Idea #578 – Hiking up to the grave of the Monastery in Petra
Deir (from Arabic al-Deir, “the monastery”) is the Petra’s biggest building. Its function is bound in one funeral rite, probably that of king nabatean Obodas Ier, deified, who had reached the throne in 96 BC. With a facade 45 meters wide on 42 meters, the monument is in hypogaeum type, that is dug in the rock. The inside consists of a big room at the bottom of which is an accessible podium by a small staircase. The grave looks like strongly Khazneh, that is Treasury, although its facade is less decorated. As for the latter, an impressive funerary urn 9 meters high dominates the pediment, and is accessible by a staircase, what avoided him being the target of the treasure hunters and their rifles … In the Byzantine time, the building will be reused by the Christians as the monastery, what is worth him his current name.
To contemplate this monument, it will be necessary to you to climb up 800 steps cut in the rock, that is a trip about 1 hour of walking with a good rhythm. The laziest will rise to donkey back, but that, we do not guarantee! The pleasure of the discovery is as high as beads of sweat, under one 30°C. A last effort will allow you to raise yourselves on the close tray, in the middle of the Byzantine vestiges, for an exceptional overview. The monument, the element of the site of Pétra is registered on the UNESCO world heritage list.
Some Pictures
Where is it ?
The Monastery, Petra, Jordan