By Rula Samain
Amman- On her first visit to Jordan, Natalia Poulou, president of the European Centre for Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Monuments, described the visit as the realization of a lifelong archaeological dream.
Drawing on decades of expertise in the restoration of Byzantine monuments across the Christian world, Poulou stressed that Jordan preserves exceptionally important monuments from north to south.
“As the president of the center that has been involved in the restoration of Byzantine monuments throughout the Christian world, I am in position to acknowledge that Jordan preserves exceptionally important monuments from the north to the south of the country,” said the Poulou also a professor of Byzantine archaeology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
According to Poulou, these artistic masterpieces are not only aesthetic treasures, but also economic and social indicators of ancient life.
What makes these monuments especially significant, the professor explained, is that many belong to a historical period of direct Christian–Islamic contact.
“This is very important because we can see the very good relationship they had in these periods,” she said, emphasizing the value of Jordan’s sites for understanding coexistence in Late Antiquity.
She noted that scholarly knowledge of the 7th, 8th, and 9th centuries AD in the eastern Mediterranean remains limited, which further increases the global academic importance of Jordan’s monuments.
“For this reason, I think the monuments of Jordan are of exceptional significance,” she affirmed.
Poulou highlighted that Jordan was already a central landmark on ancient pilgrimage routes as early as the 4th century AD.
“We know that from the 4th century, northern and southern Jordan are mentioned in the pilgrims’ itineraries through their travel to the Holy Land,” she explained, adding that for many centuries the region remained at the very heart of Christian pilgrimage geography.
Her impressions of Jordan’s heritage were deeply shaped by the country’s architectural and artistic richness, particularly its mosaics.
“I have been deeply impressed by the architectural diversity found in each monument, and by the splendor of the mosaic pavement,” she said. “For me,” she added, “it is truly extraordinary the riches of the mosaic pavements in the country.”
“All of these riches reflect the presence of prosperous communities during the Roman and Byzantine periods. They had a lot of activities and enough wealth to fund the construction of all of these pavements,” she observed.
One of the most remarkable aspects for her as a Byzantine specialist is the dating of many Jordanian monuments to periods after the 6th century.
“This contributes enormously to our understanding of the coexistence of Christian and Islamic communities in the region during these times. For us, it was very important to see that,” she noted.
She also stressed the exceptional integration of these monuments within the natural landscape, describing this harmony between culture and nature as “very, very important” from both archaeological and conservation perspectives.
Beyond scholarly appreciation, Poulou placed strong emphasis on the necessity of international collaboration for the protection of Jordan’s heritage.
“First of all, I consider that collaboration between Jordanian, Greek, and European institutions in the protection of monuments here is very important,” she said.
She underscored that such cooperation must operate on multiple levels; between the European institution and Jordanian authorities, and between Jordan, Greece, and broader European partners.
As President of the European Centre, she expressed deep satisfaction at the tangible results already achieved.
“It is a very great satisfaction for me that we have managed to initiate a very important collaboration with the authorities of Jordan and to bring about the restoration of a very important monument,” she stated, expressing hope that this partnership will continue and expand.
Founded in 1997 in the Greek city of Thessaloniki, the European Centre for Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Monuments operates as a private-law entity under the supervision of the Greek Ministry of Culture. Its work extends far beyond Greece to the Balkans, the Black Sea region, the Near East, and the wider Eastern Mediterranean.
In Jordan, this collaboration materialized through a major conservation initiative at the Mar Elias archaeological site, in Ajloun governorate in northern part of Jordan.
In recognition of Jordan’s “very big, profound, and diverse cultural heritage,” and in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Jordan and the Archaeological Society of Kyriakoupolis, the Centre undertook the conservation of one of Mar Elias’s significant mosaic pavements, a project Poulou described as both scientifically and symbolically significant.
For scholars of Byzantine history her testimony affirms Jordan’s position as a leading archive of shared Mediterranean heritage, deserving sustained international protection and collaboration.
“It was a dream as an archaeologist to visit Jordan, and now I see that dream has become a reality,” she told Anovia, expressing both personal emotion and professional admiration for the country’s extraordinary cultural wealth.
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