The bridge is 70 m (230 ft) long, with one main arch being the only one letting through a permanent flow of water. In addition it has six smaller arches, higher up in a second row, presumably to help the flow during flooding of the river. The main arch .[1]
The bridge shows at least two major phases of construction; a possibly Roman-origin lower level and the upper pointed arches likely from the medieval period.[4] Some sources state that the bridge was built in Roman times, and others that it was built in the Middle Ages. A 1925 letter written by the Palestine Department of Antiquities wrote that the bridge was first built in Roman times.[1] This is supported by a Roman milestone discovered nearby, which given the scarcity of other local structures makes it likely that a Roman river crossing existed at the point.[1]
The bridge underwent at least two major repairs during medieval times, by Usama al-Halabi during the reign of Saladin (1174–93), and one by a "Jamal ad-Din" in 1266–67.[4]Shihab al-Umari, writing in the mid 1300s, wrote of a renovated stop en route from BeisantoIrbid called Jisr al Mujami, also knows as Jisr Usama, after Saladin's emir who repaired it.[1] A manuscript in the Bibliothèque nationale de France states that it was built by Mamluk sultanBarquq (r. 1380s–90s).[8] An epitaph of a Muslim from Bitlis who drowned at Jisr al Majami in October 1308 has been found under the Ottoman floor in the khan.[9]
James Finn wrote in 1868 that the bridge was "in tolerably good condition, with one large and several smaller arches in two rows, and a dilapidated khan at the western end... The khan has been a strong edifice, but the stones of the massive gateway, especially the great keystone, are split across, as if from the effects of gunpowder." Finn noted a story of "the wandering minstrels, even now among the Bedaween, sing the songs of the forty orphan youths who competed in poetic compositions under the influence of love for an Arab maiden at the bridge of Mejama'a."[12] The PEF's Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) noted that the name was related to the "Bridge of the Gatherer", which became the As-Sirāt.[13]
The bridge was spared during the 1946 Night of the Bridges, but was damaged during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, primarily caused by the explosion of mines placed on the parallel 1920s road bridge.[15]
A railway bridge was built parallel to it in the early 20th century to carry to Jezreel Valley railway,[citation needed] opened in May 1904,[16] and a road bridge was built in the early 1920s.[citation needed] At 246 m (807 ft) below sea-level, it was the lowest point ever reached by railway anywhere in the world.[16]
Around 1365 a khan (caravanserai) was built at Jisr al Majami.[17]
In 1849, William F. Lynch described the ruins of the khan as “A ruined khan crowned the crest of the hill, at the foot of which large masses of volcanic rock or tufa were lying about, as if shaken from the solid mass by the spasm of an earthquake. The khan had evidently been a solid structure and destroyed by some convulsion, so scattered were the thick and ponderous masses of masonry.”[18]
In 1875 Victor Guérin visited, and noted the remains of the deserted khan. The khan was two stories high, built around a courtyard. It was built of basalt stones, with the gates done in the ablaq style; alternating white and black stones. The khan had only one entry. Not far from the khan Guérin noted the ancient bridge, with a central arch being much larger than the side-arches.[19]
2014 bird's eye view of the medieval bridge concealing the modern road bridge behind it, the railway bridge, and the square-shaped ruins of the khan
A small settlement in the caravanserai existed until the early 20th century,[21] in the 1922 census of Palestine, conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Jisr al Majami had a population of 121; 112 Muslims, 4 Jews and 5 Christians,[22] where all the Christians were of the Orthodox faith.[23]
Following the building of the First Jordan Hydro-Electric Power House, the population had totally changed in the 1931 census to a total of 320; 3 Muslim, 316 Jewish and 3 Christian, in a total of in 43 houses.[24] Some of these building were inside the khan itself.[25]
In the 1945 statistics Jisr al Majami had 250 inhabitants; 230 Jews, 10 Muslims and 10 Christians, and the total land area was 458 dunams.[26][27] A total of 15 dunams were used for citrus and bananas, 274 dunums were used for cereals,[28] while 169 dunams were classified as uncultivable land.[29]
The damaged kibbutz was evacuated after the fighting during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and rebuilt approximately 1 km (0.62 mi) to the west, at its present location.[30]
^Byeways in Palestine, 1868, p.104-105: "The name is derived from the meeting of two branches of the Jordan in that place after having separated above."