The Madaba Regional Archaeological Museum Project (MRAMP) has made significant progress during the past few years in preparing the Madaba Archaeological Park West for a new museum, according to one of its co-directors Douglas Clark.

The project aims to repurpose the current museum for research and storage, and create virtual tours of major archaeological locations in Madaba, noted Clark.

Cleaning and clearing of vegetation and clutter are ongoing at the Madaba Archaeological Park West, site of the proposed new museum, funded by USAID via the Sustainable Cultural Heritage through Engagement of Local Communities Project (SCHEP), which is implemented by the American Centre, he said

Clark added that the new MRAMP website was launched in January 2021.

The new MRAMP website hosts features and components about the larger MRAMP project, virtual exhibitions, a 3D video tour of the proposed new museum, digital regional maps and timelines, and much more, said Suzanne Richard, who is also a co-director of the project.

She noted that the website will become the central source of information about the ancient Madaba region and the major contact point for people hoping to engage with the new museum.

"Furthermore, two training workshops were held recently: Artifact Handling [September 2020] and the Pottery of Jordan [the first of several – January 2021]. Both of these workshops resulted in manuals especially designed for use in Jordan’s archaeological museums and by Jordanian archaeology students and professionals working in Jordan,” Richard said.

She said that the past 15 months have witnessed major transformations of museum spaces into three storage rooms, which have been renovated and upgraded and also equipped with new heavy-duty metal shelving units and appropriate furnishings, as well as two display areas, one for antiquities and one for folklore material culture. 

MRAMP managed to create an entire online programme of virtual tours of the Hippolytus Hall/Church of the Virgin Mary, the Burnt Palace, and St George’s Church, Richard said.

Titled "One Place, Many Stories: Madaba, Jordan”, the enhanced virtual tours were formally launched on International Museum Day, May 18, she said.

The project continues to employ and train several local colleagues and specialists, Clark said

 "We are planning to be in Jordan in July to begin again where we left off with onsite activities,” Clark said.