• Fig. 3.38a Basilica of St
  Figure 3.38a
  
  Photographs of the basilica of St Theodore's Church during excavation showing the orientation of fallen columns
  
  London, UCL, StTheodore_9_141 17620127_5f4c4c81a9_o.jpg
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Boyer (2022)
  Theodore's Church during excavation showing the orientation of fallen columns from Boyer (2022)
• Fig. 5.5 The Church of St
  Figure 5.5
  
  The Church of St Theodore after excavation with the Cathedral in the background
  
  (courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG))
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
  Theodore after excavation with the Cathedral in the background from Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
• Fig. 5.6 The so-called
  Figure 5.6
  
  The so-called Fountain Court between the Church of St Theodore and the Cathedral after excavation
  
  (courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG))
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
  Fountain Court between the Church of St Theodore and the Cathedral after excavation from Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)

• Fig. 3.38a Basilica of St
  Figure 3.38a
  
  Photographs of the basilica of St Theodore's Church during excavation showing the orientation of fallen columns
  
  London, UCL, StTheodore_9_141 17620127_5f4c4c81a9_o.jpg
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Boyer (2022)
  Theodore's Church during excavation showing the orientation of fallen columns from Boyer (2022)
• Fig. 5.5 The Church of St
  Figure 5.5
  
  The Church of St Theodore after excavation with the Cathedral in the background
  
  (courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG))
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
  Theodore after excavation with the Cathedral in the background from Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
• Fig. 5.6 The so-called
  Figure 5.6
  
  The so-called Fountain Court between the Church of St Theodore and the Cathedral after excavation
  
  (courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG))
  
  Click on image to open in a new tab
  
  Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)
  Fountain Court between the Church of St Theodore and the Cathedral after excavation from Lichtenberger and Raja (2025)

• Site Plan of Jerash
  Plan of Jerash. North is to the right.
  
  Holger Behr - Wikipedia - Public Domain
  from Wikipedia
• Fig. 1 - Plan of Ecclesiastical
  Fig. 1
  
  Ecclesiastical complex at Gerasa, adapted from Beat Brenk et al., "Neue Forschungen zur Kathedrale von Gerasa: Probleme der Chronologie und der Vorgângerbauten," ZDPV 112 (1996): 139-55, fig. 1.
  
  Moralee (2006)
  acomplex t Jerash from Moralee, J. (2006)

• Site Plan of Jerash
  Plan of Jerash. North is to the right.
  
  Holger Behr - Wikipedia - Public Domain
  from Wikipedia
• Fig. 1 - Plan of Ecclesiastical
  Fig. 1
  
  Ecclesiastical complex at Gerasa, adapted from Beat Brenk et al., "Neue Forschungen zur Kathedrale von Gerasa: Probleme der Chronologie und der Vorgângerbauten," ZDPV 112 (1996): 139-55, fig. 1.
  
  Moralee (2006)
  acomplex t Jerash from Moralee, J. (2006)

Crowfoot (1929:19) attributed destruction of the Church of Saint Theodore to a mid 8th century CE earthquake noting that this date fits the latest class of objects which we found upon our floor levels. Crowfoot (1929:26) described the collapsed columns as follows:

The columns, fourteen in number, with their Corinthian capitals, were all lying where they had fallen ; not a single capital was missing, not a single drum had been removed, but not a single one was upon its base ; in the west half of the church the columns had fallen inwards, across each other, but in the east half most of them had fallen to the north after the collapse of the side walls, both of which in this part had fallen to the south. Masons' marks on the sections of the column drums showed that these columns had been used previously for the same building as the engaged columns and certain other carved blocks which we found built into the side walls ; the style of the Corinthian capitals suggests that this earlier building may have belonged to the beginning of the third century, and the lettering of the masons' marks appears to belong to the same period.

Crowfoot (1938:223-4) in Kraeling (1938) described the archaeoseismic evidence at the Church of St Theodore in Jerash.

It was quite clear from the condition of the basilica and the atrium that both had been destroyed by an earthquake. In the basilica all the columns were lying where they had fallen; not a single capital or drum had been carried away, but the bases only were in position. In the west half the columns fell inwards across each other; in the east half most of them had fallen to the north after the collapse of the side walls ; the apse fell outward into the Fountain Court. The violence of the shock which ruined the place was particularly clear at the entrance to the atrium, where some of the upper blocks seem to have turned a somersault in the air. In two of the side chambers there were signs of preparations to salvage building material. Fallen stones and tiles were found stacked in neat piles, but the place was ultimately abandoned wholly to squatters who converted the rooms and alleys round the atrium into stables for their animals and dwelling places for themselves.

Crowfoot (1938:260) in Kraeling (1938) noted that the west wall of the atrium was built of very massive stones, many of them dangerously dislocated by earthquake shocks.

• from Chat GPT 4o, 21 June 2025
• from Crowfoot (1929)

The Church of Saint Theodore was constructed between 494 and 496 CE, as dated by a Greek hexameter inscription. Its destruction is attributed to the 749 CE Sabbatical Year Quakes, based on in situ collapse patterns, architectural damage, and the absence of subsequent occupation layers after a clear seismic event (Crowfoot, 1929:19).

All fourteen Corinthian columns in the nave were found toppled, none upright or looted. In the west half of the church, they fell inward and crisscrossed one another, while in the east half, they fell northward after the southern side wall collapsed southward. No drums or capitals had been moved, suggesting sudden abandonment after a violent event (Crowfoot, 1929:26).

Bronze-clamped wall facings, sections of the chancel screen, and the ambo remained undisturbed beneath collapsed roofing debris. Roofing tiles and timbers—some preserved—were found above these fixtures, confirming that destruction happened while the fittings were still intact. The atrium doorway collapsed in a manner consistent with seismic shock, and multiple other buildings in the complex show stacked rubble or abandoned architectural salvage in preparation for restoration that never occurred (Crowfoot, 1929:25).

In the baptistery and south rooms, blocked doors, covered mosaics, ash layers, and a concentration of collapsed tiles and marble fragments suggest that the earthquake triggered a termination of planned reconstruction. Burnt materials and neatly stacked architectural elements imply an attempt at repair or preservation prior to the site’s final abandonment.

The Fountain Court below the apse, which predates the church, also reveals signs of significant reworking and damage. Severely displaced paving, blocked water channels, and reused architectural fragments further support regional seismic destruction. Though this zone had earlier origins, its final use phases align with the same mid-8th century terminus as the church above.

• from Chat GPT 4o, 21 June 2025
• from Crowfoot in Kraeling (1938)

The destruction of the Church of Saint Theodore is dated to the mid‑8th century CE, specifically the 749 CE Sabbatical Year Quake, based on widespread collapse patterns, severe architectural dislocations, and abandonment without evidence of later repair.

All fourteen nave Corinthian columns were found toppled in situ — none removed or reused — with those in the western half of the church fallen inward across each other, and those in the eastern half fallen northward after the side walls collapsed southward. The apse had fallen outward into the adjacent Fountain Court.

At the entrance to the atrium, upper masonry blocks appeared to have “turned a somersault in the air,” highlighting the violence of the seismic shock. In side chambers, tiles and stones had been stacked for reuse, but abandonment followed before restoration could be completed.

The west wall of the atrium, built of massive stone blocks, was “dangerously dislocated by earthquake shocks,” according to the excavators, confirming that the entire complex suffered catastrophic failure during this seismic event.