Petra means "stone" in Latin. It is perhaps the most spectacular ancient city remaining and is a must-see for visitors to Jordan. It is certainly Jordan's most famous attraction. This rose colored capital of the Nabateans is breathtaking.

Petra was founded about 1200 BCE by the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, the son of Isaac and Rebecca. In about 300 BCE the Edomites were driven out by the Nabateans. Nestled away in the mountains of Wadi Mousa (Valley of Moses) south of the Dead Sea, it prospered as the capital of the Nabatean empire until 106 CE when it was annexed to the Roman empire. The Petra basin contains over 800 individual monuments that were mostly carved from the rose colored, kaleidoscopic sandstone by the technical and artistic genius of the Nabateans. The wealth and political power of this indigenous people derived from their control of the international trade routes that linked China, India and Southern Arabia to the wealthy Mediterranean markets Greece, Rome, Egypt and Syria.

The Romans annexed Petra in 106 CE, and its position as a commercial hub slowly deteriorated. The Byzantines made the city the seat of a bishopric in 379 CE, before earthquakes and an economic lull took their toll. By the end of the Byzantine Empire (circa 700 CE), the hydraulic system and the once dignified and gracious buildings in the center of town had deteriorated to near ruins.

Petra disappeared from most maps and was known only through ancient lore. In 1812 Swiss traveler Johann Burckhardt stole into the mythic city disguised as a Muslim trader and told the world about what he found. Today, efforts to protect Petra and its artifacts go on as tourism grows and excavations uncover more of the long-lost city.