Original subtitles

Narrator: PETRA -- AN ANCIENT AND MYSTERIOUS CITY OF STONE

CONCEALED BY THE DESERT.

Parker: PETRA, SUDDENLY, APPEARS ALMOST OUT OF NOWHERE.

AND THEN, IT DISAPPEARS VERY QUICKLY.

Narrator: PETRA, IN JORDAN,

IS FAMOUS FOR ITS EXTRAORDINARY BEAUTY.

BUT VERY LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THIS VAST METROPOLIS

OR THE CIVILIZATION THAT BUILT IT.

THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE WITH PETRA IS ITS SCALE.

IT'S A HUGE CITY, AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN BEGUN TO TOUCH

EVEN 2% OF IT.

Narrator: BUT NOW, ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE USING

THE LATEST TECHNIQUES TO RESURRECT THE LIVES

OF PETRA'S FORGOTTEN PEOPLE.

WHO WERE THEY, AND WHY DID THEY DISAPPEAR?

Corbett: NOT VERY MUCH HAS BEEN KNOWN ABOUT THE DAILY LIVES

OF THE NORMAL PEOPLE WHO INHABITED PETRA.

I THINK PETRA REPRESENTS A MAJOR CHALLENGE FOR ARCHAEOLOGISTS.

Narrator: THE ONLY WAY TO DISCOVER WHY PETRA WAS ABANDONED

IS TO LIFT THIS MIGHTY METROPOLIS FROM THE SANDS.

WE'LL BRING BACK TO LIFE THE ASTONISHING MONUMENTS

OF THIS FORGOTTEN CIVILIZATION

TO REVEAL WHAT HAPPENED

TO THE GREATEST LOST CITY

OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

--Captions by VITAC-- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

ON THE EDGE OF THE ARABIAN DESERT

LIE THE RUINS OF A FORGOTTEN METROPOLIS --

PETRA.

ONE OF THE GREATEST CITIES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO,

PETRA'S KINGS WERE THE CONTEMPORARIES

OF FAMOUS RULERS LIKE JULIUS CAESAR

AND LIVED AT THE TIME OF CHRIST.

BUT WHY DO WE KNOW SO LITTLE ABOUT THIS

ONCE-GREAT CIVILIZATION?

PETRA WAS ONE OF THE GREAT INTERNATIONAL CITIES

OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

IT'S A CITY THAT'S CUT LARGELY OUT OF THE LIVING SANDSTONE.

♪♪

Narrator: THIS VAST CITY LIES HIDDEN AT THE END OF A WINDING PASSAGEWAY

ALMOST A MILE LONG.

THIS NATURAL SPLIT IN THE ROCK IS KNOWN AS THE "SIQ,"

AND IT LEADS TO PETRA'S MOST FAMOUS MONUMENT -- THE TREASURY.

THIS ELABORATE TOMB IS CARVED DEEP INTO THE ROCK FACE,

FAMILIAR TO MILLIONS FROM THE "INDIANA JONES" MOVIES.

BUT IT'S JUST A GLIMPSE OF WHAT'S HIDING HERE.

DEEPER TOWARDS THE CITY'S CENTER,

DOZENS MORE TOMBS LINE THE CLIFF WALLS

ALONG WITH A THEATER FOR OVER 8,000 PEOPLE.

HOW DID A CIVILIZATION GROW SO POWERFUL

THAT IT COULD CREATE SO MANY EXTRAORDINARY BUILDINGS

AND YET LEAVE BEHIND SO LITTLE ABOUT ITSELF?

THE FIRST EXPLORERS TO STUMBLE ACROSS PETRA

DISCOVERED A CITY UNLIKE ANYTHING THEY HAD EVER SEEN --

A LABYRINTH OF STRANGE CAVES AND BREATHTAKING ARCHITECTURE.

IT IS THE LONG-LOST CAPITAL OF AN ANCIENT NOMADIC PEOPLE

CALLED "THE NABATEANS."

ARCHAEOLOGIST GLENN CORBETT INVESTIGATES

WHY THEY CREATED THIS UNIQUE CITY.

Corbett: VERY, VERY LITTLE OF THIS ANCIENT CITY

HAS ACTUALLY BEEN DISCOVERED.

AND SO, FOR THE ARCHAEOLOGISTS, IT REPRESENTS A REAL CHALLENGE.

Narrator: GLENN'S ON HIS WAY TO PETRA'S FAMOUS TREASURY.

HE THINKS A CLUE TO THE CITY'S ORIGINS

LIES WITH ITS PUZZLING ARCHITECTURE.

THIS MONUMENT IS COVERED WITH FEATURES FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES

THAT SHOULD HAVE NOTHING IN COMMON WITH EACH OTHER.

PETRA'S TREASURY IS A BEAUTIFUL BUT BEWILDERING STRUCTURE.

GRIFFONS SIT ON TOP OF CORINTHIAN-STYLE COLUMNS

WITH AXE-WIELDING WARRIORS AND EAGLES OF THE GREEK GOD ZEUS.

BUT IN THE MIDDLE IS A STATUE

THAT RESEMBLES THE EGYPTIAN GODDESS ISIS.

AND INSIDE, THIS ICONIC MONUMENT IS EVEN STRANGER.

BEHIND THE FACADE IS JUST AN EMPTY CHAMBER,

PERHAPS A FEASTING HALL FOR THE DEAD.

AND BENEATH IT ALL, ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE DISCOVERED

THE SIMPLE BURIAL CHAMBER OF A RICH AND POWERFUL FAMILY.

SO, COULD THE STRANGE DESIGN OF THESE MONUMENTS

REVEAL WHY SUCH A CITY WAS BUILT?

ANCIENT WRITERS DESCRIBED THE NABATEANS AS NOMADS FROM ARABIA,

BUT PETRA LOOKS MORE LIKE A GREEK OR ROMAN CITY

ON THE EDGE OF THE DESERT.

Corbett: WE SEE ALL THE BASIC ELEMENTS OF CLASSICAL

GRECO-ROMAN ARCHITECTURE HERE.

WE SEE THE COLUMNS, THE FLORAL CAPITALS, THE DECORATED FRIEZES.

WE SEE THE BROKEN PEDIMENT, THE CENTRAL THOLOS.

