Shalom#16

PETRA,  the ancient city that carved it's cemetery out of red sandstone mountains in an area of  southern Jordan, has been called by some archaeologists as the eight wonder of the ancient world.  Petra's rock-cut tombs and other structures were created by the Nabataeans, an ancient Arab tribe who originally came from the Arabian Peninsula. They were engaged  in the caravan business bringing frankincense and myrrh, Indian spices and silks, African ivory and animal hides across the desert to the mediterranean sea for europe. Because of the trade business, it became a wonderful  cultural melting pot. After the collapse of the Nabataean kingdom in  AD 106, Petra was ruled in turn by the Roman and Byzantine empires, the early Islamic Umayyad

Caluphate and  briefly, the Crusaders....all these cultures added to the architecture of  the tombs and city.  

Petra was gradually abandoned after the 14th century and it was completely lost to the West, until a Swiss traveller named Johann Ludwig Burckhardt rediscovered it in 1812.

The Petra based Nabataeans dominated Near Eastern trade for 600 years by selling their incense and spices on the Old Kings Highway.

These people are mentioned in the Old Testament in Gen 12:6, 36:20-21 as being the Edomites.

The ancient main entrance to Petra is 

As-Sig, an impressive narrow gorge of natural

beauty.  The cliffs that make up the Sig are 

180 ft high.  Looks like our beautiful

Lake Powell canyons. Then it opens up 

to this amazing view of Al-Khazneh or the 

TREASURY.  

The Treasury is the pride and joy of Petra 

and is the most beautiful monument there.  

 

From this angle you can see how the TREASURY

was carved out of the mountain.  It is truly 

breathtaking, so much so that it is hard to describe

it.  It was carved in the 1st century BC as a tomb

of an important Nabataean king and some scholars 

believe it was later used as a temple.

A friendly Petra guard.

This was the view of the canyon as we climbed to

more beautiful tombs.  Notice the tombs carved

out of the sides of the mountains. This area the 

tombs were more like caves.

This fellow needed a rest....no we didn't ride him!