This early Byzantine church in Madaba, Jordan holds the famous Madaba Map of the Middle East; a floor mosaic dating back to the 6th century AD depicting an area from Lebanon to the Nile Delta, and from the Mediterranean Sea to the Eastern Desert. It is the oldest known geographic floor mosaic in art history.

You'll have time to explore the Tourist Street in Madaba and purchase traditional products at great prices. We'll make sure you receive a good discount.

Dated to the 6th century, the basilica of 32 x 16 m had three doors on the facade. The bases and columns, as well as the capitals and the steps of the synthronon [semicircular bench in the apse for the clergy], are re-used from older Roman buildings. Two rows of ten columns and two pilasters each separate the central nave, tapering to the east, from the side naves. The presbyterium, which is two steps higher than the nave and enclosed by a chancel screen, extends into the nave as far as the third pair of columns. The mosaic had already been damaged in earlier times and suffered further damage during the excavation. In spite of iconoclastic mutilation of the mosaic floor which was repaired by filling the holes with lime mortar, the decoration is still legible in its general outlines and in many of its motifs.

Archaeological site with part of a Roman road, intricate Byzantine mosaics & Ottoman-era buildings.

This operational early-20th-century Roman Catholic church has been transformed into an intriguing destination for visitors and pilgrims by the restoration of the ancient sites upon which it sits.

is a historical church from the Byzantine era located in the city of Madaba in Jordan. The church was discovered in 1902 AD and its name was known from an ancient mosaic inscription that also indicated the date of its construction (578 AD).