AND AMID ALL OF THESE ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS,

WE SEE THE GODS AND GODDESSES AND MYTHOLOGICAL FIGURES

THAT, HONESTLY, TO THE AVERAGE NABATEAN,

WOULDN'T HAVE MADE THAT MUCH SENSE.

Narrator: BUT GLENN BELIEVES THERE IS A HIDDEN MEANING

TO PETRA'S MONUMENTS THAT REVEALS WHO THE NABATEANS WERE

AND WHY THEY BUILT THIS CITY.

AND HE THINKS THE ANSWERS LIE BURIED IN THE CITY CENTER.

THE SECRETIVE NABATEANS LEFT ALMOST NO WRITTEN RECORDS.

BUT THEY DID LEAVE A VAST ARCHAEOLOGICAL TREASURE TROVE.

[ SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE ]

TODAY, AMERICAN AND JORDANEAN ARCHAEOLOGISTS

ARE SIFTING THROUGH THE HUGE HEAPS OF SAND

THAT COVER THIS CITY.

SO MANY THINGS THAT WE HAVE COME OUT OF THIS DUMP.

POTTERY LIKE THIS REVEALS THAT THE NABATEANS WERE RICH

AND SOPHISTICATED.

VERY NICE.

THIS, FOR EXAMPLE, IS A VERY, VERY NICE PIECE OF NABATEAN

PAINTED POTTERY -- VERY FINE, VERY THIN, ALMOST EGGSHELL THIN

WHERE IS VERY CHARACTERISTIC OF THE NABATEANS

DURING THEIR HEYDAY.

THE SHEER VOLUME OF MATERIAL IN PETRA REVEALS THAT,

NEARLY 2,000 YEARS AGO,

NABATEAN SOCIETY CHANGED DRAMATICALLY.

THESE NOMADS DECIDED TO BUILD A NEW KIND OF CITY

ALMOST OVERNIGHT.

Corbett: IT'S REALLY UNBELIEVABLE

HOW MUCH POTTERY WE FIND

AT JUST ANY ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE,

BUT ESPECIALLY LARGE, ANCIENT CITIES LIKE PETRA.

YOU CAN WALK THE SURFACE OF PETRA

AND SEE THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF SHERDS.

Narrator: SO WHAT DROVE PETRA'S NOMADS TO BECOME CITY SLICKERS?

ANCIENT WRITERS SAY THAT THE CITY LAY ON THE WORLD'S

GREATEST TRADE ROUTE ACROSS THE DESERT TO THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA.

THE NABATEANS SETTLED HERE TO CONTROL THIS TRADE IN INCENSE,

SPICES, AND TEXTILES, BECOMING EXTREMELY WEALTHY.

THEY DECIDED TO POUR THEIR NEW MONEY

INTO CREATING INCREDIBLE MASTERPIECES.

BUT THEY USED IDEAS FROM GREECE AND ROME

THAT FLOWED BACK INTO PETRA.

SO, DID THE NABATEANS JUST ABANDON THEIR OLD WAY OF LIFE?

GLENN'S POTTERY COMES FROM A SHRINE

CALLED "THE TEMPLE OF THE WINGED LIONS."

DISCOVERIES HERE REVEAL THAT IT WAS DEDICATED

TO A POWERFUL NABATEAN GODDESS CALLED "AL-UZZA"

2,000 YEARS AGO.

Corbett: THIS TEMPLE, AS FAR AS WE KNOW,

WAS PROBABLY BUILT WHEN THE CITY WAS REALLY EXPLODING

WITH A MASSIVE BUILDING PROGRAM.

Narrator: GLENN AND HIS COLLEAGUES

ARE STILL PIECING TOGETHER

EXACTLY WHAT THIS SACRED TEMPLE LOOKED LIKE.

BUT THEY'VE DISCOVERED THAT IT HIDES A SECRET.

THIS TEMPLE MAY LOOKGREEK OR ROMAN ON THE OUTSIDE --

LIKE SO MANY OF PETRA'S BUILDINGS --

BUT THE LAYOUT OF THE CENTRAL SANCTUARY

IS BASED ON AN ANCIENT ARABIAN DESIGN.

Corbett: A LOT OF THE DECORATIVE ELEMENTS OF THE TEMPLE

ARE ACTUALLY MUCH MORE COMMON TO GREEK AND ROMAN ARCHITECTURE.

BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THAT'S SOMETHING OF A VENEER

BECAUSE THE TEMPLE ITSELF IS VERY MUCH

A NABATEAN SPIRITUAL HOUSE

THAT'S VERY MUCH WORSHIPPING THE SUPREME

NABATEAN GODDESS, AL-UZZA.

THE NABATEANS BUILT A NEW KIND OF CITY

THAT FUSED NOMADIC ARABIAN CULTURE

WITH NEW IDEAS COMING IN FROM GREECE AND ROME.

GLENN THINKS THEIR KINGS WERE TRYING TO ANNOUNCE

THEIR ARRIVAL ON THE WORLD STAGE.

Corbett: WELL, WE HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT,

WHEN THE NABATEANS REALLY CONSTRUCTED THIS CITY

IN THE FIRST CENTURY B.C. AND FIRST CENTURY A.D.,

THEY WERE REALLY MAJOR PLAYERS IN THE ECONOMIES

AND CARAVAN TRADES OF THAT TIME.

AND DEFINITELY, TO MAKE THEMSELVES MAJOR PLAYERS

ON THAT INTERNATIONAL STAGE

THAT INCLUDED HEROD AND THE CAESARS

AND ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA,

THEY REALLY HAD TO PRESENT THEMSELVES AS EQUAL PARTNERS.

Narrator: PETRA EMERGED FROM THE DESERT

AS THE SYMBOL OF A NEW, POWERFUL CIVILIZATION.

BUT THERE'S A MYSTERY.

HOW COULD A THRIVING METROPOLIS SURVIVE

IN SUCH AN INHOSPITABLE PLACE?

ARCHAEOLOGISTS THINK THE ANSWER LIES WITH THE DESERT'S

MOST PRECIOUS COMMODITY -- WATER.

