The Temple of Artemis was built in 150 -160 AD. Each of these impressive stone columns with Corinthian capitals stands 39 feet tall and weighs over 20 tons. They were designed to sway during tremors. This explains why eleven of the original twelve columns survived the major earthquake in 749 AD when most of Jerash was destroyed. However, the Hellenistic temple met its fate in 1121 AD when it was torched by the Crusaders after defeating a Turkish army who were using it as a fortress.
