[2] Its peripheral location within the Roman Empire is likely to have saved it from destruction during the Great Persecution that broke out just a few years after the church's construction.

The site was discovered in the Jordanian coastal city of Aqaba in June 1998 by a group of archaeologists who soon started unearthing the ruins.

[4] North Carolina State University archaeologist S. Thomas Parker, who led the excavations, identified the building as a church based on its basilical form, eastward orientation, and some specific finds such as glass lamps.

[2] The Great Persecution resulted in the removal of several Christian buildings in the region; this church's well-preserved status is attributed to its peripheral location within the Roman Empire.

[4] Archaeologists discovered walls up to 4.5 metres (15 ft) high, the foundations of a chancel screen, a collection box with coins, fragments of glass-made oil lamps, and a cemetery with 24 skeletons immediately adjacent to the church.