Tombs, grail-shaped pot found in Petra Treasury

A tomb with 12 burials has been discovered in the Treasury building of Petra. Very few intact burials have been found at Petra — the limitations of space in the city spurred constant reuse of burials — and these burials still contain articulated skeletons in situ plus their grave goods, including a pottery vessel with a broken bowl that coincidentally looks a lot like the Holy Grail Indiana Jones finds at the end of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade which was filmed at Petra’s Treasury.

University of St. Andrews archaeologists were granted rare permission to explore the Treasury building by the Jordanian government. They did a geophysical survey to assess the area inside and around the Treasury for condition. Electromagnetic conductivity and ground penetrating radar scans revealed the presence of underground chambers. The team then excavated the areas pinpointed in the scans.

The dating of pottery, sediments and organic materials inside and around the tombs dated the construction of the tomb walls to between the mid-1st century B.C. and the early 2nd century A.D. These are the first absolute date ranges for the construction of the Treasury.

The striking monumental buildings of the Rose City were cut out of the red sandstone canyon walls between the late 1st century B.C. and the 2nd century A.D. when it was the capital of the Nabatean Kingdom. The building known today as the Treasury even though it definitely wasn’t one was built in the 1st century A.D., perhaps as a mausoleum for King Aretas IV. The city was abandoned after an earthquake in the 7th century and was rediscovered in 1812 by Swiss explorer Johann Burckhardt.

Petra became a popular tourist destination after its rediscovery, with the Treasury as the most iconic representative of its rock-cut architecture. It vaulted to even greater international fame in the modern era when its dramatic facade was used as the setting for the denouement of Indiana Jones’s Grail quest.

Professor Bates said: “It was an incredible privilege to be able to survey at such an iconic site and to have the geophysics verified with an excavation so soon is a rare opportunity. The extent of the discovery was so unexpected but will likely shed light on not only the Treasury building but also on the whole of the Nabatean society.’

Archaeologist Pearce Paul Creasman, Executive Director of ACOR, said: “There is so much that we have yet to learn about The Treasury. When was this remarkable structure built, and why? Little did we know that this dig might completely change what we know about The Treasury and help solve the mysteries of the Nabataean people. With the support of the Jordanian government, this excavation is bringing us closer than ever to answers.”

The survey and excavation were filmed for the two-part season premier of Excavation Unknown that debuted October 9th on the Discovery Channel.

* This article was originally published here