SILOAM SPRINGS — John Brown University says it has received a $1 million gift to help fund an archaeological project in Jordan.
The university said the gift from an anonymous donor will help pay for the excavation, conservation and restoration of an archaeological site, as well as JBU's Jordan Summer Studies Program, the Holy Lands study trip and the biannual Abila Lecture in Biblical Archaeology.
So far, excavation at the Abila of the Decapolis site has focused on five large Byzantine churches, 12 miles of water tunnels running under the city, a Roman bath complex, a Christian monastery and hundreds of Roman and Byzantine tombs.
The university said it has sent more than 100 students, faculty, staff and alumni to work on the excavation site since 2006.