NOW, CAN NEW DISCOVERIES REVEAL HOW PETRA'S CITIZENS

TRANSFORMED THIS DRY AND DUSTY WORLD

INTO AN ASTONISHING GARDEN OF EDEN?

Narrator: PETRA, IN JORDAN, IS AN ANCIENT AND BEAUTIFUL CITY.

IN ITS HEYDAY, IT CONTROLLED ONE OF THE RICHEST TRADE ROUTES

IN THE ANCIENT WORLD.

BUT WHAT ALLOWED THIS CITY TO SURVIVE ON THE EDGE OF A DESERT?

ARCHAEOLOGIST DAVID GRAF INVESTIGATES HOW THE NABATEANS

WERE MASTERS OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT.

THERE WAS A POPULATION OF AT LEAST 10,000 TO 20,000 PEOPLE

LIVING IN THE PETRA REGION.

AND THEY HAD TO BE SUPPLIED WITH THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE.

BUT THAT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE.

Narrator: DAVID THINKS THE SECRET TO PETRA'S SUCCESS

LAY WITH THE NABATEANS' UNIQUE ABILITY

TO HARNESS WATER FROM THE WORLD AROUND THEM.

DOTTED AROUND PETRA ARE CANYONS LIKE THE SIQ

THAT ARE NATURAL WATER CHANNELS MODIFIED BY THE NABATEANS.

A BARELY VISIBLE WATER PIPELINE

RUNS ALONG THE LENGTH OF THIS WINDING PASSAGE

UNTIL IT PASSES UNDERNEATH A FADED CARVING.

2,000 YEARS AGO,

THESE GIANT SCULPTURES REPRESENTED CAMELS

LED BY A MERCHANT ON HIS WAY TO DO BUSINESS.

THESE PIPELINES FED FRESH WATER TO THE CENTER.

BUT HOW DID THEY GET ENOUGH WATER TO SUSTAIN

AN ENTIRE CITY OF TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE?

SIX MILES NORTH OF PETRA IS A ROCKY OUTCROP CALLED "BAJA"

WHERE DAVID LEADS A TEAM DIGGING FOR ANSWERS.

TODAY, THE LAND BENEATH IT IS BONE-DRY.

BUT EVEN SO FAR FROM THE CITY CENTER,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS LIKE ZEYAD AL-SALAMEEN

FIND HINTS OF AN EXTENSIVE WATER NETWORK.

THE MYSTERIOUS REMAINS OF PIPELINES AND FORGOTTEN DAMS

COVER THE GROUND AT BAJA.

WHAT WERE THEY FOR?

ZEYAD COMES ACROSS A CLUE -- A CAVITY CUT INTO THE ROCK.

BUT HE DOESN'T THINK THIS IS FOR STORING WATER.

IT'S EVEN MORE SURPRISING -- A WINE PRESS.

THE NUMBER OF WATER PIPES AND WINE PRESSES SUGGEST

SOMETHING REMARKABLE WAS GOING ON HERE.

DAVID'S TEAM INVESTIGATES ANOTHER STRANGE FEATURE

THAT LIES NEARBY.

AS THEY DIG BESIDE THIS ROCK, THEY UNCOVER A WALL.

IT LOOKS LIKE A STORAGE DEPOT,

SUGGESTING THAT BAJA WAS PRODUCING A LOT OF WINE.

DAVID THINKS IT'S TIME TO THROW AWAY OUR OLD NOTIONS

ABOUT THESE RESOURCEFUL PEOPLE.

THE GENERAL ASSUMPTION ABOUT THE NABATEANS

IS THAT THEY WERE NOMADS, DIDN'T DRINK WINE,

AND WERE NOT INVOLVED IN AGRICULTURE.

BUT WE KNOW THAT'S NOT THE CASE, NOW.

Narrator: THE DISCOVERIES AT BAJA PROVE THAT THE NABATEANS WERE ABLE

TO HARNESS SO MUCH WATER THEY DIDN'T JUST MAKEWINE.

THEY HAD ENOUGH TO PLANT AND GROW EXTENSIVE VINEYARDS HERE.

WHAT I FIND SO INGENIOUS ABOUT THE NABATEANS IS,

THEY COULD TAKE A DESOLATE LANDSCAPE

AND FIND LITTLE NICHES TO DEVELOP FOR AGRICULTURE.

Narrator: SO, HOW DID THIS WATER SYSTEM WORK?

THE NABATEANS CREATED AN IMPRESSIVE WATER NETWORK

CHANNELING WATER TO WHERE IT WAS NEEDED FROM MILES AROUND.

IN THE CITY CENTER, THEY BUILT A TUNNEL INTO THE ROCK AND DAMS

TO REROUTE THE WATER FLOW.

ENGINEERS LINED THE SIQ PASSAGEWAY WITH CLAY PIPES.

THE ENDS OF THE PIPES WERE TAPERED TO CREATE

A HIGH-PRESSURE SUPPLY.

BUT ACROSS THE KINGDOM, THEY CREATED CISTERNS

LINED WITH HYDRAULIC CONCRETE

TO STORE THE PRECIOUS WATER UNDERGROUND.

DAVID THINKS THAT THIS SAME TECHNOLOGY

EXTENDED FAR BEYOND THE CITY CENTER.

Graf: MOST PLACES HAVE A SPRING.

THERE'S NO SPRING HERE.

THE AMAZING THING IS, THIS IS RAIN WATER.

AND THE RAIN WATER IS VERY MINIMAL.

SO, IT TOOK A LOT OF CREATIVITY, OF ENGINEERING SKILL

TO CHANNEL THAT WATER INTO RESERVOIRS AND PRESERVE IT.

AND THAT'S THE AMAZING ACHIEVEMENT OF BAJA.

Narrator: NABATEAN INGENUITY BUILT A RICH AND POWERFUL CITY,

AN ARTIFICIAL PARADISE IN A DRY AND DESOLATE REGION.

BUT AT ITS HEIGHT, PETRA FELL VICTIM

TO ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL EMPIRES

IN THE ANCIENT WORLD -- ROME.

AN ARSENAL OF BURIED WEAPONS HINTS AT A FORGOTTEN BATTLE

IN THE CITY STREETS.

SO, DID THE FEARED ROMAN LEGIONS DESTROY PETRA?

