Key Facts about Petra

About Petra:

• It is a historic and archaeological city located in southern Jordan.
• It was the center of an Arab kingdom in Hellenistic and Roman times.
• Petra was established in 312 AC, which makes it around 2000 years old.
• It became the capital of the Nabateans people, an Arab tribe, who were referred to in the Bible.
• Under Nabataean rule, Petra prospered as a centre of the spice tradethat involved such disparate realms as China, Egypt, Greece, and India.
• The Romans conquered Petra in 106 A.C, and they turned the territory into a Roman province of Arabia.
• During the second and third centuries, Petra continued to grow, and in the seventh century, the Romans lost the power of Petra to Islam.
• In the 12th century, Petra was once again taken by different leaders, and for a while, Petra was hidden until it was found by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812.
• Features:
  • Many of Petra’s buildings were carved directly into rocky sandstone cliffs.
  • The name Petra comes from the Greek word for “rock.”
  • The city of Petra was built on a terrace with the Wadi Musa (the Valley of Moses) running through it east to west.
  • The valley is enclosed by sandstone cliffs veined with shades of red and purple varying to pale yellow.
  • Petra is home to roughly 800 tombs, therefore known as the “Royal Tombs”, with the most renowned being ‘The Treasury’.
  • To support the ancient city’s large population, its inhabitants maintained an extensive hydrological system, including dams, cisterns, rock-carved water channels, and ceramic pipes.
  • Petra has also been referred to as the “Rose City” because of the color of the stones used in its buildings.
  • Petra has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.