Department of Antiquities (Jordan)

The Department of Antiquities (Arabic: دائرة الآثار العامة, romanized: Dāʼirat al-Āthār al-ʻĀmmah) is a government department in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan with responsibility for archaeological research and cultural heritage management. It is part of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

The department was established in 1923 in what was then the Emirate of Transjordan, a protectorate of the British Empire. Its responsibilities are legislated for in laws no. 24 of 1934, no. 21 of 1988 and no. 22 of 2004.

The department has published an academic journal, the Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, since 1951, and has organised an international conference on the history and archaeology of Jordan every three years since 1980. It also maintains a comprehensive public geographic information system and database of archaeological sites in the country, developed in cooperation with the Getty Conservation Institute, the Middle Eastern Geodatabase for Antiquities – Jordan (MEGA-J).

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