From wonders of the world and royal resting locations to tales of crusaders, these fascinating info about Petra will amaze you.
Deep within the Jordanian desert, the traditional stone metropolis of Petra has a magical high quality. Carved out of pink sandstone rock, and hidden for hundreds of years till it was rediscovered by a Swiss explorer, it’s simple to see why travellers are obsessive about this place. Transfer over Rome, and overlook concerning the Egyptian Pharaohs – Petra’s Nabatean buying and selling empire was the actual energy within the historical world!
Petra is a crucial a part of Jordan’s cultural heritage, and options on most journey bucket lists – with good purpose! With intricately carved monuments, labyrinthine passageways and a mysterious historical past, this historical metropolis stays some of the stunning and enigmatic locations within the Center East. It additionally holds loads of secrets and techniques but to be found, so unleash your internal Indiana Jones and begin exploring! Listed below are a few of my favorite fascinating info about Petra in Jordan.
21 Enjoyable and Fascinating Info About Petra, Jordan
Petra is without doubt one of the oldest cities on the planet
Petra was based within the 12 months 312 BC because the capital of the Nabatean Empire. This makes it over 2300 years outdated, and one of many oldest cities on the planet.
It’s one of many New Seven Wonders of the World
Petra was named as one of many New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007, and absolutely deserves its place on this prestigious listing. It shares the accolade with different breath-taking historic websites such because the Nice Wall of China, Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal, the Colosseum, Chichen Itza, and the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazil.
It’s additionally a UNESCO World Heritage web site
The Petra Archaeological Park is certainly one of 5 UNESCO World Heritage Websites in Jordan, and essentially the most well-known vacationer attraction within the nation.
The identify ‘Petra’ means ‘rocks’
Appropriately, for a metropolis hewn from stone, the identify Petra really means ‘rocks’. It’s thought to return from the Greek phrase ‘Petros’, which means rock, and was named by Greek guests for its distinctive carved sandstone.
The unique inhabitants had a distinct identify for it
Based on the traditional historian Josephus, Petra was really identified by a distinct identify amongst its Nabatean inhabitants. Inscriptions carved into the partitions of town recommend that it was often called Raqemo, after its royal founder.
Petra is a royal resting place
Petra is filled with intricately sculpted tombs, comparable to the enduring Urn Tomb, a lot of them carved into the façade of the mountains that overlook the remainder of town. These spectacular monuments are thought to have been the resting place of Nabatean royalty, and had been carved between the 1st century BC and the twond century AD. They stand as an everlasting testimony to the wealth and significance of the royal household and Nabatean elites.
Petra has extra tombs than the Valley of the Kings in Luxor
The Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt, is arguably some of the well-known historical websites on the planet, identified for its fascinating set of 63 carved tombs and mausoleums. Nevertheless, some of the fascinating info about Petra is that it is without doubt one of the largest royal tomb complexes on the planet, with roughly 1,000 particular person tombs recognized so far.
Even the Treasury is a mausoleum
One of the well-known Petra Jordan info is that the so-called Treasury is definitely additionally a mausoleum! The Treasury, in any other case often called al-Khazneh, is without doubt one of the most photographed websites in the entire advanced, with magnificent intricate carvings set right into a steep rock face.
Nevertheless, regardless of the identify, this was really the ultimate resting place of the Nabatean king Aretas IV, who died within the first century AD. It was nicknamed the ‘treasury’ by native Bedouins who believed that it was filled with riches.
It’s an open air film set
Many blockbuster movies have been shot in Petra. Filmmakers love its distinctive and dramatic surroundings. Most famously, Petra doubled because the Canyon of the Crescent Moon in Indiana Jones and the Final Campaign, but it surely’s additionally been utilized in The Mummy Returns, and the more moderen live-action Disney remake of Aladdin.
Solely round 15% of town has really been excavated
Petra’s ruins are immense, by any requirements, however extremely, round 85% of the positioning has but to be uncovered. There are various extra secrets and techniques hiding beneath the bottom that will present clues about Petra’s earliest origins, and the later Greek and Byzantine durations in its historical past.
