Capitolias ( grc, Καπιτωλιάς, Kapitolias) was an ancient city east of the
Jordan River
The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...
, and is identified with the modern village of Beit Ras in the
Irbid Governorate
Irbid or Irbed ( ar, إربد) is a governorate in Jordan, located north of Amman, the country's capital. The capital of the governorate is the city of Irbid. The governorate has the second largest population in Jordan after Amman Governorate, an ...
in northern
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
.
[C.J. Lenzen, E.A. Knauf, "Capitolias: A Preliminary Evaluation of the Archaeological and Textual Evidence" in ''Syria'', Year 1987, Issue 64–1–2, pp. 21–46]
/ref>[''The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites'': "Capitolias (Beit Ras) Jordan"](_blank)
/ref> Anciently it was a town of Coele-Syria
Coele-Syria (, also spelt Coele Syria, Coelesyria, Celesyria) alternatively Coelo-Syria or Coelosyria (; grc-gre, Κοίλη Συρία, ''Koílē Syría'', 'Hollow Syria'; lat, Cœlē Syria or ), was a region of Syria (region), Syria in cl ...
.
The Peutinger Table placed it between Gadara and Adraha (Daraa
Daraa ( ar, دَرْعَا, Darʿā, Levantine Arabic: , also Darʿā, Dara’a, Deraa, Dera'a, Dera, Derʿā and Edrei; means "''fortress''", compare Dura-Europos) is a city in southwestern Syria, located about north of the border with Jordan ...
), 16 miles from each, and the Antonine Itinerary
The Antonine Itinerary ( la, Itinerarium Antonini Augusti, "The Itinerary of the Emperor Antoninus") is a famous ''itinerarium'', a register of the stations and distances along various roads. Seemingly based on official documents, possibly ...
put it at 36 miles from Neve (Nawa, Syria
Nawa ( ar, نَوَىٰ, Nawā) is a city in Syria, administratively belonging to the Daraa Governorate. It has an altitude of . It had a population of 59,170 in 2007, making it the 28th largest city per geographical entity in Syria.
During class ...
).[Jewish Virtual Library: "Capitolias"]
/ref>
The Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
name, ''Beit Ras'', preserves the Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
name, ''Bet Reisha'', mentioned in the 6th-century Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
.[
Unfortunately, not very many ruins are left behind of the city of Capitolias. However, the main archaeological site remaining is a theatre structure.
]
History
The town is one of the ten cities of the Decapolis listed by Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
. There are many primary sources, including Pliny the Elder that list different variations of the cities of the Decapolis.
Capitolias was founded as a planned Roman city, perhaps for military purposes, under Nerva
Nerva (; originally Marcus Cocceius Nerva; 8 November 30 – 27 January 98) was Roman emperor from 96 to 98. Nerva became emperor when aged almost 66, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the succeeding rulers of the Flavian dy ...
or Trajan
Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...
in 97 or 98 CE. This date comes from the coins that were minted within the city.[Siméon Vailhé, "Capitolias" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'', Vol. 3 (New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908)](_blank)
/ref> Inscriptions show that local citizens served in the Roman army. It was surrounded by a wall built in the 2nd century and had an area of 12.5 hectares according to one source, 20 acres according to another.
The city was named after Jupiter Capitolinus
The Capitoline Triad was a group of three deities who were worshipped in Religion in ancient Rome, ancient Roman religion in an elaborate temple on Rome's Capitoline Hill (Latin ''Capitolium''). It comprised Jupiter (mythology), Jupiter, Juno (my ...
. Evidence shows that the site was extensively settled and grew in importance during the Roman and Byzantine eras. Capitolias also had some importance in the early Islamic (Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...
) period.
In the rearrangement associated with the creation of the Roman province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
of Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
in 106, Capitolias became part of the province of Palaestina Secunda
Palæstina Secunda or Palaestina II was a Byzantine province from 390, until its conquest by the Muslim armies in 634–636. Palaestina Secunda, a part of the Diocese of the East, roughly comprised the Galilee, Yizrael Valley, Bet Shean Valley a ...
, whose capital was Scythopolis.[ It is mentioned by many geographers, including Hierocles and ]George of Cyprus
George of Cyprus ( el, Γεώργιος Κύπριος; Latinized as ''Georgius Cyprius'') was a Byzantine geographer of the early seventh century.
Nothing is known of his life save that he was born at Lapithos in the island of Cyprus. He is kno ...
in the 6th and 7th centuries.[
Yaqut al-Hamawi (1179–1229) noted about Beit Ras: "A village of Jerusalem, or, it is said, belonging to the Jordan Province, There are quantities of vines here, from which the celebrated wine is made."
