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It is believed
that the ancient, mysterious and hauntingly beautiful site of Petra in
Jordan has been inhabited (in one way or another) for approximately
9000 years although its existence was kept secret from the modern West
until 1812, when Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt “rediscovered
it” and revealed its magnificence to the world. Petra - Jordan was
designated a World Heritage Site in 1985 and it has been described as
“One of the most precious cultural properties of man's cultural
heritage”, by UNESCO. In Arab tradition, Petra is the place where Moses
struck a rock with his staff and water came forth, and where his
sister, Miriam, is buried.
The word Petra (as with Peter)
means “rock” and is derived from the Greek and Arabic language. It is a
wonderfully appropriate name as this ancient city is literally carved
from the rose-red sandstone hills and outcrops.
Although Petra in jordan is most
commonly associated with the Nabataeans, it has been occupied by many
different tribes and nations over the millennia. The true mystery of
Petra (the lost city) is just how little is known about its history
although this is likely to change as each year new studies and
excavations slowly reveal the secrets of the place. Evidence of
Neolithic habitation of jordan and Petra in the form of six ascending
rows of dwellings has been discovered near Baida and suggests that it
may be one of the oldest recorded known sites of human habitation in
the world.
It has proven impossible to
accurately identify when the history of Petra began in Jordan.
Tradition has it that the first recorded people to live in the area
were the cave-dwelling Horites. It is believed that the Edomites
settled in the region during the first millennium B.C. There is a
reference in the Bible that they were one of the nations that refused
to permit the wandering Jews lead by Moses to enter their lands.
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The Edomites undertook a complete and systematic
takeover of the region (Jordan) and established a stronghold that
included the plains of the Umm al Biyarah plateau. The archeological
remains of many dwellings that date from the 7th century B.C. have been
found in the area. In addition, the remains of cisterns for the
collection of rain water dating from this time indicate that the
occupants were already experimenting with the water management systems
that were to become so important to the success of Petra, the city, in
the future centuries. The nation of Edom is known to have existed back
to the 8th or 9th century BC. The Old Testament dates it back several
centuries further. Recent archaeological evidence may indicate an
Edomite nation existed as long ago as the 11th century BC, but the
topic remains controversial.
(It is worth noting that in keeping with the
mysterious origins of Petra, the American Museum of Natural History
(website) contradicts the belief that Petra in Jordan was also Edom. A
quote from their website on Petra states: "Petra's location in the Holy
Land of Arabs, Christians and Jews added enormously to its allure.
Some writers identified Petra — wrongly — with ancient Edom, cursed in
the Old Testament for having barred Moses and the Israelites. In
long-abandoned Petra, many visitors saw powerful confirmation of the
prophet Jeremiah's words: "Edom shall be a desolation and every one
that goeth by it shall be astonished.")
During the 4th century B.C. a
new nation emerged in the region – The Nabataeans. Little is known
about the origin of these people but it is believed that they were part
of a migration from the south of the Arabian Peninsula. This group
progressively took control of what is today southern Jordan and
established a sophisticated trading network with Petra as their Capital
City.
As their power grew, the
Nabataeans quickly gained control of the trade routes from the Red Sea
to the coast of the Mediterranean. No one is precisely sure what goods
were being moved but it is likely to have been incense, myrrh, spices,
gold and copper as well as precious stones and even some slaves. It is
recorded that in 312 B.C. the ruler of Syria, Antigonus I Monophthalmus
("the One-eyed"), who had succeeded Alexander the Great, initiated two
great attacks on Petra. The first was led by Atheneus and the second
by his own son Demetrius. Both military campaigns failed. The almost
impregnable rocky defenses of Petra and the determination of the
Nabataeans won the day. At the height of their power not only did
Petra possessed the advantages of a natural fortress but controlled the
main commercial routes which passed through it to Gaza in the west, to
Bosra and Damascus in the north, to Aqaba and Leuce-Come on the Red
Sea, and across the desert to the Persian Gulf.
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Unfortunately, not a great deal is known about the
Nabataeans of Jordan although there are references and hints to be found
in the history texts. The first mentions a Nabataean King Harith or
Aretas and dates from the third century B.C. and refers to the
sanctuary that he provided for the High Priest Jason of Jerusalem when
Antiochus confirmed Menelaus, the brother of Simon the Benjaminite in
his place and thus forced Jason into exile. A more accurate timeline of
the Nabataean kings can be established from 100B.C. onwards based on
the appearance of more written references.
