Geography of Madaba

Madaba lies 20.5 miles to the south of Amman, Jordan, on the road which leads to Karak and Petra. From Amman the road climbs up in a series of steep zigzags to the plateau above, where it levels off; to the west can be seen the ruins of an Iron Age village, now called Ummal Swaiwin. To the east is the village of Quaismah, and a small square building can be seen to the south of it, which is a Roman tomb of the 2nd or 3rd century CE. The road now crosses a great plain of red soil which produces very fine crops of corn; in spring large clumps of the black iris can be seen here.

Madaba is the first town on the historic King’s Highway which follows the crest of the Mountains of Moab. Six miles north-west of Madaba is Mount Nebo, most prominent point of the Moabite Range. From the top, a half mile up, is a magnificent view of the Dead Sea. Curving below the meandering River Jordan can be traced by the vegetation, and beyond a panorama of mountains. On a clear day Jerusalem is visible in the distance. At Syagha, on the summit of Nebo, Moses is said to have looked over the Jordan to the land of Canaan, and struck the rock at a spot now known as the spring of Ain Mousa.