Petra is listed in the New Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and rightfully so. It is a spectacular site and so visually stun-ning, one stands amazed at its beauty and architecture.
Here is a quote from my dear friend, Darvis McCoy, on his first visit to Petra:
Petra is a city literally sculpted out of cliffs in a deep, winding canyon in Jordan. My wife and I visited this incredible city in 2006 on a combination tour of Israel and Jordan. I asked our guide when it was built and he said, “It wasn’t built. It was carved. Out of the cliffs. In the first century before Christ.” Okay then, it was carved by a people known as the Nabateans at a crossroads in the area south of the Dead Sea. Due to the rocky, broken landscape of the area, this canyon was the only passable route for many miles in any direction. The caravans transporting goods anywhere south of the Dead Sea had to pay a toll to the Nabateans or go all the way around to reach their destinations. That would have been something like going from California to Arizona via Colorado, to put it into modern perspective. Since it could only be approached through these narrow canyons, it must have seemed like an impregnable fortress to those who decided to build a city there. As many as 30,000 people lived in this maze that covers more than two square miles.
His entire journal concerning Petra can be found at:
http://thefedorachronicles.com/blackthorn/petra_the_first_time
Petra was chosen as the capital of the Nabateans because it was located in a valley surrounded by sandstone mountains. There are many ways to get into Petra, but none of them are easy, and if the valleys are sealed, it is almost impossible for anyone to enter. The main entrance to Petra is called the Siq; it has sides as high as 650 ft. This gorge and the temple at the end of it (the Kazneh) were popularized in American culture in the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Knowledge of Petra was lost to the Western world until John Lewis Burckhardt tricked his Bedouin guides into leading him there in 1812.
Of the 800 carved tombs in Petra, the Kazneh is the most famous. Its name means "treasure" and comes from the Bedouin belief that the Pharaoh chasing the Israelites hid his treasure in the urn at the top of the Kazneh. Tomb facades were built from the top down. Scaffolding was built and then grooves were carved into the rock. Into these grooves were inserted pieces of wood, which when made wet, expanded and cracked the rock.
As many as 30,000 people may have lived in Petra during the 1st century A.D. It is a misconception that Petra was a city only for the dead. A large earthquake in 363 A.D. destroyed at least half of the city. Petra never recovered from that destruction.
Comments
Post a Comment