The Roman general, Pompey,
appears to have conquered the Nabataeans in 64 - 63 BCE. Fortunately
for Petra he believed that there were benefits to keeping an
independent Nabataea that could operate as a buffer zone against the
desert tribes.
The power and prestige of the
Nabataean kingdom in now modern Jordan reached its peak during the rule
of Harith III Philodermus (84-56 BC) and Harith IV (9bc – 40A.D), Malik
II (40-71 AD) and Rabbel (71-106 AD). Still, even as the Petra City
expanded the first signs that independent Nabataean rule was under
threat were emerging. From the North the influence of the Roman Empire
was growing more powerful. In the South new trade routes were being
discovered and developed that would bypass Petra and even Jordan. Some
historians and environmental experts believe that this was also a
period of noticeable climate change. Petra had always been relatively
dry and had developed a sophisticated system of aqueducts and water
storage cisterns both to provide water and to protect the city from
flash-flooding but now things were changing. At a time when the
successful city demanded more water - there was less rain. The city of
Petra had always depended on importing food but with the decline in
trade it needed to find ways to provide its own. This theory is
supported by evidence of intense agricultural efforts by the Nabataeans
which can still be seen in Southern Jordan and the Negev. In this
climate of change, the Nabataean kingdom still managed to resist the
final absorption of their nation into the Roman empire and survive the
growing economic hardships.
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With the death of Rabel II in 106, the power of the
Nabataeans became precarious. The Roman Emperor Trajan (Marcus
Ulpius Nerva Traianus) already famous for his military success in
conquering the Dacia nation ruled by King Decebalus in 106 A.D. pushed
further east and finally conquered Nabatea in 107 A.D. Trajan ordered
the governor of Syria, Cornelius Palma, to make Nabatea (Jordan) into a
Roman province with the capital at Bosra. For the Nabataeans it was
the end of their power and they began to decline as a nation although
life for the average citizen probably went on as normal. The
short-lived province of Arabia Petraea was formed and although Petra was
no longer the capital of the region it appears to have continued to
grow and do well under its new rulers and was even awarded the title of
metropolis or mother-city. Even if it lacked true power, Petra still
wielded tremendous influence in the region. For example, when Emperor
Hadrian visited it in 130 A.D. he was so impressed with its
magnificence and aura of mystery that he renamed it Hadriana Petra
(Sometimes now referred to as Adriana Petra. Even as the Nabataeans
declined the city experienced an influx of new people from Roman,
Greek, Arabic and Semitic origin. This mixing of cultures must have
made Petra a remarkable and lively place and is perhaps the reason why
it continued to flourish for some time to come. It is during this
period that many of the great monuments were constructed. However,
Roman rule of the region was under constant threat and during the rule
of Emperor Alexander Severus (222 – 235 A.D.) Just when the city of
Petra was at the peak of its new power the first major disaster appears
to have struck Jordan. Many historians attribute this to an invasion
by the neo-Persian Sassanid Empire. Coinage stopped being minted and
there is suddenly no more new and sumptuous tombs being built. The
final decline of Petra had begun. One can only imagine and speculate
what it must have been like as year-on-year fewer traders came to Petra
as the city of Palmyra drew away the Arabian merchants. As time passed
the city would have perhaps taken on a rundown appearance. A person
can just imagine the remaining civic leaders talking over their food
and debating when they too should leave. Records show that Petra in
Jordan did continue to be a successful city and a centre of religion.
Christianity had certainly well established itself in Petra by the 4th
century A.D. – 500 years after the Petra had become an important trade
center. Athanasius of Alexandria (293 – 373 A.D.) mentions a bishop of
Petra named Asterius. At least one of the rock tombs (The Tomb of the
Urn) was used as a church.
A second and more damaging
disaster seems to have struck the rock city in the form of a series of
powerful earthquakes. The city had already had a history of tectonic
spasms as it sits near the boundary of the Arabian plate but this quake
was significantly more damaging than those that had come before. The
date of this event is said to be May 19, AD 363 A.D. and is based coins
found in the ruins and the testimony of Cyril, Bishop of Jerusalem in a
letter he wrote. According to the Bishop more than half of Petra
(Reqem) was destroyed including Qasr Al Bint (House of the Daughter),
The Colonnaded Street, The South Temple and the rock Amphitheatre.
