HI'AK 1. J
secret subterranean passage, and had not this been dis- covered to Antiochus by a prisoner, the citadel might have been enabled to hold out (Polybius, v, 17). Dur- ing the struggle between Antiochus the Pious (Sidetes) and Ptolemy, the son-in-law of Simon Maccabaeus (B.C. cir. L34), il is mentioned as being governed by a tyrant named Cotylas (Ant. xiii, 8, 1). Its ancient name, though under a cloud, was still used; it is mentioned by Polybius (v,71) under the hardly altered form of Rabbatamana ('PajS/Sarauava). About B.C. 65 we hear of it as in the hands of Aretas (one of the Arab chiefs of that name i. who retired thither from Judaea when menaced by Scaurus, Pompey's general (Josephus, War, i. t">. :»). The Arabs probably held il till the year B.C. 30, when they were attacked there by Herod the Great. 15ut the account of Josephus ( War, i, 19. 5, G) seems to imply that the city was not then inhabited. and that although the citadel formed the main point of the combat, yet that it was only occupied on the in- stant. I be water communication above alluded to also appears nol to have been then in existence, for the people who occupied the citadel quickly surrendered from thirst, and the whole affair was over in six days.
At the ( Christian sera Philadelphia formed the eastern limit of the region of Persea (Josephus, War, iii.3,3). It
was of the cities of the Decapolis, and a- far down as
the lib century was esteemed oi fthe most remark- able and strongest cities of the whole of Ccele-Syria (Kusebius. (/wimas/.; Ainmianus Marc, in Kilter, p. 1157). lis magnificent theatre (said to be the largest
in Syria i. temples, odeon. mausoleum, and Other public buildings were probably erected during the 2d and 3d centuries, like those of Jerash, which they resemble in style, though their scale and design are grander (Lind-
tian bishop, and was one of the nineteen sees Of "PalffiStina tenia" which were subordinate to BoStTB
(Reland, PalassU p. 228). The church still remains -in excellent preservation" with its lofty steeple (lord Lind- say i. Some of the bishops appear to have signed un- der the title of Bakatha; which Bakatha is by Epi- phanius (himself a native of Palestine) mentioned in such a manner as to imply that it was but another name for Philadelphia, derived from an Arab tribe in whose possession it was at thai time (A.D. cir. 100). Bui ibis is doubtful (see Reland, PakesL p. 612; Ritter, p. 1157), When the Moslems conquered Syria, they found the city in ruins (Abulfeda in Ritter, p. 1158; and in note to lord Lindsay); and in ruins remarkable for their ex- tent and desolation even for Syria, the "laud of ruins." it still remains. The ancient name has been preserved among the natives of the country. Abulfeda calls it Amman {Tab. Syr. p. 19), and by that name il is still known. The prophet Ezekiel foretold thai Kabbah should become "a stable for camels," and the country "a couching-place for docks" (Ezek. xxv. 5). This has been literally fulfilled, and I'.urckhardt actually found that a party of Arabs had stabled their camels among the ruins of Kabbah. Too much stress has. however, been laid upon this minute point by Dr. Keith and others {Evidence from Prophecy, p. 150). What the prophet meant to say was that Amnion and its chief city should be desolate; and he expressed il by refer- ence to facts which would certainly occur in any for- saken site in the borders of Arabia; and which are now constantly occurring not in Kabbah only, but in main- other places. Kabbah lies aboul twenty-two miles from the Jordan at the eastern apex of a triangle, of which Heshbon andes-Sall form respectively the south- ern and northern points. It is about fourteen miles
THE RUINS OF
RABBATH -AMM0N
(PHILADELPHIA) From de Saafari\faa& cnTerre Sainte.
from the former and twelve from the latter, .brash is due north, more than twen- ty miles distant in a straight line, and thirty-five by the usual road (Lindsay, p.278). It lies in a valley which is a branch, or perhaps the main course, of the Wady Zerka, usually identified with the Jabbok. The Moiet- Am- man, or water of Amman, a mere streamlet, rises within the basin w hich contains the ruins of the town. The main vallej is a w inter tor- rent, inn appears to be per- ennial, and contains a quan- tity oi fish, by one observer said to be trout (see Burck- hardt, p. 858; «i. Robinson, ii. 171: "a perfect fish-pond," Tipping }. The Btream runs from west to east, and north of ii i- the citadel on ii- iso- lated hill. The public build-
KABBAH
865
RABBENU GERSHOM
%<
-rwm:
ipproaching it from the South.
ings are said to be Roman, in general character like those at Jerash, except the citadel, which is described as of large square stones put together without cement, and which is probably more ancient than the rest. Among the ruins are chiefly noticeable a spacious church, built with large stones, and having a steeple; a temple, with part of the side walls and a niche in the back wall remaining; a curved wall along the water- side, with many niches, and in front of it a row of large columns, four of which remain, though without capitals; a high-arched bridge over the river, still perfect, apparently the only one that had existed. The citadel on the hill, a structure of immense strength, and the theatre have been referred to above. The re- mains of private houses scattered on both sides of the stream are very extensive. They have been visited, and described in more or less detail, by Burckhardt {Syria, p. 357-360), Seetzen (Reisen, i, 396; iv, 212- 214), Irby (June 14), Buckingham (£. Syria, p. 68-82), lord Lindsay (oth ed. p. 278-284), G. Robinson (ii, 172- 178), lord Claud Hamilton (in Keith, Evid. of Pro/,/,. ch.vi), De Saulcy (Dead Sea, i.387 sq.), Tristram (Land of Israel, p. 544 sq.), Porter (Handb. for Palest, p. 302), Badeker (Palastina, p. 319). and the Rev. A. E. North- ern, in the Quar. Stati ntu ut of the " Pal. Explor. Fund," April, 1872. p. 57 sq., where a plan is given.