Petra is steeped in Biblical legend
Petra’s legendary origins return a good distance, even way back to Biblical occasions! The valley during which town is discovered is called Wadi Musa (Moses Valley), due to a legendary connection to the Biblical prophet. It’s stated that Moses struck the rock at Petra and water miraculously spouted from the bottom, offering a drink for the thirsty Israelites.
It was rediscovered by a Swiss traveller in disguise
For a few years Petra remained a intently guarded secret, identified to native Bedouin communities, however a thriller for European students. In 1812, a Swiss traveller and explorer named Johann Ludwig Burckhardt disguised himself as a Bedouin and found the positioning throughout an expedition within the Transjordan. He recognized it because the misplaced metropolis of Petra, and sparked a flurry of archaeological excavations.
It’s usually known as the ‘Rose City’
Petra’s stunning sandstone is an unbelievable color, incomes it the nickname ‘the Rose City’. One of the magical occasions to go to is round sundown when the final rays of the solar forged an unbelievable pink hue on the rocks.
Petra is (nearly) not possible to overcome
Petra’s success as a metropolis might have been all the way down to its unbelievable pure defences. The positioning is accessed to the east by a slender, winding gorge often called al-Siq, stretching for over 1km, which might have made it very tough for hostile forces to get in with out being stopped. This appears to have been the important thing to its success for therefore many centuries.
The crusaders had a base at Petra
One of the shocking info about Petra in Jordan is that within the Center Ages, Western crusaders really had a base on the positioning. The stays of the 12th-century al-Wu’ayra fortress, on a hill overlooking the positioning, can nonetheless be visited right now.
Learn extra: High suggestions for visiting Petra
Learn extra: A tour of Petra, Jordan
Learn extra: What garments to put on in Jordan
Vehicles are forbidden in Petra
It’s not attainable to carry a automobile, motorcycle or another type of car into Petra, so in the event you don’t need to get round by yourself steam, you’ll must constitution a 4 legged companion! Donkeys, horse-drawn carriages and camels are all choices throughout the metropolis, though their welfare is typically questionable.
A 3rd of town was destroyed by earthquakes in 363 AD
Petra could also be a formidable fortress metropolis, however its pure defences didn’t cease it from being affected by pure disasters. In 363 AD a devastating earthquake struck town, destroying an estimated third of the positioning.
The town aligns with the solar
The traditional Nabateans who created Petra held a selected reverence for the solar, which they seen as a supply of life, gentle and thriller. Consequently, a lot of Petra’s stunning structure is definitely aligned with photo voltaic patterns, with explicit emphasis on the summer time and winter solstices.
The descendants of the Nabateans nonetheless dwell within the space
The Nabatean civilisation has lengthy disappeared, abandoning solely faint traces of its reminiscence within the specular monuments of Petra. Nevertheless, one native Bedouin tribe can hint their origins all the best way again to the Nabateans. The B’doul Bedouin tribe and plenty of of its members dwell and work within the historical metropolis, appearing right now as tour guides to move on the secrets and techniques of their intelligent ancestors to fashionable guests.
Petra was as soon as well-known for its gardens
Nestled within the dry, dusty Jordanian desert, it’s tough to think about Petra as a lush paradise. Nevertheless, latest excavations have found {that a} advanced irrigation system supplied water to town’s thirsty inhabitants, in addition to fuelling a spectacular advanced of gardens and fountains. These monumental gardens made Petra a real oasis within the desert. The folks of town even had their very own swimming pool!
It was the centre of the traditional spice commerce
Petra’s rise to prominence within the historical world was due partially to its vital function as a hub on the Center Japanese spice commerce. Incense from Arabia, silks from China, and spices from India all handed by this stunning rock metropolis on their option to locations throughout Africa, the Center East and Western Europe.
I hope these fascinating info about Petra have given you loads of inspiration to your subsequent expedition to the Center East! A go to to Petra is a once-in-a-lifetime expertise, and the sight of this beautiful crimson metropolis will dwell with you perpetually.
Learn extra: High Suggestions For Visiting Petra
Learn extra: A Tour Of Petra, Jordan
Learn extra: What garments to put on in Jordan
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