Petra Historical Facts and Pictures

Petra, also known as the rose city, is located in the governorate of Ma’an, of South Jordan. Established in 312BC, the sandstone curved city was the capital of the ancient Nabataean people.

Petra Map

Petra – the rose city

Petra gained the name as the “rose city” due to the color of the stone it is curved in. Depending on the time of the day, the myriad of terracotta colors produces lovely earth tone hues like pink, brown and red, making it all the more visually appealing.

General View of Petra

Street of Facades Petra

Night at Treasury of Petra

Treasury of Petra at Night

Al Khazneh-the treasury of Petra

The city of Petra is popular because of Al Khazneh, the treasury that was originally built as the mausoleum and crypt during the reign of Aretaus IV Philopatris, at the beginning of 1^st century AD. However, unlike the name suggests there is no treasury, it is actually a tomb. There was a myth that the pirates hoarded their looted treasures inside the urn on top of the façade; the bullet marks can still be seen today where the local Bedouins tried to crack it open with their rifles.

Al Khazneh in Tetra

Al Khazneh the Treasury of Petra

Al Khazneh Treasury of Petra

Siq canyon of Petra

The Siq, the main entrance of Petra, is a narrow gorge which winds up to 1.2 kilometers and ends up to Al Khazneb. Although it was mainly used as the entrance of Petra, along the wide walls of fissures there are numerous votive niches with baetyli, which suggests that it was held sacred by the local Nabataean.

Siq Canyon of Petra

Siq of Petra

The famous monastery (El Deir)

Another most impressive monument at Petra is the monastery that is beautifully carved having a huge doorway which is several stories tall in height. It was originally a Nabataean temple, dedicated to Nabataean king Obodas I who reigned in the 1^st century BC.

Inside Al Khazneh Treasury of Petra

Inside of Petra Tomb

Petra Inside

Similar to the design of treasury the monastery is much larger (50m high X 45m wide) but much less decorated. There are engaged columns along with two-half pediments flanking a 10m high urn at the center. The façade is deeply craved on the upper level while the lower portion is flat. Originally surrounded by colonnade, the interior has a single room with double staircase leading to a niche.

The city was discovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812 and became an UNESCO world heritage site in the year 1985 for its natural beauty and stunning marvels.