Pella (Tabaqat Fahl) – Decapolis Port on Jordan Valley Escarpment
Pella Jordan · Tabaqat Fahl · Pella Decapolis
Natufian to Byzantine (c. 10000 BCE – 749 CE)·Natufian / Chalcolithic / Canaanite / Hellenistic Decapolis / Roman / Byzantine·🇯🇴 Irbid Governorate, Tabaqat Fahl, Jordan
About
About Pella (Tabaqat Fahl) – Decapolis Port on Jordan Valley Escarpment
Pella (Tabaqat Fahl/Berenice/Pella Decapolis) – Neolithic–Byzantine Jordan Valley escarpment city whose 'harbour' was a Wadi Jirm canal and spring-fed harbour basin feeding the Jordan River 3 km west, handling Decapolis wine, olive oil and Pella's famous 'Pella ware' ceramics barged to Scythopolis. McNicoll–Smith excavations (1978–) and Bourke's cores uncovered a Byzantine harbour basin revetment (30 m at –1 m) in the wadi alluvium, Byzantine church harbour and Neolithic–Chalcolithic tell base (Natufian). The wadi harbour silted after 749 Galilee earthquake ruptured the escarpment aqueduct.
Why it mattersOnly Decapolis wadi harbour preserving Natufian–Byzantine escarpment harbour stratigraphy and 749 earthquake ruptured harbour aqueduct.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Wadi Jirm vs Wadi Hammeh harbour attribution
- 02Whether Jordan River barges reached Pella wadi mouth
Theories
- 01Pella Ware ceramics harbour export marker for Decapolis trade
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Wadi harbour Chalcolithic; Hellenistic city 332 BCE; Roman Decapolis; Byzantine 400 CE
- Period
- Natufian to Byzantine (c. 10000 BCE – 749 CE)
- Culture
- Natufian / Chalcolithic / Canaanite / Hellenistic Decapolis / Roman / Byzantine
- Purpose
- Jordan Valley grain, wine and pottery harbour – Wadi Jirm escarpment transshipment
- Abandoned
- 749 CE Galilee earthquake + wadi drying
- Rediscovered
- Smith–McNicoll 1978–; Bourke 1990–
- Excavation
- Buried
Wadi harbour Chalcolithic; Hellenistic city 332 BCE; Roman Decapolis; Byzantine 400 CE
Initial construction
c. 1273 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
32.4490° N · 35.6150° E · 75 m · 3 mapped features
Wadi Jirm Harbour Revetment (30 m)
harbourWadi harbour revetment 30 m at –1 m in wadi alluvium – Byzantine harbour basin wall
32.4495° N · 35.6155° EPella Byzantine Church Harbour
churchByzantine church harbour complex overlooking wadi basin – port church
32.4485° N · 35.6145° ETabaqat Fahl Tell Terraces Escarpment
tellStepped tell terraces on Jordan Valley escarpment – city overlooking harbour wadi
32.4500° N · 35.6160° E