Editing Jerash (section)

===Hellenistic period===
Jerash is the site of the ruins of the Greek city of '''Gerasa''', also referred to as '''Antioch on the Golden River'''.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Cities of the Classical World: An Atlas and Gazetteer of 120 Centres of Ancient Civilization|last=McEvedy|first=Colin|publisher=Penguin|year=2011|isbn=978-0141967639|location=UK}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> Ancient Greek inscriptions from the city support that the city was founded by [[Alexander the Great]] and his general [[Perdiccas]], who allegedly settled aged [[Ancient Macedonians|Macedonian]] soldiers there during the spring of 331 BC, when he left Egypt and crossed Syria en route to [[Mesopotamia]]. However, other sources, namely the city's former name of "Antioch on the Chrysorrhoas," point to a founding by [[Seleucid]] King [[Antiochus IV Epiphanes|Antioch IV]], while still others attribute the founding to [[Ptolemy II]] of [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Egypt]].<ref name="Mashriq">{{cite web|title=Jerash - A Brief History|url=http://almashriq.hiof.no/jordan/900/930/jerash/jerash.html|website=المشرق|access-date=7 March 2018}}</ref>

In the early 80s BC [[Hasmonean dynasty|Hasmonean]] king [[Alexander Jannaeus]] besieged and conquered Gerasa, incorporating it into the Kingdom of Judea. Archeological findings indicate that public buildings in Gerasa may have been destroyed during that period.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Rogers |first=Guy MacLean |title=For the Freedom of Zion: the Great Revolt of Jews against Romans, 66-74 CE |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2021 |isbn=978-0-300-24813-5 |location=New Haven |pages=155, 157, 171, 538}}</ref>  

[[File:Ancient and Modern jerash.jpg|thumb|left|Ancient Jerash against the backdrop of the modern city]]