PETRA – INTERESTING FACTS
Home > Readers Corner > Petra-Interesting Facts PETRA – INTERESTING FACTS The Crown Jewel of attractions and sites in Jordan, Petra is the mysterious ancient city that was hidden through modern history until being rediscovered by John Lewis Burckhardt back in 1812. The city was lost for so many years because the Bedouins kept it as a secret for them and they used the city as a living area during the winter time and they stayed until 1984 when Petra was announced as a world Heritage site by the UNISCO. The beautiful nature of life in Petra, and the Arabian Bedouin culture, attracted many travelers to stay and live in Petra. And even marry a Bedouin and start a family there. One of the most famous examples is the New Zealander author Marguerite van Geldermalsen who lived with her Bedouin husband Mr Mohammad Abdullah in his Bedouin cave in Petra and then wrote a book about it (Married to a Bedouin). Petra is vast, the city spreads over 264 Kilometers, however, this remains only 20 percent of the city, as most of Petra is still underground yet to be discovered. Excavations has been reestablished back in 2004 with slow process to maintain the authenticity of the city. Some of the newly found sites in Petra is the tombs under the treasury. It is worth to mention that the excavation have reached the original ground level during the Nabatean period in some places, astonishingly they had to dig for around 7 meters deep. The Treasury, which is the first site you see after the end of the Siq (Path to Petra) had its name from the Bedouins, as it was believed that there was a treasure hidden in the Jar at the top of the Treasury. These days you can see bullet holes in the Siq as you walk by before reaching the treasury. There are different theories about the treasury and the reason for it, but most of archeologists suggest that it was a temple and a royal tomb for King Aretas VI. Unless excavations reveal new leads. But lets not forget the people who built the city, the Arab Nabateans, the most famous fact about them is that they were traders, however, the Nabateans also pioneered in engineering and agriculture. One of the best examples on their brilliance in engineering was not only the carved city itself but the intelligent water system and channels throughout the city. Where water channels start from the top of Wadi Mousa (Moses springs) stretching around 10 kilometers to reach Petra, with water channels throughout the Siq to the end of the city where they had tanks carved in stone to preserve water. Another example on their brilliance in engineering is that most of the city doesn’t get wet when it rains! Because when they carved the façade it was carved inside the mountain leaving some rocky overhangs to protect the buildings from the rain. And in other cases there were water channels carved on the top of the façade to redirect rain water to prevent water damage the rocks. As for agriculture, Nabateans managed to make use of the land in between Petra and Beidha (little Petra, which is another Nabatean site) to reach self-sufficiency in agriculture despite the harsh nature of the area by carving water channels and tanks to gather rain water! Only if modern day cities were built like this! More Readings THE MAGICAL KINGDOM OF JORDAN: PART 4 THE MAGICAL KINGDOM OF JORDAN: PART 2 THE MAGICAL KINGDOM OF JORDAN: PART 1 PETRA – INTERESTING FACTS Home > Readers Corner > Petra-Interesting Facts