Narrator: NEARLY 2,000 YEARS AGO,

THEGREAT SUPERPOWER OF THE ANCIENT WORLD

MARCHED INTO PETRA.

♪♪

ROME ABSORBED THE NABATEANS INTO HER VAST EMPIRE,

BOASTING THAT THEIR CITY HAD BEEN ACQUIRED, NOT CAPTURED.

BUT DID PETRA'S CITIZENS REALLY WELCOME ROMAN RULE

WITH OPEN ARMS?

ARCHAEOLOGIST TOM PARKER THINKS WE NEED

TO REWRITE THIS VERSION OF HISTORY.

Parker: FOR YEARS, THE SCHOLARLY CONSENSUS WAS,

THIS WAS A RELATIVELY PEACEFUL EVENT.

BUT THERE'S BEEN MORE AND MORE EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST

THAT THIS WAS A TAKEOVER THAT WAS ACCOMPANIED

BY CONSIDERABLE VIOLENCE.

Narrator: SO, DID PETRA RESIST ROMAN RULE?

TOM BELIEVES THAT A CLUE LIES OVER IN THE CITY'S GREAT TEMPLE.

DEEP IN THE REMAINS OF THIS COLOSSAL STRUCTURE,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE MADE A SURPRISING DISCOVERY.

HUNDREDS OF STONE MISSILES,

EACH ONE THE SIZE OF A SMALL SOCCER BALL,

WERE FOUND RIGHT BY THE MAIN ENTRANCE.

AMONG THEM WERE 162 ARROW HEADS MADE IF IRON.

THESE WEAPONS WERE HIDDEN HERE THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO.

WHAT IS MILITARY EQUIPMENT DOING INSIDE

ONE OF PETRA'S GREATEST CIVIC BUILDINGS,

AND TO WHOM DID IT BELONG?

TOM TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT THE GREAT STONE BALLS.

THEY'RE TYPICAL OF THE KIND OF WEAPONS USED BY ROMAN SOLDIERS.

Parker: BEHIND ME IS A STORE OF 100 ROUNDED STONE BALLS

THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN HURLED BY CATAPULTS,

OR THEY MIGHT HAVE BEEN HURLED BY HAND.

Narrator: THERE ARE NO ANCIENT RECORDS

OF A HOSTILE ROMAN TAKEOVER.

BUT TOM THINKS THEY WERE CERTAINLY READY FOR WAR.

WE KNOW THAT THE ROMANS WERE PREPARED

FOR VERY SERIOUS RESISTANCE

BECAUSE THEY HAD ASSEMBLED MASSIVE FORCES

FROM THREE DIFFERENT PROVINCES.

EVEN SO, TOM'S NOT SO SURE THAT THESE MISSILES REALLY ARE ROMAN.

WE KNOW A LOT ABOUT THE ROMAN ARMY.

IT WAS VERY STANDARDIZED,

AND WE HAVE MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF EVIDENCE

FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE EMPIRE.

FOR THE NABATEAN ARMY, IN CONTRAST,

WE KNOW VIRTUALLY NOTHING.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS THINK THAT MOST NABATEAN SOLDIERS

PROBABLY FOUGHT EITHER ON FOOT WITH SPEARS

OR AS A CAVALRY AND WERE EXPERT ARCHERS.

THEY BUILT SIMPLE WATCH TOWERS TO GUARD THEIR CITY,

CAREFULLY POSITIONED TO DETECT INVADERS EARLY.

BY CONTRAST, WE KNOW THE ROMANS HAD ADVANCED SIEGE WEAPONS --

GIANT CROSSBOWS AND CATAPULTS THAT COULD LAUNCH STONE MISSILES

OVER 1,000 FEET.

BUT BEFORE THE ROMANS SEIZED PETRA, THEY AND THE NABATEANS

SOMETIMES FOUGHT SIDE BY SIDE AGAINST COMMON ENEMIES.

SO, COULD THE NABATEANS HAVE COPIED

OR STOLEN THESE WEAPONS FROM ROME?

TOM THINKS THAT THE MISSILES ARENABATEAN.

THE MOST LIKELY SCENARIO IS THAT THE NABATEANS

STOCKPILED WEAPONS HERE.

Parker: THE BALLS WERE FOUND IN WHAT APPEARS TO BE

A DESTRUCTION LAYER.

IT LOOKS LIKE SOME OF THE DOORWAYS HAD BEEN BLOCKED OFF,

AND THAT'S QUITE SURPRISING TO FIND IN THIS CONTEXT

BECAUSE THIS IS NOT A MILITARY BUILDING OF ANY KIND.

WE'RE IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY.

THE DISCOVERY OF THESE STONE BALLS HINTS AT A DESPERATE

LAST STAND AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE GREAT TEMPLE.

TOM IMAGINES THE NABATEANS HURLING THEM DOWN

ONTO THE ADVANCING ROMAN LEGIONNAIRES.

Parker: THE ROMANS WERE PROBABLY TRYING TO COME UP THE STAIRS,

UNDER FIRE, PRESUMABLY.

THEY HAD A SO-CALLED FORMATION CALLED A "TESTUDO," A TORTOISE,

WHERE THEY COULD INTERLOCK THEIR OBLONG SHIELDS

OVER THEIR HEADS.

THAT MIGHT HAVE WELL DEFLECTED SOME OF THESE BALLS

THAT WERE HURLED AT THEM, OR ARROWS, AS WELL.

BUT THE FIGHTING SEEMS TO HAVE SPREAD BEYOND THE GREAT TEMPLE.

MORE BUILDINGS ALONG THE MAIN STREET

ALSO SHOW SCARS OF A VIOLENT TAKE OVER.

Parker: THE AREAS THAT ARE MOST DEFENSIBLE

ARE THE ELEVATED STRUCTURES ABOVE THE STREETS.

THE NABATEANS MIGHT HAVE FORTIFIED INDIVIDUAL BUILDINGS

WITHIN THE CITY TO TRY TO HOLD OUT.

AND I THINK THAT THE GREAT TEMPLE WAS OUR BEST EXAMPLE

OF THAT, SO FAR.

