Petra: The Rose-Red City of the Nabataeans

The geographical setting of Petra in the rugged mountains of southern Jordan created both the opportunities and challenges that would define the character of this unique desert city. Located in a natural basin surrounded by towering sandstone cliffs and accessible through a series of narrow defiles, Petra occupied a nearly impregnable position that provided security for merchants and their valuable cargoes while controlling the vital trade routes that connected the spice and incense markets of Arabia with the commercial centers of the Mediterranean. The dramatic topography of alternating valleys and ridges provided natural building sites while creating microclimates that could be exploited for water collection and agricultural production in an otherwise hostile desert environment.