt to destroy all “images and likenesses” in 720 AD.

The East Baths are across the wadi, just north of the mosque in the new town. Scattered around the western part of the city are the ruins of some 13 churches of more recent vintage. The Northern Gate was built in the 2nd century AD to open onto the newly completed road to Pella in the Jordan Valley.