Narrator: IF THERE WAS SUCH A SAVAGE FIGHT

IN THE STREETS OF PETRA,

WHY DID ROMAN WRITERS IGNORE IT?

Parker: THIS WAS PROBABLY A FAIRLY MINOR MILITARY AFFAIR

FROM A ROMAN PERSPECTIVE.

BUT FROM THE NABATEAN PERSPECTIVE, OF COURSE,

THIS WAS A DEVASTATING BLOW.

BUT IN THE END, OF COURSE,

THE ODDS WERE JUST TOO GREAT AGAINST THEM.

Narrator: ROME'S MILITARY MACHINE TOPPLED PETRA'S RULERS.

BUT DID THE ARRIVAL OF THE EMPIRE ALSO SPELL DISASTER

FOR THE NABATEAN WAY OF LIFE?

ARCHAEOLOGISTS SEARCH FOR CLUES BENEATH A MYSTERIOUS RUIN

AT THE TOP OF A REMOTE RIDGE.

AND CAN A CRUMBLING ANCIENT TEXT, AT LAST,

REVEAL WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PEOPLE OF PETRA?

Narrator: NEARLY 2,000 YEARS AGO,

THE ROMAN EMPIRE TOOK OVER PETRA.

WHAT DID ROMAN RULE MEAN FOR THE EMPIRE'S NEWEST CITIZENS?

ARCHAEOLOGIST MEGAN PERRY INVESTIGATES HOW THE NABATEANS

ADJUSTED TO LIFE UNDER FOREIGN OCCUPATION.

Perry: ONE OF THE BIG THINGS WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IS,

HOW MUCH DID PETRA REALLY CHANGE WHEN ROME TOOK IT OVER?

WE REALLY HAVE NO IDEA.

Narrator: MEGAN HUNTS FOR CLUES BENEATH A MYSTERIOUS WALL

THAT RUNS ALONG THE CITY'S NORTH RIDGE.

THE WALL IS MADE FROM THOUSANDS OF ROUGH-HEWN SANDSTONE BLOCKS

AND FILLED WITH RUBBLE.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE DISCOVERED THE FOUNDATIONS

WERE BUILT WHEN THE ROMANS ARRIVED.

AND IT APPEARS TO RUN STRAIGHT THROUGH

A RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD,

CARVING UP ORDINARY NABATEAN HOUSES.

SO, WHAT DOES THE WALL'S STRANGE CONSTRUCTION

TELL US ABOUT LIFE IN ROMAN PETRA?

MEGAN'S FIRST JOB IS TO TRY AND WORK OUT WHO BUILT THIS WALL.

SHE USES INNOVATIVE LASER-SCANNING TECHNOLOGY.

Perry: THE LASER SCANNING SHOOTS OUT A LASER,

AND IT BOUNCES BACK, ALMOST LIKE A REFLECTION.

Narrator: HER TEAM HAS SCANNED THIS ENTIRE WALL

WITH EXTREME PRECISION.

Perry: ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE CAN SEE IS THAT THE WALL,

IT'S KIND OF A HODGEPODGE OF DIFFERENT TYPES

OF STONES THAT HAVE BEEN,

OBVIOUSLY, BORROWED FROM DIFFERENT LOCATIONS

ON THE SITE, FROM OTHER STRUCTURES.

SO, RIGHT HERE, YOU CAN SEE HOW POORLY BUILT IT IS

WITH THIS EARLIER HOUSE WALL

BEING INCORPORATED INTO THE CITY WALL.

AND YOU CAN SEE HERE,

RATHER THAN CUTTING THROUGH THIS STRUCTURE,

IT ACTUALLY KIND OF INCORPORATES THIS WALL

WITHIN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CITY WALL ITSELF.

SO, IT'S SORT OF RATHER SLOPPILY BUILT.

Narrator: MEGAN'S INTRIGUED BY THE WAY THE WALL IS BUILT.

SHE TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT THE RUINS WITH HER COLLEAGUE,

TOM PARKER.

Parker: THIS THING BUTTS UP.

IT'S POSSIBLE THAT THIS IS A BALLISTA PLATFORM.

Narrator: TOM THINKS THE WALL HIDES TRACES OF ROMAN MILITARY TECHNOLOGY.

THIS COULD BE THE BASE FOR A FEARSOME WEAPON

CALLED A "BALLISTA."

THESE WERE CATAPULTS THAT SHOT THESE BOLTS

THAT THE ROMAN ARMY EMPLOYED.

AND THEY COULD BE MOUNTED ON THE PLATFORM

HERE UP AGAINST THE WALL TO BE AIMED DOWN INTO THE WADI.

EVERY LEGION, WE'RE TOLD, HAD 60 OF THESE ASSIGNED TO IT.

AND IT WAS MANNED BY A CREW OF THREE.

AND IT WAS ESSENTIALLY A LARGE CROSSBOW.

Narrator: DID THE ROMAN ARMY HASTILY BUILD THIS WALL

TO HOLD DOWN A HOSTILE POPULATION?

THIS RIDGE REALLY COMMANDS THE WHOLE CENTER OF PETRA.

AND SO, IF YOU'RE GONNA INSTALL A MILITARY GARRISON HERE,

THIS IS THE IDEAL SPOT.

Narrator: BUT ONCE THE GARRISON HAD SETTLED IN,

HOW DID IT CHANGE THE CITY?

MEGAN SUSPECTS THAT MOST ASPECTS OF DAY-TO-DAY LIFE

CARRIED ON AS NORMAL.

Perry: THIS IS A TYPICAL ROMAN COOKING POT,

VERY TYPICAL FOR ANYWHERE AROUND THIS REGION.

AND MOST OF WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS THE DEBRIS OF, JUST,

EVERYDAY DOMESTIC LIFE --

YOU KNOW, PEOPLE'S BROKEN COOKING POTS

GETTING THROWN INTO THE DUMP.

Narrator: BUT THE TOP OF THE RIDGE HIDES A SHOCKING SECRET --

IT'S DOTTED WITH SIMPLE TOMBS.

IN PETRA, THE LIVING AND THE DEAD WERE SIDE BY SIDE.

