📷 Jan Simons · Pexels

Where in the world

Jordan

Petra

Nabataean · Jordan

Field notes

civilizations: Nabataean
types: City
built: 800 BCE
occupied: 800 BCE — 700 CE
visitors: 1,142,000 / year
country: Jordan

The site

Petra is the rock-cut capital of the Nabataeans, carved into the rose-colored sandstone cliffs of southern Jordan. Famed for facades like Al-Khazneh and an ingenious system of water conduits, this desert trading hub grew wealthy on the incense routes, peaking around 20,000 people in the first century CE. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders, it still draws over a million visitors a year.

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