This ancient site is so much larger than I had ever imagined. I had always known about the famous Treasury and Monastery, but what else is there? The answer is a lot! If you are wondering what to see at Petra? Here’s a guide that might help.
Treasury & Monastery
These are a given and I have covered both in depth in previous posts. All you need to know about how to reach them and what it is like actually seeing and experiencing these wonders for the first time.
But there is much more to Petra that I had no idea even existed until I began to wander around the site and explore. Let’s begin with the Great Temple.
Great Temple
Discovered in 1992, this fascinating piece of Nebatean history has been an ongoing archaeological project for Brown University for the past 30 years. So far, a massive temple has been unearthed that has laid buried for the previous 2000 years. It is the largest free-standing structure in Petra and was constructed during the 1st century AD.
Included in this three-level complex is a small theatre believed to have been built after the Romans took reign in 106AD. Also find a large central entrance hall, baths, residences, a small inner sacred temple and more.
The different floor tiles present are of particular interest as are the columns. These lay scattered across the site having come crashing down in one of two great earthquakes.
When I visited, the group from Brown was working on uncovering and preserving remnants of original painted plaster. See how vibrant the reds, blue and green are even after 2,000 years.
Colonnaded Street
Visitors cannot miss this. Built by the Romans, it is a white marble road that runs through the centre of the Basin at Petra. Marble cannot be found in Jordan, so each of these large slabs was imported.
Notice the curvature of this street, higher in the centre, during heavy rain, the water would run off to either side and flow into an underground irrigation system. Under the bright Arabian sunshine, this road gleams and can be seen from just about everywhere.
Byzantine Church
Built some centuries later during the middle of the 5th century, the remnants of a Byzantine Church and two others, have been unearthed, across and up the hillside from the Great Temple.
The site has been covered by an open-air structure to protect the exquisite mosaics that cover the floors of both of the aisles. These images are mostly of animals and plants, but also of the seasons, pottery, ocean and spirit.
These are the most complete mosaics unearthed to date at Petra. Did you know that only 15% of Petra has been excavated? Most of this huge ancient city remains buried and yet to be discovered.
Royal Tombs
Petra contains over 1000 tombs, 600 of which have carved facades, more tombs than the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. If one stands in the centre of the city and looks at the surrounding jebals, you will be quite astounded by just how many are visible at any given time.
There is a specific row commonly referred to as the Royal Tombs. They are located on the side of the Khubtha Mountain that overlooks the centre of Petra. They are a spectacular site, perched on these red limestone cliffs.
Urn Tomb
Here find the unusual Urn Tomb, unique in that there is a two-layer substructure that supports the tomb. Another feature this tomb has that no other does is a colonnaded courtyard. Originally there was one on each side of the tomb, but only one remains today due to erosion.
What I found most impressive about this tomb, is the size of the interior space. Many of these huge mausoleums one enters in Petra, have an unusually small interior, with the ceiling barely above the height of the entrance door.
But the Urn Tomb has a truly cavernous grand central room. There is a terrific echo quality and a ceiling that is unparalleled, showing the beauty of the natural rock striations.
Palace Tomb
Another tomb that stands out above the rest is the Palace Tomb, so called because of its resemblance to a Roman Palace. With a massive row of carved pillars on the upper layer and then even a third level with more pillars, it is truly spectacular.
Climbing in to the eroded mouth of the main entrance is wild, as the floor is suspended in air above the ground below. The views from in here of the city centre are marvellous.
Nebatean Theatre
After arriving from Amman and visiting the Roman theatre there, I was delighted to find another here. I remember being in awe of that theatre and it allowed seating for 6,000 individuals. Imagine my surprise when I learned that this one, seats 8,500!
Currently the theatre is closed for exploration, it simply looks too eroded. But climb on and over the stones at the front and peer in at all of the different sections. In the morning this is in shade but come early afternoon, the sun creates a beautiful glow on these layers of carved stone.
There are so many other places at Petra that I could write about, alas, this would become a small book. The best thing I did here, was give myself time. Many tourists are arriving on a day trip from Amman and will simply walk into the site to see the Treasury and leave. If this is all the time you can spare, there is nothing wrong with that. But Petra is a World Wonder, its majestic, massive and truly the most extraordinary site I have ever seen. I spent days here and am so glad I did.