Perry: THESE ARE THE TOMBS OF THE ORDINARY NABATEAN FOLKS,

THE ONES THAT WOULD NOT HAVE THE MONEY OR THE PRESTIGE

TO BE BURIED IN SOME OF THE FACADE CHAMBER TOMBS

THAT SURROUND THE CITY.

Narrator: SEVERAL GENERATIONS COULD BE BURIED IN CHAMBERS LIKE THIS.

BUT MEGAN'S DISCOVERED THAT THE NABATEANS

SUDDENLY STOPPED BURYING THEIR DEAD HERE

AT AROUND THE SAME TIME

THE WALL WAS BUILT AND THE ROMANS ARRIVED.

THIS IS ONE OF THE CLEAR PIECES OF EVIDENCE

THAT WE HAVE OF HOW THE ROMAN ANNEXATION OF NABATEA

REALLY AFFECTED THE DAILY LIVES OF ITS CITIZENS.

Narrator: SO, WHY DID PETRA'S NEW RULERS STOP THE NABATEANS

LIVING AMONGST THE DEAD,

ENDING A PRACTICE THAT HAD EXISTED FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS?

Perry: THE ROMANS HAD VERY STRICT RULES

ABOUT WHERE THE DEAD CAN BE BURIED.

THEY WOULD HAVE CONSIDERED IT VERY POLLUTING AND VERY ODD.

SO, THEY WOULD DEFINITELY PROHIBIT ANY KIND OF BURIAL

WITHIN THE CITY WALL.

Narrator: THE ROMANS CHANGED NABATEAN CIVILIZATION.

BUT THEY ALSO INVESTED A HUGE AMOUNT OF CASH INTO THE CITY.

AS THE ROMAN EMPIRE EXPANDED ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST,

CITIES LIKE PETRA CONTINUED TO FLOURISH,

BUT THEY STARTED TO LOOK VERY DIFFERENT.

AT PETRA, THE ROMANS MAY HAVE BUILT THE IMPRESSIVE STREET

THAT RUNS THROUGH THE CENTER OF THE CITY,

LINED WITH MASSIVE COLUMNS.

NEXT TO THE GREAT TEMPLE, THE ROMANS BUILT PUBLIC BATHS,

THE TRADEMARK OF THEIR CIVILIZATION.

FINALLY, THE ROMANS BUILT A TRIUMPHAL ARCH

OVER THE ENTRANCE TO THE SIQ.

THE MESSAGE TO VISITORS WAS CLEAR --

PETRA WAS STILL OPEN FOR BUSINESS,

BUT ROME WAS HERE TO STAY.

PETRA AND HER PEOPLE MANAGED TO ADAPT TO LIFE UNDER ROMAN RULE,

AND THEY CONTINUED TO PROSPER AS PART OF THE EMPIRE.

BUT FOR HOW LONG?

NOW, CAN NEW DISCOVERIES REVEAL THE TRUE GLORY

OF PETRA'S ASTONISHING CITY CENTER

AND THE KILLER BLOW THAT BROUGHT IT CRASHING DOWN?

Narrator: ALMOST 2,000 YEARS AGO,

PETRA JOINED THE ROMAN EMPIRE,

ONE OF THE RICHEST AND LARGEST REALMS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

BUT TODAY, ITS TOMBS AND TEMPLES ARE HAUNTING RUINS.

SO, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MYSTERIOUS NABATEANS

WHO BUILT THIS CITY?

ARCHAEOLOGIST LEIGH-ANN BEDAL THINKS A CLUE LIES

BENEATH AN ARTIFICIAL OASIS

THAT THE NABATEANS CREATED NEXT TO THE GREAT TEMPLE.

Bedal: WE ARE LOOKING ACROSS TO THE GARDEN-AND-POOL COMPLEX.

SO, IMAGINE A GROVE OF PALM TREES,

A VERY SHADED AREA WITH WATER IN THE BACKGROUND.

AFTER A JOURNEY THROUGH THE DESERT,

THIS KIND OF ARTIFICIAL OASIS WOULD BE QUITE IMPRESSIVE

TO ANYBODY VISITING PETRA.

Narrator: THE GREAT TEMPLE ONCE STOOD PROUD

IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY,

A GLORIOUS FACADE FIVE STORIES HIGH --

THE LARGEST FREE-STANDING BUILDING IN PETRA.

IT TOWERED HIGH ABOVE THE CITY WITH AN ELABORATE ENTRANCE

OF TRIPLE COLONNADES CONTAINING OVER 100 COLUMNS.

BUT THE GARDEN NEXT TO IT WAS EVEN MORE IMPRESSIVE.

EXCAVATIONS REVEAL THE REMAINS

OF A MAGNIFICENT OLYMPIC-SIZED POOL.

SO, WHAT HAPPENED TO IT, AND COULD IT REVEAL

WHY PETRA CAME TO AN END?

LEIGH-ANN DISCOVERS HOW THE TECHNOLOGY

THAT MAINTAINED THIS GARDEN BROKE DOWN.

SHE THINKS THAT THIS GROOVE IN THE ROCK WAS ONCE A CHUTE

OR EVEN A WATERFALL THAT SUPPLIED THE POOL

WITH FRESH WATER.

BUT TODAY, EVEN HER EXCAVATIONS ARE FULL OF SAND AND SILT

THAT CONTINUES TO BUILD UP.

Bedal: EVERYTHING HERE -- ALL OF THIS SOIL --

IS JUST FILLED THIS TRENCH JUST IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.

WHEN WE FIRST STARTED EXCAVATING IN 2013,

THE SILT WAS ALL THE WAY UP, ABOUT HALFWAY UP THIS CLIFF.

YOU CAN SEE THE WHITE COLORING,

THE CHANGE OF THE COLOR OF THE SANDSTONE.

SO, ALL OF THIS WAS A BIG SLOPE OF SOIL.

AND WHEN WE EXCAVATED,

THE TRENCH WENT DOWN ANOTHER 2 OR 3 METERS.

Narrator: AT SOME POINT, THIS POOL WAS ABANDONED

AND LEFT TO FILL WITH SILT.

WHY?

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE GARDEN, LEIGH-ANN SPOTS

THE FOOTPRINT OF A DEVASTATING EVENT.

Bedal: WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS THE BEDROCK SHELF FOR THE PROMENADE

THAT WENT ALL THE WAY AROUND THE POOL.

