Discover Amman: History and Culture

Amman offers a range of cultural highlights: a long history of settlement, historic museums and buildings, contemporary art, and street life around cafés, restaurants and galleries. If you’re looking for a hotel for your stay, it may help to consider which themes you want your trip to focus on. Each of the places described has its own emphasis—from archaeological history to art and gastronomy.

Archaeology and History in Amman

The Amman Citadel, also known as Jabal al-Qal’a, has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. Settlement continued through the Iron Age, the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods, and the Umayyad, Abbasid, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman periods. For travelers interested in history, this long sequence of named periods is a particular highlight of the Citadel.

The Jordan Archaeological Museum was established at the Citadel in 1951 to display artifacts from excavations at archaeological sites throughout Jordan. Two distinct historical perspectives are brought together here: the Citadel’s long history of settlement and the museum’s purpose of displaying finds from sites across the country.

Amman’s restored Roman Theatre is built into three sides of a hill and can seat about 6,000 people. It is still used for performances. While the Citadel is notable for its settlement periods, the Theatre’s design and its current use as a performance venue shape the impression it makes. If attending a performance is important to your plans, check the schedule in advance.

The Folklore Museum of Costume and Fashion opened in 1971 in the eastern part of the Roman Theatre. It was established to collect and preserve Jordanian and Palestinian folklore from all parts of Jordan for future generations. Its opening history and collection purpose give it a different historical focus from the archaeological museum at the Citadel.

Art, Grounds and City Life

Darat al Funun hosts contemporary art exhibitions and cultural events; the grounds also include a library and gardens. It also attracts people interested in Amman’s traditional architecture and offers views of downtown. Cultural events may vary. If a specific program is important to you, check in advance.

The Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts complex comprises four buildings surrounding a sculpture park with a children’s playground, an open-air stage, a Japanese garden, an Andalusian fountain, a café and a bakery. Thus, the complex as described includes various parts of the park as well as the buildings. Individual offerings may change; if, for example, the café, bakery or open-air stage is important to you, check what is currently available in advance.

Rainbow Street is one of Amman’s oldest streets and a meeting place for local and international visitors. The street is lined with cafés, restaurants and several art galleries. Visitors come to shop, spend an evening or have a meal. This sets it apart from the archaeological sites and museums: the focus here is on venues along a street and different options for spending an evening or having a meal. Individual businesses may change.

The Children’s Museum Jordan is a nonprofit educational institution established in 2007 by Queen Rania Al Abdallah. Since opening, it has welcomed more than 2.5 million visitors. It complements Amman’s historical and artistic highlights with an educational institution that has its own founding history.

For the broader travel overview: Amman.