Petra Tour

Petra Tour The Siq

The Siq is the main entrance to the ancient Nabatean city of Petra in southern Jordan. Also known as Siqit, the main entrance in Petra is a dim, narrow gorge that winds its way approximately 1.2 kilometres and ends at Petra’s most elaborate ruin, Al Khazneh.

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 The entrance to the Siq contains a huge dam, reconstructed in 1963 and again in 1991, designed to bar the mouth of the Siq and reroute the waters of Wadi Musa. The dam is a fairly true reconstruction of what the Nabataeans did to control Wadi Musa between the 1st century BC and the beginning of the 1st century AD. The entrance also contains the remnants of a monumental arch,

but the two abutments and some hewn stones of the arch itself have survived. The arch collapsed in 1896 following an earthquake, but its appearance is known from the lithographs of Matthew Boulby and David Roberts.

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The Siq is used as the grand caravan entrance into Petra. Along both walls of the fissure are a number of votive niches containing baetyl, which suggest that the Siq is sacred to the Nabatean people. In 1998, a group of statues were uncovered when digging was conducted to lower the road by more than six feet. Although the upper part is greatly eroded, it is still possible to recognise the figures of two merchants, each leading two camels. The figures are almost twice lifesize.

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Along the Siq are some underground chambers, the function of which has not yet been clarified. The possibility that they were tombs has been excluded, and archaeologists find it difficult to believe that they were dwellings. The majority consensus is that they housed the guards that defended the main entrance to Petra.

Petra Tour – Al-Khazna

Al-Khazneh is one of the most elaborate temples in Petra, a city of the Nabatean Kingdom inhabited by the Arabs in ancient times. As with most of the other buildings in this ancient town, including the Monastery, this structure was carved out of a sandstone rock face.

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Al-Khazna History.

Al-Khazneh was originally built as a mausoleum and crypt at the beginning of the 1st century AD during the reign of Aretas IV Philopatris.

Its Arabic name Treasury derives from one legend that bandits or pirates hid their loot in a stone urn high on the second level. Significant damage from bullets can see it on the urn. Local lore attributes this to Bedouins, who are said to have shot at the urn in the early 20th century, in hopes of breaking it open and spilling out the “treasure”—but the decorative urn is in fact solid sandstone. Another legend is that it functioned as a treasury of the Egyptian Pharaoh at the time of Moses (Khaznet Far’oun).

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Many of the building’s architectural details have eroded away during the two thousand years since it was carved and sculpted from the cliff. The sculptures are thought to be those of various mythological figures associated with the afterlife. On top are figures of four eagles that would carry away the souls. The figures on the upper level are dancing Amazons with double-axes. The entrance is flanked by statues of the twin’s Castor and Pollux who lived partly on Olympus and partly in the underworld.

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Petra Tour – Impact of tourism 

In 1812, the city of Petra and Al-Khazneh was rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. As Western Europe continued to explore the Middle East, tourism became more common, and by the 1920s, a small hotel had opened near Petra. While Petra was not as popular as larger, more central cities Likewise like Cairo, tourism started to change the economy and social structure of the Bedouin people who lived nearby.

certainly, tourism is the main source of income in Jordan. Hotels, souvenir shops, restaurants and horse rental services are all found within a few mile radii of Petra itself. While the economic effects have been largely positive, the site itself faces threats from increased tourism.

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Humidity from large crowds of people visiting the site can cause damage to the dry sandstone. White spots have appeared on walls and columns from stearic acid deposition due to hands resting against the walls. The Khazneh surface itself has receded by 40mm in less than ten years from touching, leaning, or rubbing on the walls of the Khazneh.

Petra Tour – Nabatean Amphitheater

Petra Theater is a first century AD Nabataean theatre situated 600 m from the centre of Petra. A substantial part of the theatre was carved out of the solid rock, while the scene and exterior wall were constructed. The theatre’s auditorium consists of three horizontal sections of seats separated by passageways and seven stairways to ascend. The theatre could accommodate a number of approximately 8500 people, more than the estimated number of Amman theatres. Petra Theater follows similar architectural patterns of Roman theatres, which enhances superior acoustics.

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The theatre was built in the cultural and political apex of the Nabataean kingdom under Aretas IV (9 BC-40 AD), where large scale civil construction projects in Petra and other important Nabataean trading cities in Hijaz and the Negev took place. It is said that the theatre-building activities of Herod the Great may have urged the Nabataean king to follow the lead. The massive theatre with its large capacity positioned to bring the greatest number of tombs within view.

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Although Roman in design, being carved out as opposed to being built is characteristically distinctive Nabataean style and not a Roman manner. The floral capitals of the theatre are also distinctively Nabataean artistic element. Minor alterations of the theatre were made by Aretas son Malichus II and later on the Romans who re-built the exterior wall. Reference

Qasr al-Bint – Petra Tour

The Qasr al-Bint is a religious temple in the Nabataean city of Petra.  It faces the Wadi Musa and is located to the northwest of the Great Temple and to the southwest of the Temple of the Winged Lions. One of the best-preserved of the ancient structures surviving in Petra today, it stands near the monumental gate and was a key focal point on the collonaded street, as well as a focus of religious worship

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Name 

The full modern Arabic name of the ruin is Qasr al-Bint Fir’aun, or “the palace of Pharaoh’s daughter.” This name derives from a local folktale according to which the virtuous daughter of a wicked Pharaoh determined to decide between her suitors by setting them the task of providing a water supply for her palace. Two suitors completed the task simultaneously by directing water to the palace from different springs in the hills surrounding it. The princess accepted the more modest of the two suitors who ascribed his success to God.