THERE MUST HAVE BEEN COLUMNS HERE.

IT MUST HAVE BEEN A NICE COLONNADE.

BUT THERE'S NOTHING LEFT OF IT.

BUT WE DID FIND SOME FRAGMENTS IN THE POOL.

Narrator: LEIGH-ANN THINKS SHE KNOWS WHAT CAUSED THIS DAMAGE --

A MASSIVE EARTHQUAKE THAT DESTROYED MANY GRAND BUILDINGS

BEYOND REPAIR IN THE YEAR 363.

Bedal: THESE ARE SOME OF THE MARBLE FRAGMENTS

THAT CAME OUT OF THE TRENCH IN THE POOL.

AND YOU CAN SEE, THEY'RE JUST FRAGMENTS.

BUT SOME OF THEM HAVE A NICE, CURVED FACE, WHICH TELL US

THAT THEY WERE FROM A CIRCULAR FEATURE, LIKE A COLUMN.

AND YOU CAN SEE, IF YOU LOOK AT IT WET, THE GREAT COLOR OF IT.

AND YOU CAN'T REALLY REUSE PIECES LIKE THIS

AND MAKE ANOTHER COLUMN.

Narrator: SO, DID THIS DISASTER SEND PETRA INTO DECLINE?

LEIGH-ANN HAS DISCOVERED SOMETHING STRANGE.

THE POOL STARTED TO DRY UP ALMOST 150 YEARS

BEFORETHE EARTHQUAKE HIT.

Bedal: WE KNOW THAT IT BEGAN THAT EARLY

BECAUSE THERE IS MORE THAN A HALF METER OF SOIL

WITH MANY ANIMAL BONES AND POTTERY SHERDS

THAT COVERED THE BOTTOM OF THE POOL BEFORE THE EARTHQUAKE.

Narrator: THE DEBRIS TELLS LEIGH-ANN

THAT PETRA'S CITIZENS WERE EITHER UNWILLING OR UNABLE

TO LOOK AFTER THIS GARDEN.

Bedal: THEY STOPPED MAINTAINING THE POOL, WHICH TELLS US THAT,

EVEN WELL BEFORE THIS EARTHQUAKE,

THAT THERE WAS A DECLINE IN THE STATUS OF THIS SITE,

THE USE OF THIS SITE, IF THEY WERE NO LONGER BOTHERING

TO EVEN CLEAN OUT ALL OF THE DIRT AND THE TRASH.

Narrator: SO, WHY WAS NO ONE BOTHERING TO MAINTAIN THIS POOL?

ALTHOUGH THE EARTHQUAKE DESTROYED

MUCH OF THE CITY CENTER,

PETRA'S TROUBLES BEGAN 150 YEARS EARLIER,

SOON AFTER THE ROMANS ARRIVED.

NEW ROADS SHIFTED THE TRADE ROUTES

TOWARDS OTHER CITIES IN THE EMPIRE,

MEANING PETRA WAS NO LONGER THE HUB OF COMMERCE

ACROSS THE DESERT.

THE CITY STARTED TO DWINDLE.

PEOPLE CONTINUED TO LIVE HERE,

BUT MANY OF ITS ANCIENT PALACES AND TEMPLES WERE NEVER REBUILT.

AND THE BEAUTIFUL GARDEN NEXT TO THE GREAT TEMPLE

BECAME A FIELD USED FOR GROWING CROPS.

Bedal: IF THE CITY ITSELF IS LOSING ITS STATUS

AT THE END OF THIS ROMAN PERIOD --

IT'S LOSING ITS KIND OF STATUS AND WEALTH --

THAT SOMETHING LIKE MAINTAINING THIS BIG POOL

WOULD HAVE BEEN A DIVERSION OF RESOURCES THAT, PERHAPS,

JUST EVENTUALLY BECAME UNNECESSARY OR IMPOSSIBLE.

Narrator: THE LOSS OF ITS TRADE ROUTES HIT PETRA HARD.

BUT WAS THIS THE END FOR THE NABATEANS AND THEIR GREAT CITY?

NOW, CAN AN EXTRAORDINARY ANCIENT TEXT

DISCOVERED IN A LOST CHURCH

REVEAL WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PEOPLE OF PETRA?

Narrator: 500 YEARS AFTER PETRA BURST INTO LIFE,

MANY OF THIS CITY'S ANCIENT NABATEAN TOMBS AND TEMPLES

LAY IN RUINS.

FALLING TRADE HAD REDUCED PARTS OF IT TO A GHOST TOWN.

SHATTERED COLUMNS STILL LIE EXACTLY WHERE THEY FELL

DURING A GREAT EARTHQUAKE.

THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE BEGINNING OF THE END FOR PETRA.

BUT ARCHAEOLOGIST BARBARA PORTER DISCOVERS HOW ITS CITIZENS

WERE MORE RESILIENT THAN ANYONE EVER IMAGINED.

SHE INVESTIGATES AN EXTRAORDINARY

ARCHAEOLOGICAL TREASURE TROVE

THAT REVEALS THE RISE OF A NEW, SMALLER CITY.

IN MY MIND, THESE REALLY HAVE REWRITTEN THE HISTORY

OF SIXTH-CENTURY PETRA.

Narrator: THESE CHARRED SCROLLS ARE CALLED THE "PETRA PAPYRI."

THE FADED WRITING ON THEM IS STILL VISIBLE,

THANKS TO A SLOW-BURNING FIRE THAT PRESERVED THEM AS CHARCOAL.

IF THIS FIRE HADN'T HAPPENED, THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN,

ESSENTIALLY, AS ORGANIC MATERIAL,

ROTTED IN THE GROUNDS OF PETRA.

Narrator: THE PAPYRI WERE DISCOVERED

IN ONE OF PETRA'S CHURCHES.

THEY'RE THE ARCHIVE OF A LOCAL MAN CALLED "THEODOROS."

THEY GIVE US A UNIQUE INSIGHT INTO HOW HE AND HIS FRIENDS

HAD BOUNCED BACK NEARLY 200 YEARS AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE.

