Petra, originally known to the
Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Arab=”Nabataeans” , it is a symbol of Jordan, as well as Jordan’s most-visited tourist attraction. The Nabataeans were nomadic who took advantage of Petra’s proximity to regional trade routes to establish it as a major trading hub. The Nabataeans are also known for their great ability in constructing efficient water-collecting methods in the barren deserts and their talent in carving structures into solid rocks. Petra lies on the slope of “Jebel al-Madhbah” (identified by some as the biblical “Mount Hor” in a”Depression (geology)” among the mountains which form the eastern flank of “Arabah” (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the “Dead Sea” to the “Gulf of Aqaba” . It has been a “UNESCO” “World Heritage Site” since 1985.
The site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when it was introduced by Swiss explorer “Johann Ludwig Burckhardt” . It was described as “a rose-red city half as old as time” in a “Newdigate Prize -winning poem by “John William Burgon” . UNESCO has described it as “one of the most precious cultural properties of man’s cultural heritage.Petra was named among the New7Wonders of the World in 2007 and was also chosen by the