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Associated Deity 

The deity to whom the Qasr al Bint dedicated has been a source of scholarly debate. The temple faces north towards a sacrificial altar that dedicated to Dushara, the main Nabataean deity, and due to this spatial connection, it has been suggested by some scholars that it also Dushara who worshipped at the Qasr al-bint A Greek inscription in the chamber to the east of the cella suggests that Zeus Hypsistos may also have received devotions at the Qasr.

Others have suggested that the presence in the cella of a baetyl stone fragment, which originally would have been placed on a base faced with gold, indicates that it was actually Al-Uzza, equated with the Greek goddess Aphrodite, that worship here Healey, who is considered one of the main authorities on Nabataean religion, believes that the Qasr may be the Temple to Aphrodite that is referred to in the Babatha correspondence, a cache of documents that were hidden in a cave at the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt.

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Plans and Material 

The Qasr al-Bint sits upon a podium made of a rubble core retained by courses of ashlar masonry.  The temple itself is also constructed of ashlar blocks. Access to the temple is provided by a monumental marble staircase of 27 steps, which is divided by a landing. The plan is square and consists of a pronaos (or vestibule), a naos (or chamber), and a tripartite adyton which contains the cella, the most sacred part of the temple.

Also, The vestibule was originally framed by four columns with Corinthian capitals. None of these columns remains to stand, but fragments of the capitals have been found^[1]. There are additional chambers on either side of the cella^[6].  These two chambers originally had upper rooms that could be accessed by staircases concealed in the building’s thick walls^[1][6]. Both the interior and exterior walls were originally covered in decorative plasterwork, some of which is still extant ^[3]. Wooden-string courses line the lengths of the walls, and wooden wedges can still be found between some of the stones^[4]. The wood used in the structure has been identified as Lebanese Cedar.

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Chronology and Dating 

The chronology of the Qasr al-Bint debate for decades. so It appears that the current structure was built on the remains of an earlier poorly understood monument ^[4]. Pottery fragments recovered from the base of the structure have been dated to 50-30/20 BCE^[4]. Dates have been suggested for the current building ranging from the first century BCE to the end of the first century CE^[1]. Radiocarbon dating of the remaining wood from the site, which did in 2014, indicates that the structures have a terminus post quem (earliest possible date for construction) at the beginning of the first century CE.

This date is supported by the similarities between the architectural decoration of the Khazneh, which has been firmly dated, and that of the Qasr al-Bint^[4]. Stylistically, buildings of this date have intricate mouldings and capitals with fine floral motifs, both of which have been found at the Qasr al-Bint ^[7]

Secondly, the phase of construction dating from 106 CE to the late third century CE is also attested based on the presence of inscriptions, coins, and pottery.^[1].

At some point, probably during the Palmyrene revolt of 268-272 CE, the Qasr al-Bint vandalized and burned. It later occupied and looted for building materials during the Medieval period^[1].

During the Medieval period, a ramp was constructed in front of the temple using architectural fragments and column drums from the structure itself. It is believed that the ramp was placed there in order to allow for the removal of some of the stones, which were then reused in other structures.

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Seismic Resistance 

The Qasr al-Bint is one of the few ancient built structures that remain standing in Petra. This is in spite of the fact that ashlar masonry, which is used in its construction, is vulnerable to damage by ground vibration during earthquakes. The symmetrical plan of Qasr el-Bint may have helped to reduce the moments of torsion that occurred during a seismic activity at the site, however. The use of wooden string courses may also have enhanced the energy dissipation capacity of the structure. Some scholars believe that it is due to the inclusion of these wooden-string courses that the building is still standing at its full height.^[6]    Reference.

The Urn Tomb (The Court) in Petra – Petra Tour

This derived its name from the jar that crowns the pediment. so It was probably constructed around 70 AD. It is preceded by a deep courtyard with colonnades on two sides. High up in the facade there are 3 niches that give on to small burial chambers, but which adapted in 446 AD to serve as a Byzantine church.

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Great Temple (Petra) – Petra Tour

The so-called Great Temple at Petra is a grand monumental complex that lies south of Colonnaded Street at Petra. It covers an area of ~7,560 m².  The complex was probably completed in the early first century CE, under the rule of Nabataean king Aretas IV, as suggested by architectural and sculptural details.

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The “Great Temple” occupied a prime spot in ancient Petra: from its ruins, one can now see the Siq to the Southeast, the Qasr al-Bint to the West, and the Lower Market/Petra Pool Complex to the East.  It is unclear whether the complex is a religious or administrative building, and—if it is indeed religious—how exactly it functions or to what deity it dedicate.