Porter: THIS FIRST DOCUMENT HAS TO DO WITH,

ACTUALLY, THEODOROS AND HIS ARRANGEMENTS FOR FAMILY PROPERTY

AND BASICALLY LEADING UP TO THE FACT

THAT HE WILL MARRY HIS FIRST COUSIN, STEPHANOS.

Narrator: THESE PAPYRI REVEAL A NEW CHRISTIAN CITY.

ITS PEOPLE WERE STILL MARRYING AND HAGGLING OVER PROPERTY,

AND THEY KEPT ALIVE NABATEAN TRADITIONS.

Porter: WE KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE,

THAT THEODOROS MEANS "LOVER OF GOD" IN GREEK.

BUT HIS FATHER AND GRANDFATHER WERE "OBODIANOS,"

WHICH IS "OBIDOT," A GREAT NABATEAN NAME, GREAT KING.

THESE PEOPLE WERE STILL HONORING THEIR NABATEAN FOREFATHERS.

Narrator: THESE RECORDS REVEAL THAT PETRA WAS STILL

FAR FROM POOR.

SO, WHY DID THEODOROS AND HIS FELLOW CITIZENS

LEAVE THEIR ANCESTRAL TEMPLES IN RUINS?

BARBARA VISITS WHERE THE PAPYRI WERE FOUND.

Porter: I FEEL THAT THIS PETRA CHURCH IS VERY MUCH A HIDDEN TREASURE.

Narrator: SHE THINKS THAT PETRA'S NOW-CHRISTIAN CITIZENS

CHOSE NOT TO REBUILD TEMPLES

THAT WERE DEDICATED TO THE OLD GODS.

Porter: WHAT'S INTERESTING, OF COURSE, IS THAT,

WITH THE TEMPLE OF THE LIONS BEING SO CLOSE

AND MOSTLY BEING DESTROYED IN THE 363 EARTHQUAKE, OF COURSE,

BY THE TIME THEY'RE BUILDING,

RIGHT NEARBY THEY'VE GOT THE PERFECT SOURCE TO ROB OUT

AND REUSE THAT ANCIENT MATERIAL FROM THAT NABATEAN STRUCTURE.

ALL OF THE CAPITAL ELEMENTS, AND EVEN, PROBABLY,

THESE COLUMNS, PROBABLY CAME FROM THERE.

Narrator: PETRA'S CITIZENS WERE STILL RICH ENOUGH

TO COVER THE FLOOR OF THEIR NEW CHURCH WITH EXQUISITE MOSAICS.

SOME OF THESE CREATURES THEY SHOW ARE EXOTIC,

OTHERS MORE DOWN-TO-EARTH.

Porter: WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS A CAMEL WHO IS LAYING DOWN

WITH THESE HUGE, BIG LOGS.

HE DOESN'T LOOK VERY HAPPY.

AND YOU'VE GOT, ON EITHER SIDE --

ALTHOUGH THEIR HEADS ARE MISSING --

TWO CAMEL HERDERS

WHO ARE, OBVIOUSLY, TRYING TO DRAG HIM ALONG.

BUT PETRA'S CHRISTIAN CITIZENS DIDN'T ABANDON

THEIR ENTIRE PAST.

THIS MOSAIC PORTRAYS THE FOUR SEASONS

AS ROMAN GODS AND GODDESSES,

THE SAME ONES WHO HAD CAPTURED THE IMAGINATION

OF THE VERY FIRST NABATEANS.

THEIR ACTUAL FACES MAY EVEN BE MODELED ON REAL PEOPLE.

Porter: EACH ONE OF THESE TELLS SOME STORY,

WHETHER IT'S A PRETTY WONKY-LOOKING FISH

TO DETAILS OF SPRING HERSELF, WHERE, HERE SHE IS.

SHE'S IDENTIFIED BY THE GREEK INSCRIPTION

ABOVE HER HEAD, CALLED "EIRENE."

AND SHE IS, IN MY MIND, SIMPLY GORGEOUS.

SHE'S GOT AN EMERALD NECKLACE.

SHE'S GOT BRACELETS.

THAT'S AN ELEGANT LADY WHO'S DRESSED TO THE NINES

WEARING HER JEWELRY

AND OFFERING YOU A BOWL OF ROSES.

Narrator: ARCHAEOLOGISTS WILL CONTINUE TO INVESTIGATE

THE LIVES OF PETRA'S ORDINARY CITIZENS

TO DISCOVER EXACTLY WHEN THEY ABANDONED THIS SMALLER CITY.

BUT WHAT THEY HAVE DISCOVERED SO FAR

IS A REMARKABLE PEOPLE WHO ADAPTED AND SURVIVED

FOR FAR LONGER THAN ANYONE THOUGHT.

Graf: EVEN THOUGH WE'VE EXCAVATED A NUMBER

OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MONUMENTS OF PETRA,

THERE'S ACTUALLY STILL TONS AND TONS TO DISCOVER.

Corbett: IT'S REALLY ONLY THROUGH ARCHAEOLOGY

THAT WE'RE BEGINNING TO GET SOME INSIGHT

INTO THE DAILY LIVES OF THE ACTUAL NABATEANS,

THE REAL PEOPLE WHO BUILT THIS CITY.

Parker: THE NABATEANS HAD THEIR OWN KINGS, THEIR OWN COINAGE,

THEIR OWN LAWS, THEIR OWN ADMINISTRATION

AND THEIR OWN CULTURE

AND A QUITE BRILLIANT ONE, AT THAT.

Narrator: THE TRUE HISTORY OF PETRA'S EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE

IS ONLY NOW STARTING TO BE UNCOVERED.

THE FIRST NABATEANS TRANSFORMED THIS ROCKY TERRAIN

INTO A MAGNIFICENT CITY

THAT STILL INSPIRES AWE IN VISITORS TODAY.

THEIR INGENUITY ALLOWED THEM TO BUILD A MAN-MADE OASIS

ON THE EDGE OF THE DESERT.

PETRA'S CITIZENS HAD A REMARKABLE ABILITY TO COPE

WITH WHATEVER LIFE THREW AT THEM

WHILE RETAINING THEIR OWN UNIQUE HERITAGE.

PETRA, THE HIDDEN CITY, IS AT LAST GIVING UP ITS SECRETS.

♪♪