The River Jordan has shaped humanity’s story, and though it was once a much larger river it remains an artery through lands where history and religion rub against each other, past Biblical sites which touch the lives of Jesus and prophets.
It is the subject of History Hit film The Jordan: A River Through Time (released 26 September) presented by historian Dan Snow, who begins his exploration of the early centuries of Christianity at Mount Nebo in modern Jordan.
From Mount Nebo, a prominent hill 700 metres above sea level, a vast panorama of the surrounding landscape is revealed – including its cherished, ancient features.
“People talk about the Holy Land,” says Dan Snow in the film. “Well, this is it. I’m looking down at the geography of this region, but we’re also looking at history just over there in those clouds.”
The Jordan: A River Through Time
Image Credit: History Hit
On a clear day, Jerusalem is visible 30 miles away. Meanwhile to the south is Bethlehem, and before them is the Dead Sea and the green fields of the Jordan River valley. Should you follow the valley north, you would arrive at the Sea of Galilee, also known as Lake Tiberias.
Provided the conditions are right, Jericho, one of the oldest cities in the world with evidence of human settlement dating back 12,000 years, can be seen from Mount Nebo.
“What a place to get a sense of the geography, the history and the interlocking religions of this region.”
The Jordan: A River Through Time
Image Credit: History Hit
Mount Nebo is a site closely connected with the Old Testament and the story of Moses, Dan explains.
“And this really is the perfect standpoint. This is where Moses was brought and shown the promised land on the far bank of the Jordan for the first time shortly before his death.”
“Mount Nebo’s connection with Moses drew pilgrims here, particularly as the Roman Empire adopted Christianity in the 4th century and morphed into what we call the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire, with its capital in Constantinople.”
An astonishing window into rural life
The church on top of Mount Nebo contains extraordinary pictorial evidence of what this region was like when Byzantine Christianity flourished there 1,500 years ago. Inside the church is a remarkably preserved mosaic which depicts rural life in this region in the 6th century AD.
The Jordan: A River Through Time
Image Credit: History Hit
“It was commissioned by a couple of imperial administrators for this important religious site, this place of pilgrimage,” Dan explains. “It shows beautiful fruit trees, a range of animals and hunting. You get a man on horseback attacking a wild boar with a dog. A couple of figures are fighting lions. One person is just resting, pondering beneath the fruit tree.”
“And at the bottom you have these figures that are dressed and shown to be from elsewhere: a dark skinned African taking an ostrich on a leash, and perhaps someone from Phrygia, someone from Anatolia, with a spotty camel and a zebra.”
“This is an astonishing window into what rural life was like in this holy land 1,500 years ago.”
Watch The Jordan: A River Through Time and more original films by signing up to History Hit.
