The Temple of Artemis is the grandest monument in Jerash, dedicated to the city's patron goddess and built in the second century AD at the height of Gerasa's prosperity. It stands on a hill overlooking the rest of the ruins, reached by a monumental staircase from the colonnaded street below — an approach designed to impress on the way up.
Eleven of the original columns still stand, their Corinthian capitals reaching 15 metres above the platform. The temple precinct covers an enormous area and the views from it — across the site to the south, toward the modern town, and over the surrounding hills — give the best sense of how large and prosperous ancient Gerasa was. The approach along the sacred way from the river crossing is almost entirely intact and provides the most dramatic entrance to the temple.