PETRA. — City of Transjordan, characteristically built upon sheer rocks, and therefore called Sela (“rock”), in Greek P. It was inhabited by the Edomites as early as the first period of the Iron Age, whose remains have come to light on the heights of Umm el-Bijārah; according to Jerome of Candia (312), it was then unwalled but naturally defended. It was occupied by the king of Judah Amaziah (797–779 B.C.), and the prisoners were thrown from the high peaks (II Par. 25:12). It was reoccupied by the Edomites under the king of Syria, Rezin. P. is mentioned by Is. 42:11; Ier. 49:16 and by Abd. 3, which speaks of the lofty dwellings as eagles’ nests.
Occupied by the Nabataeans, under Cyrus, it became the capital of the kingdom, acquiring great importance. From then onward, building activity began, with the construction in the rock
of large and ornate buildings, which continued even under the Roman conquest (A.D. 106). In the deserted city, divided in two by the Wāḍl Mūsā, very numerous buildings can still be seen: temples, a nymphaeum, theatre, tombs, houses, etc., carved into the rock by the indigenous inhabitants, who attempted to imitate Greco-Roman motifs. The decorations are largely restricted to architectural elements. At P. the high places of worship on el-Ḥabis and el-Ḥubzeh should also be noted. During the Christian period some buildings were converted into churches, e.g., the tomb known as that of the urns, which became a cathedral in 447 under Bishop Jason; others were turned into dwellings for hermits, as at ed-Dejr. With the Arab occupation (7th century), the city became deserted and has remained so to the present day; indeed, the Crusaders, who built a castle there on el-Ḥabis, apparently did not know its ancient name.