]
Archaeology
The city wall, with three north-facing gates,[ can still be traced on the surface] Other remains include a temple of the Capitoline Triad
The Capitoline Triad was a group of three deities who were worshipped in Religion in ancient Rome, ancient Roman religion in an elaborate temple on Rome's Capitoline Hill (Latin ''Capitolium''). It comprised Jupiter (mythology), Jupiter, Juno (my ...
, a three-tiered marketplace, a colonnaded street, a 5th-century church that was converted into a mosque in the 8th century, an aqueduct, reservoirs, a Roman military cemetery, and paved roads.[ Although these remains were all excavated, many are quite minimal. The most prominent remains is that of the Roman style theatre.
Although Capitolias was first excavated in the 1960s, systematic archaeological work began in the early 1980s and has continued.]
It seems the citizens of Capitolias wanted to appear very Greek. Tombstones of one family were discovered, and dated to the 2nd century CE. Not only had the deceased adopted Latin names, but the tomb also had a very Greek style scene painted on it. The painting was a scene from the Trojan War with Achilles
In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's ''Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Peleus, k ...
dragging the body of Hector.
Ample amounts of glass fragments have been discovered at the cite. These fragments were dated to 3rd-5th century CE. Further research has shown that large, primary chunks of glass were produced in the Levantine coastal area and brought to Capitolias for secondary production. So it seems that during the late Roman/early Byzantine eras, Capitolias was a main center for secondary glass production in Jordan.
Further excavation of Capitolias is somewhat difficult because of the modern village, Beit Ras. Researchers want to respectfully work with the locals to further their findings of Capitolias.
Only the part of the site without modern constructions could be studied by archaeologists. The “Beit Ras (Capitolias): an Archaeological Project” was conducted there from 2014 to 2016 by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan in cooperation with the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology and the Institute of Archaeology (both University of Warsaw
The University of Warsaw ( pl, Uniwersytet Warszawski, la, Universitas Varsoviensis) is a public university in Warsaw, Poland. Established in 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country offering 37 different fields of ...
), under the direction of Prof. Jolanta Młynarczyk. The project consisted of a geophysical prospection (2014) and excavation works (2015–2016).
The Polish-Jordanian excavations covered the northern part of the ancient city, to the west of the Roman theater. Non-invasive research using electrical resistivity scanning revealed remnants of urban architecture. Based on the pottery collected during the survey, it was determined that this area was in use from the 2nd to the 13th century. The excavation works yielded remains of defense walls, a winery, and workshops; the chronological sequence of the site from the Roman to the early medieval period was also established.
In 2018, archaeologists has excavated a tomb dating to the 2nd century AD. Its walls are decorated with many figures of humans, animals, and gods, as well as a large painting illustrating the construction of a rampart along with 60 inscriptions describing what the figures in the painting were doing. In its entirety, the artwork is thought to describe the founding of the city. The captions, written in Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
with Greek letters, resemble the speech bubbles in modern comics.
Bishopric
Bishops of Capitolias are mentioned in extant documents:[Pius Bonifacius Gams]
''Series episcoporum Ecclesiae Catholicae''
Leipzig 1931, p. 454
* Antiochus was at the First Council of Nicaea in 325
* Anianus/Ananias took part in the Council of Chalcedon
The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bith ...
in 451
* Bassus is mentioned in 518
* Two bishops named Theodosius are mentioned, one at the Council of Jerusalem
The Council of Jerusalem or Apostolic Council was held in Jerusalem around AD 50. It is unique among the ancient pre-ecumenical councils in that it is considered by Catholics and Eastern Orthodox to be a prototype and forerunner of the later ...
in 536, the other in 600
A Peter who was martyred under Muslim rule is given by Le Quien[ and Gams][ as a bishop of Capitolias, but other sources describe him as a priest, not a bishop.][
In the 12th century the see was an independent archbishopric, as appears from a '' Notitia Episcopatuum'' of that time. No longer a residential bishopric, Capitolias is today listed by the ]Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
as a titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...
.[''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 857]
References
Bibliography
*
*Młynarczyk, Jolanta (2017)
''Beit Ras (Capitolias): the archaeological project (2014–2016)''. Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean. 26 (1)
473–504
{{Irbid Governorate
External Links
Photos of Beit Ras
at the American Center of Research
The American Center of Research (ACOR) is a private, not-for-profit scholarly and educational organization. Based in Alexandria, Virginia, with a facility in Amman, Jordan, ACOR promotes knowledge of Jordan and the interconnected region, past and ...
Photos of Beit Ras
at the Manar al-Athar photo archive
Decapolis
Former populated places in Jordan
Catholic titular sees in Asia
Populated places in Coele-Syria
Archaeological sites in Jordan
Roman towns and cities in Jordan
Villages in Irbid governorate