Exploring Jordan and Egypt

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Saturday, 26 February 2022 - Much of the day was spent traveling north toward Amman with a stop in Madaba to see the ancient Byzantine mosaic map and then continuing up to Mount Nebo where we hiked and photographed views across the Jordan Valley and Dead Sea, ending the day back at the hotel preparing to travel to Cairo next.

Today was the only bad weather day we had on the trip - it was raining. We had brought rain jackets, but they were packed away when it was beautiful in Aqaba. So we put on cheap plastic raincoats provided on the bus and off we went into the storm to hike several blocks to the church.

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This Mosaic Map is the oldest surviving depiction of the Holy Land during the 6th century.
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This is the depiction of Jerusalem in the center top.

The mosaic contains the earliest extant representation of Byzantine Jerusalem, labeled the "Holy City." The map provides important details about its 6th century landmarks, with the central colonnaded street, and the church of the Holy Sepulcher clearly visible. This map is one key in developing scholarly knowledge about the physical layout of Jerusalem after its destruction and rebuilding in 70 AD.
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In this part of the mosaic there are fish going in and out of the Dead Sea - so it's waters must have been a viable place for fish centuries ago.
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Sailing on the Dead Sea
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In the parking lot for the visitors there is a large wall of mosaics with pictures from all over Jordan. Here is Umm Qais where we visited

The city has an unusual number of mosaics from the Byzantine period. It is surmised this is due to the building of the city around several Roman Temples and then churches.
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Madaba is so well known for mosaics that they began a mosaic school to teach the art of making mosaic and the art of preserving the ancient art works.
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We hustled through the only rain we would have on the trip to a nearby lunch spot, Hikayet Sitti - Food Basket, which was excellent.

Then a drive to Mt Nebo, an elevated ridge located in Jordan 2,330 feet above sea level. A view toward Amman from the top of Mt Nebo.
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Mount Nebo is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land before his death. The view from the summit provides a panorama of the West Bank across the Jordan River valley. The Dead Sea is clearly visible.
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There is a church on the top of the mountain. The church was first constructed in the second half of the 4th century to commemorate the place of the death of Moses. The church design follows a typical basilica pattern. It was enlarged in the late fifth century AD and rebuilt in AD 597.

Mosaics were discovered under the floor of the "newer" church.
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Since 1984, the church has been able to have services and display the restored mosaic floors.
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Using a pathway you can see the original floors many feet lower.
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It is straightforward to see how Madaba has become known for the mosaics all over the city.
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A serpentine cross sculpture atop Mount Nebo was created by Italian artist Giovanni Fantoni. It is symbolic of the miracle of the bronze serpent invoked by Moses in the wilderness (Numbers 21:4-9) and the cross upon which Jesus was crucified (John 3:14).
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One last mosaic as we were leaving the museum attached to the property.

We returned to our hotel in Amman and prepared to travel to Cairo for the next day.
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