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History of research

In the 1890s, the ruins were superficially explored by German archaeologists R. E. Brünnow and A. von Domaszewski^[1]. Walter Bachmann then surveyed Petra as a member of the Preservation branch of the German-Turkish army, also it was the first scholar to identify the monument by its current name in his 1921 revision of the Petra city plan^[2]. Martha Sharp Joukowsky of Brown University initiated archaeological excavations in 1993 and her team’s research has informed the bulk of scholarly interpretations^[3].

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Architecture 

The “Great Temple” is a rectangular complex align on a Northeast-Southwest axis.

From the collonaded street, one ascends about ~8m up a flight of stairs that is about 17m wide into the Propylaeum. This monumental stairway altered both immediately after the building of the Great Temple and during the construction of Colonnaded Street in ca. 76 CE (Joukowsky 2001 p44).  The Propylaeum and street sit at ~8m under the Lower Temenos, which itself is 6m beneath the Upper Temenos and the bulk of the temple. The “temple” proper lies immediately south of the Upper Temenos.

Two exedrae (semicircular recesses with benches) lie to the east and west of the monumental stairway that joins the Lower and Upper Temenos. The temple itself was built with four frontal columns stuccoed in red, yellow, and white for a stark contrast against the sandstone environment, and would hypothetically have stood at 20m.

similarly, a height is comparable to that of the Qasr al-Bint’s current 23m, but not as grand as the Khazneh/Treasury, whose facade reaches 39m (Jarus 2012). A theater-Likewise as structure (theatron) with about 600 seats dominates the interior of the temple beyond the Upper Temenos, where traces of extensive decoration remain in gold leaf and coloured stucco.

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Water management also plays a significant role in the architecture of the “Great Temple,” as two sizable cisterns of 59m3 and 327m3 (approximately 59,000 and 327,000 litres’ capacity respectively) have been found. The cisterns feed into a subterranean canalization system, which runs the length of the temple and then joins the citywide water distribution system.

so These channels may then have led to the Qasr al Bint and Wadi Siyagh.

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Significant finds

Even before systematic excavation, carved architectural fragments (debris from earthquakes)  scattered around the precinct.

Among the most spectacular finds discovered during excavation are two largely intact elephant-headed capitals, with four heads in place of an Ionic capital’s volutes. These were found near the Lower Temenos in 2000, with 328 fragmented elephant-head elements found in total (Joukowsky 2001 p47).  In addition to the capitals, excavators found eight limestone relief panels depicting male and female busts, speculatively identified as in reference to Apollo/Ares, Aphrodite/Amazon, Tyche/Fortuna, and others

Other finds included lamps, coins, Roman glass, ceramic figurines and vessels, with multiple Corinthian acanthus capitals and floral friezes. These artefacts point towards the construction of the “Great Temple” beginning in the mid-late first century BCE.

also, Nabataean painted ceramics, painted and inscribed plaster, and a bronze plaque recovered in the Upper Temenos.

To the southeast of the Upper Temenos, a cultic or votive figure carved in bas relief was found, rendered as holding a sword or dagger and hidden by an ashlar perimeter wall

This figure suggests that the so-called “Great Temple” may be used as a place of worship.

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Interpretations

At the centre of discussion about the “Great Temple” is whether Bachmann’s postulation about the structure’s function as a temple is correct.

Joukowsky argues that due to the presence of a “theatre” as opposed to a canonical cella (the main chamber of a canonical Greek or Roman temple), also the building cannot be repurposed to serve as a religious space.

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Joukowsky makes the argument that the temple proper is comparable to what Arthur Segal describes so as “ritual theatres”, whose defining characteristic is a view of a notable natural or man-made feature.^[1][6]

also as excavation has proven that the cavea (seating area) predates the stage and had existed for a time without it – allowing for spectators to look out at the Wadi Mousa – Segal’s definition may be applicable to the “Great Temple”.

As also happens with other religious buildings in Petra, it is unclear what deity, if any, the Nabataeans would have worshipped at the “Great Temple”. Votive figures Likewise the sword-carrying one to find in its southernmost passageway are common elsewhere in Petra, and may they be left by stonemasons asking deities to bless their work, or communicating their remorse at altering natural rock formations.

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more

Aniconic baetyl makes it conceivable that the Nabataeans’ principal deity Dushara or his partner Al-‘Uzzá, but could be venerated in this structure.

also, Some scholars foreground civic functions, examining the “Great Temple” with reference to standard Greco-Roman spaces Likewise the bouleuteria (council chambers) and comitium/curia (Roman political meeting place).

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The interpretation of the “Great Temple” as an administrative centre is arguably supported by several references to a boule or council in the extant papyri from the late 1st to early 2nd century CE Babatha archive.

Babatha was a Jewish woman whose letters have illuminated much about Nabataea and Roman Provincia Arabia, with most of the letters pertaining to transactions and legal ownership of property.

Another find that upholds the option is a Roman Imperial inscription in Latin. Likewise date back to the second century, it acknowledges the emperor of the time by name and titulature, and find it in a western chamber of the temple.

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