Several thousand archaeological and historical sites have been registered on the territory of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan during recent decades. Given this abundance of cultural Heritage, it is surprising that there are still larger groups of monuments that have not yet been perceived neither by experts nor the general public. The more is it astonishing, since this concerns in particular religious monuments of Islam.
The catalogue of the “Islamic Heritage Sites of Jordan” presented here in its second, improved and slightly enlarged electronic edition comprises bit more 450 of these religious sites from the time of the Rashidun caliphs to the decline of the Ottoman Empire (early 7th to early 20th centuries AD). According to our cautious estimate, this might be about 30 to 40% of the total stock of monuments of this category preserved in Jordan. While sincerely striving for full coverage in future, this gazetteer in its actual edition offers, therefore, only a small segment of the country’s rich cultural Islamic heritage. This predominantly includes religious monuments, but not at first hand secular buildings such as fortresses, schools, baths or markets.