We cannot ignore the international value of Petra, as it was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985. It was also chosen as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007.
Petra is selected as one of The New 7 Wonders of the World.
The New 7 Wonders of the World was a campaign started in 2001 to choose new Wonders of the World from a selection of 200 existing monuments. The popularity poll via free Web-based voting and small amounts of telephone voting was led by Canadian-Swiss Bernard Weber and organized by the New 7 Wonders Foundation (N7W) based in Zurich, Switzerland, with winners announced on 7 July 2007.
In this article we will know
Why is petra so famous, and
why is petra one of the 7 wonders of the world:
1-Lost city
It was called the “Lost City” because it remained unknown for about five centuries
By the beginning of the eighth century AD, Petra had been largely abandoned and no longer represented an important commercial, political, or cultural site. Although Petra was no longer an important city, Petra had been noted by historians and archaeologists for its unique architecture as well as specific innovations made by it. Nabatean Bedouins who founded the city.
Petra was unknown and undiscovered. To the West throughout the Ottoman period, until the Swiss orientalist Johann Ludwig Burckhardt rediscovered it in 1812 and presented it to the West.
2-Non-Completely discovered
Only about 15 percent of the features of the Petra site have been explored by archaeologists, which means there are still many secrets to uncover.
Satellites and drones also spotted hidden archaeological treasures in the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, which archaeologists estimate to be more than 2,000 years old.
The pictures showed the presence of a huge flat platform, 56 meters long and 49 meters wide, inside which there is a courtyard paved with flat stones and surrounded by columns, from which a huge old staircase descends from the eastern side, and inside the square there is a structure that appears in a strange way, as if it is hidden inside it, in addition to a smaller structure. Scientists estimate the area of the square to be twice the area of a stadium. Olympic. According to “independent magazine “
3-It is not deserted .. inhabited by Bedouins
Until 1985, when Petra was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a Bedouin tribe lived in caves inside the city. The Jordanian government concluded an agreement with them giving them exclusive rights to carry out tourism activities at the site, in exchange for their moving to live in a settlement a few miles from the site.
4-Water in Petra:
The Nabataeans, who were desert dwellers, had long struggled during seasons when rainfall in the region was limited, and when the tribe built Petra they developed a unique system of canals, dams, and cisterns to harvest, store, and distribute rainwater for use year-round.
5-Al-Siq: The strangest entrance:
To enter Petra, you need to pass through a narrow passage called the Siq, which starts at the dam and ends opposite the Treasury. Its length is about 1,200 metres, its width ranges between 3 and 12 metres, and its height reaches about 80 metres. There are decorations throughout the Siq, including sculptures of gods and animals.
The “Siq” is performed on foot, on the backs of animals or in carts pulled by it
6-Treasure of khazan:
The Al Khazneh is the city’s most prominent landmark. It was named so because the local Bedouins believe that the jar above its facade contains treasure.
An ancient building engraved in rock, it is one of the most famous and important landmarks of Petra. It dates back to the first century BC, as it is the first landmark that the visitor faces after entering from the Siq. Its height may reach 40 meters. It is also decorated with Corinthian capitals, friezes, and ornate shapes, where it is crowned with The Treasury building contains a jar containing Pharaonic treasures, according to local beliefs.
7-Importance in heavenly religions
The city has religious and historical importance for the three Abrahamic religions.
the Jews believe that it contains the most important and valuable secret in their history, which is the Ark of the Covenant, which contains the Ten Commandments that God gave to Moses, in addition to the presence of Aaron’s staff in it, and there is the Shrine of Aaron in Petra and on one of its peaks overlooking the ancient city. At an altitude of 1,353 meters above sea level, it is the shrine of the Prophet Aaron.
Muslims believe that they were the dwellings of the people of Thamud, to whom the Prophet of God, Saleh, was sent with the miracle of the camel, according to the narration of the Holy Qur’an.
The city of Petra was ruled by many civilizations, including the Greeks before the Nabataeans in 312 BC, the Romans in 106 AD, and then the Byzantines for 300 years, until in the eighth century AD it became empty of its people due to the earthquake that struck it in 748 AD, and after that they took control of it. In the year 1100 AD, the Crusaders built two castles in it, and the Mamluks entered it and built there a shrine for the Prophet Aaron. During the Ottoman period, the city entered a long hibernation until it was rediscovered in 1812 AD, when it was discovered with the beginning of the orientalists’ trips to the Arab world in the nineteenth century, at the hands of the Swiss orientalist Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. Who learned the Arabic language and studied Islam in Syria, and his book published in 1828 AD, known as “Travels in Syria and the Holy Land,” contained pictures of Petra.
8-Administrative independence:
An authority with financial and administrative independence was also established in Petra in 2009, which is the Petra Tourism Development Region Authority, which aims to develop the region touristically, economically, socially and culturally, and to contribute to the development of the local community.
9- the rose city:
Why is petra called the rose city ?
Petra received the title of “The Pink City” because of its twisted rocks that are the closest to pink in color. It is rich in geological landmarks, as it contains granite rocks that are more than 650 million years old, in addition to sedimentary rocks and sand.
It is worth to be mentioned ,Petra is a historical city located in the south of Jordan in the Ma’an Governorate.
The ancient city of Petra was built by the lost Nabataean civilization. The Nabataeans flourished in the first century BC and the first century AD. The ancient city has touristic importance in Jordan, and other artistic and historical importance.
Book your next tour to petra with why jordan , and discover it’s wanders your self
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