Petra
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1. Treasury
RuinsThe Siq opens suddenly onto Petra's most famous monument, known locally as the Khazneh. This 130-foot-tall structure displays a splendid frontage graced by a number of mythological figures adopted by the Nabateans from Greek and Roman worship. Castor and Pollux (who after their deaths became the two brightest stars in the constellation Gemini), Amazons, Gorgons, eagles, and other creatures march across the Khazneh's rosy facade. Between the columns of the tholos (the rounded section above the tympanum) are the remains of a female deity holding a cornucopia; she is believed to be al-Uzza, the patroness of Petra and the Nabatean version of Aphrodite, goddess of love.The full Arabic name for this monument is Khazneh Fara'un, or Pharaoh's Treasury. It was assumed by archaeologists to be a royal tomb, and legends of treasures allegedly secreted within have drawn grave robbers to this place for centuries. The urn carved at the top of the tholos was thought to be the hiding place for the hoard. The Bedouin have been taking potshots at it for generations in the hopes of dislodging its contents, a practice whose results are still visible.
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2. Broken Pediment Tomb
RuinsOne of a series of facades carved into the western face of Jabal Madhbah, or the Mount of the Altar, this tomb is characterized by the broken-off gable of its roof, supported by four pilasters topped with Nabatean capitals.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
3. Corinthian Tomb
RuinsSet among some of Petra's finest tombs is one named for its large number of Corinthian capitals, now badly deteriorated, that once decorated its facade.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
4. Obelisk Tomb
RuinsThis upper story of a two-story tomb is named for the four freestanding obelisks that decorate its facade. The lower story, the Triclinium Tomb, was so named because three walls of the empty room are lined with triclinia, a Latin word for this kind of bench. Sacred memorial feasts to honor the dead were held here.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
5. Palace Tomb
RuinsThis unfinished tomb is one of the few in Petra not carved entirely out of solid rock. Many of the tomb's constructed segments have fallen away, so it's hard to ascertain its original dimensions. At the base of the Palace Tomb are the remains of the northern city wall, built after the 1st century BC.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
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6. Renaissance Tomb
RuinsThis tomb, bearing a pediment with three urns, bears a close resemblance to the Tomb of Sextius Florentinus in the main part of the city. It may have been created around the same time, the first third of the 1st century AD.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
7. Roman Soldier's Tomb
RuinsThe headless figure in the niche of this unusual tomb's facade is dressed in typical Roman military garb, while the friezes and floral capitals appear more typical of Nabatean architecture before the Roman annexation. Directly opposite the Roman Soldier's Tomb is a triclinium; the rubble in between was probably once a colonnaded courtyard connecting the two edifices.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
8. Silk Tomb
RuinsThe striations of natural color in the Silk Tomb's rock make it one of Petra's finest (and certainly one of the easiest to spot). The ribbons of rock flow across the facade like a multicolored silk scarf blowing in the wind.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
9. Snake Tomb
RuinsNo outward decoration marks this tomb, but 12 burial niches are carved into the floor inside. The name comes from a rough wall relief that shows two snakes attacking what may be a dog. Notice also the horse-and-rider relief above it.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
10. Tomb of Sextius Florentinus
RuinsThis is one of the few Petra monuments that can be dated with certainty: the name of this Roman governor of Arabia who died in office in AD 128 appears in the Latin inscription over the tomb's doorway.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan -
11. Urn Tomb
RuinsNamed for the vaselike decoration at the top of its pediment, this is the largest of Petra's royal tombs. It is supported by a series of vaults at its lower level, dubbed al makhamah (the law court) by the locals for some long-lost reason; the upper level was called a-sijn (the prison). Although originally carved around AD 70, according to an inscription within, Petra's Byzantine Christians turned the Urn Tomb into a church in AD 446.
Petra, Ma’an, Jordan
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