Umm ar-Rasas

Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a)
Native name
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LocationAmman Governorate, Jordan
Coordinates31°30′2.83″N 35°55′12.95″E / 31.5007861°N 35.9202639°E / 31.5007861; 35.9202639
Elevation760
Built5th Century
Governing bodyMinistry of Tourism & Antiquities of Jordan
TypeCultural
Criteriai, iv, vi
Designated2004 (28th session)
Reference no.1093
RegionArab States
Umm ar-Rasas is located in Jordan
Umm ar-Rasas
Location of Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a) in Jordan
Ruins of a house from Umm Ar-Rasas.

Umm ar-Rasas (Arabic: أم الرّصاص), ancient name: Kastron Mefa'a, is located 30 km southeast of Madaba in the Amman Governorate in central Jordan. It was once accessible by branches of the King's Highway, and is situated in the semi-arid steppe region of the Jordanian Desert. The site has been associated with the biblical settlement of Mephaat mentioned in the Book of Jeremiah. The Roman military utilized the site as a strategic garrison, but it was later converted and inhabited by Christian and Islamic communities. In 2004, the site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,[1] and is valued by archaeologists for its extensive ruins dating to the Roman, Byzantine, and early Muslim periods. The Franciscan academic society in Jerusalem, Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (SBF),[2] carried out excavations at the north end of the site in 1986, but much of the area remains buried under debris.

  1. ^ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a)". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved Oct 17, 2020.
  2. ^ "Studium Biblicum Franciscanum - Information". Archived from the original on 2007-12-05. Retrieved 2007-10-29.