Abila Dekapoleos – Abila in the Decapolis or Abila (Greek: Ἄβιλα; and for a time, Seleucia; Greek: Σελεύχεια, also transliterated as Seleuceia, Seleukeia, and Seleukheia) was an ancient city, near the Hieromax river in the Decapolis; the site is occupied by two tells and the village of Hartha, circa 13 km (8 mi) north-northeast of Irbid, Jordan. The site is 25km east of the Sea of Galilee and 4km south of Wadi Yarmouk river. The name "Abila" is derived from the Semitic word Abel (in Hebrew, "meadow" and in Arabic, "green growth")[1]
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Abila or Ancient Raphana lies (15 km)to the north of Irbid, east of Umm Qais, 2 km (1 mi) east of Hartha. The largest site is located amidst verdant agricultural fields near the modern Ain Quweilbeh spring. Abila is more brutal than Jerash and Umm Qais. Roman temples, Byzantine churches and early mosques lie amidst olive groves and wheat fields.
Excavations indicate that the site was inhabited more than 5000 years ago in the early Bronze Age, and appears to have been continually used by man since then. The site was in use from the Neolithic period until the Abbasid/Fatimid and Ayyubid/Mamluk periods, though its use in these later periods was limited. While several of its ancient structures have been excavated including aqueducts, tombs, gates and public buildings, Abila is especially fascinating because so much of its remains unexcavated, yet visible of the surface of the ground.
The first known European to visit the site was Ulrich Jasper Seetzen in 1806. The ruins have been described in published literature as early as 1889 by Guy Le Strange.
The site is subdivided into distinct areas based on their location and archaeological features. These areas are defined as: Area A, Area AA, Area B, Area C, Area D, Area DD, Area E, and Area H.[2]
Megalithic columns can be found at Um el-‘Amad (the mother of columns).
The site has been extensively excavated since 1980. The excavations have shown habitation at Abila from ca. 4000 BC to 1500 AD, and have yielded numerous artifacts, and unearthed remains of city walls, a theater, and a sixth century church.[3] The city remains a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church, Abilenus in Palaestina; the seat has been vacant since 1977.[4]
Archaeological evidence suggests that a temple at the site was used to worship Herakles, Tyche, and Athena.[5] Further evidence has shown that the site was used for Christian worship from at least the seventh- to eighth-century A.D.[6]
The site was submitted to the list of tentative World Heritage sites under criteras i, iii and iv. It was submitted June 18th, 2001 by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
The main threats to the site have been identified as development pressures, insufficient management, unsustainable tourism, water erosion (rain and spring). Both urban and agricultural development pressures are increasing in the area, due to its fertile soil, gentle climate and water availability. Tourism is unmonitored and there is little interpretation and no facilities provided for tourists. The site is not expected to be a large tourism draw given its proximity to the more popular Umm Qais site.[7]