The Oval Plaza, or Forum, is the centrepiece of ancient Gerasa: an enormous elliptical colonnaded square ringed by 56 Ionic columns, most of which still stand. At over 80 metres long and 50 metres across, it is an impressive space even in ruin, and the columns give it a sense of enclosure and grandeur that most ancient forums — which were rectangular — do not achieve.
The plaza was the main public gathering space of the city, where markets were held, announcements made, and festivals celebrated. The original paving stones are still in place beneath your feet, worn smooth by two millennia of foot traffic. At the southern end, steps lead up to the podium of the Temple of Zeus; at the northern end, the colonnaded Cardo Maximus leads into the heart of the city.