Much more dangerous to the remaining citizens of Petra was the damage
that the quake did to water system of the city. Had the quake
occurred earlier in the history of Petra the city may have rebounded
fully but the slow decline of the past century and the loss of its
status as a trading centre had broken the will of the people to
completely rebuild their rock fortress.
There are claims that “large
Christian Churches carved from the rock ” were still being built and
used during the early Byzantine era in Petra as late as 450 A.D. but
although this comes from a reputable source the datelines don’t quite
match up. What appears to have happened is that further Earthquakes
repeatedly struck the city and the region; each one causing successive
damage.
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It is believed that an Earthquake more devastating
that the one that wrecked the city in 363 AD struck in the year 551 AD.
By all accounts it ruined the rock cut city and further damaged the
partially repaired water management systems.
A person can only speculate what happened next. Did
the remaining citizens quietly gather their belongings and, as a
column of refugees, depart together for other cities or did they drift
away over the years as it became obvious that without the water system
and significant trade the city of rock was finally finished.
Most scholars believe that the
power of the Byzantine Empire appears to have shielded the area from
Muslim expansionism for some time but during 629 – 632 A.D. the Islamic
conquest of the region (now Jordan) appears to have swept away the last
vestiges of Christianity in Petra. Records and references to Petra
become increasingly scarce and it is accepted that by 700 A.D. the city
of rock that had once housed 20,000 people was deserted except for the
Bedouin and the flocks they tended. Finally it seems that history
forgot Petra.
The ruins of the city (and the
region of Jordan) were briefly occupied during the First Crusade by
Baldwin I of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and remained in the control of
the Franks until 1189 A.D. - who called it the Moyse Valley. (Château de
la Valée de Moyse or Sela). However the Crusaders true seat of power
in the area was the magnificent Castle of Montreal (Mount Royal) or
“Shobak” as it is known today, some 16 miles from Petra.
Petra appears again in History
during the late 13th century when the ruins of the Rock City became a
place of curiosity during the Middle Ages and were visited by the Sultan
Baibars (Baybars) of Egypt.
For the following 600 years Petra
becomes a forgotten City. No doubt people new of its existence and
according to Bedouin tradition it remained occupied by nomadic desert
people and occasionally visited by Islamic explorers and travelers.
However, as far as Europe was concerned – it had slipped from memory to
become no more than another legendary place in a mysterious world.
Petra in Jordan was once again
brought to the attention of the West by an explorer by the name of
Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. During his time in Syria he had visited
Palmyra, Damascus and Lebanon but was intrigued with the stories of a
ruined and ancient city forbidden to foreigners. Pretending to be
indifferent to Petra he persuaded his guides to take him though the
Wadi supposedly on route to another destination and thus in 1812 became
the first European to see the city and the tombs for hundreds of
years. He died in 1817 but his book - Travels in Syria (Jordaan) and
the Holy Land (1822) - compiled from his papers revealed the existence
of Petra to the western world.
Today Petra in Jordan is
described a “wonder of the world” and visited by increasing numbers of
tourists. Still largely undeveloped (and protected) it is possible for
a visitor to reach into the sand and stones and pick up a shard of
pottery or a fragment of carved sandstone. It is worth noting that it is
strictly forbidden for any archeological remnants to be removed from
the site.
As we said earlier, the real
mystery of Petra (Reqem / Sela / Rock / Jordan) is how little is known
of its history and the nations that lived there. Hidden under the sands
and rocks are still undiscovered tombs. As recently as 2003 a new
series of rock cut tombs were discovered under the Treasury. The
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan has recognised the importance of this great
archeological site and is making concerted efforts to protect and
preserve it for future generations as well as making accessible to an
often awestruck public.
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The following pages are a pictorial tour of Petra in
Jordan and although there are 30 images, it is probably less than 10%
of what there is to see. If you are thinking of visiting this
incredible place then give yourself at least two to three full days and
stay in a hotel close to the entrance to save wasted traveling time.
All images of Petra in Jordan are our own originals
and are subject to Aquiziam.com copyright. We do grant permission for
these images to be used worldwide for projects associated with any
educational institution on the understanding that they must be credited
to Aquiziam.com with an appropriate hyperlink. The same permission
applies to any registered charity that raises funds for the protection
and preservation of Petra. Under no circumstances should these images
be used for commercial gain or redistributed via any other website.
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