This map, created by DiploMaps In 2026, it will reconstruct, within the current territory of Jordan, the network of cities, roads and fortifications built by the Roman Empire between the 1st and 4th centuries.

The map uses symbols to distinguish between four types of archaeological sites: Roman cities (circles), monumental ruins (squares), military installations (triangles) and sites of mixed occupation (diamonds). The dark orange strip marks the region of the Decapolis, the league of Hellenistic-Roman cities in the north, which included Gerasa (Jerash), Gadara (Umm Qais) and Pella (Tabqet Fahel). The blue circles mark the sites designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Petra.

The main road, which runs through Jordan from north to south along the eastern bank of the River Jordan, is the Via Trajana Nova, a road built by Trajan following the annexation of the Nabataean kingdom in AD 106. This road connected Bosra, in the south of present-day Syria, with the port of Aila on the Red Sea, now known as Aqaba.

Sources

• Rome’s Legacy in Jordan