Petra Tour: Bab as-Siq
In the necropolis along the path from the Visitor Centre to the deep gorge of the Siq, one can see remarkably unusual burial sites, including some of Petra's oldest.
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The complex with over 50 tombs on the plateau was not only a necropolis. As was customary among the Nabataeans, it served as a private meeting place for a clan, where festivities and other social activities took place in addition to the ceremonies for the dead. There were no gravesites in the Aslah Triclinium itself, and it could not be assigned to specific graves in the surrounding area (more about this on the image page about the pit graves).
Behind the large door opening in the center is the triclinium for banquets and drinking feasts with the three wide recliner benches (clines). At the front they are cut lower for depositing the food and drinks. Steps on both sides of the entrance made it easier for the guests to climb up to the 50 cm high side benches. Above the right one, a niche basin is carved into the wall next to the entrance. The middle part of the bench at the back is flattened and only about half as high as the others.
With wall lengths between approx. 5.40 and 5.90 and a room height of 4.35 m, this is a triclium of medium size compared to others in Petra.
The Nabataean inscription of the founder Aslah with the dedication to Dushara, the "God of Manbatu", and King Obodas as well as the indication of the year (corresponds to 96/95 B.C.) is carved into the very top of the back wall. Underneath, an aedicula and a small betyl also appear engraved as a sign of the presence of the divine. On the right wall a second inscription was found, heavily damaged and difficult to decipher.
The walls of the triclinium are covered with later engraved graffiti of camels, horses, donkeys, riders, and even two propeller planes (from the 1940s). While the petroglyphs of the Bdul are considered a cultural-historical testimony of the Bedouins, the more recent names and scribbles of visitors and locals are simply vandalism. For centuries, the triclinium was used as a dwelling place and cowshed.
More about the inscription and its wording on the next page ►
(Information from: International Aslah Project; und Gorgerat & Wenning)
© Photos, summary: Haupt & Binder
In the necropolis along the path from the Visitor Centre to the deep gorge of the Siq, one can see remarkably unusual burial sites, including some of Petra's oldest.
A betyl (Semitic: bait-el = house of God; Greek: baitylos) is an aniconical God symbol, usually in the form of a vertical rectangular plate or stele. It can also be a negative form in a niche. Often there are several betyls in a niche next to each other, on top of each other or grouped together. "The betyl is not a representation of the God, neither an image of the God, nor an idol. As a medium of the presence of the God, however, it can also experience cultic veneration. This in turn means that in the act of worship, one could offer sacrifices and gifts to the betyl." (R. Wenning, 2007. Transl. UiU)
A project study by Prof. Dr. Robert Wenning (Münster University) and Laurent Gorgerat (Antikenmuseum Basel und Sammlung Ludwig) in collaboration with the Association for the Understanding of Ancient Cultures (AUAC) and the Department of Antiquities of Jordan (DoA).
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Initiated and organized by Prof. Dr Stephan G. Schmid, Co-director of the French-German research project "Early Petra", sponsored by the German Research Association (DFG), the Excellence Cluster TOPOI at the Humboldt University Berlin, the Freiwillige Akademische Gesellschaft Basel (FAG), the Association for the Understanding of Ancient Cultures (AUAC) and the Stiftung für das Antikenmuseum Basel und Sammlung Ludwig.
The International Aslah Project (2010-2012): its contribution to "Early Petra"
In: Men on the Rocks. The Formation of Nabataean Petra
Proceedings of a conference held in Berlin, 2-4 December 2011
Michel Mouton, Stephan G. Schmid (ed.)
Logos Verlag Berlin, 2013
ISBN 978-3-8325-3313-7
pp. 223-236
The International Aslah Project, Petra: new research and new questions
R. Wenning in cooperation with L. Gorgerat
In: Supplement to Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies 42 (2012), pp. 127-145