1 00:00:02,433 --> 00:00:05,033 NARRATOR:It's one of the most magnificent cities of the ancient world: 2 00:00:05,066 --> 00:00:07,900 Petra. 3 00:00:07,933 --> 00:00:13,233 Its monumental temple-like tombs soar over 100 feet tall. 4 00:00:13,266 --> 00:00:17,900 {\an1}And these wonders of engineering are not constructed; 5 00:00:17,933 --> 00:00:21,433 they're carved out of sandstone cliffs. 6 00:00:23,066 --> 00:00:26,733 {\an1}At its height, Petra was thecenter of a vast trading network 7 00:00:26,766 --> 00:00:31,900 {\an1}in frankincense and myrrh and home to over 30,000 people 8 00:00:31,933 --> 00:00:36,100 {\an1}in one of the most bone-dry deserts on earth. 9 00:00:36,133 --> 00:00:39,866 UELI BELLWALD:It's not an appropriate location for a city. 10 00:00:39,900 --> 00:00:41,766 There is not even drinking water down there. 11 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:44,833 NARRATOR: How did an ancient people 12 00:00:44,866 --> 00:00:49,366 {\an1}supply enough water for this vast city? 13 00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:52,800 {\an1}And how did they carve these magnificent structures 14 00:00:52,833 --> 00:00:55,566 {\an1}so high up in these cliffs? 15 00:00:57,933 --> 00:01:01,833 {\an1}To find out, a geoscientist teams up with stonemasons 16 00:01:01,866 --> 00:01:04,433 {\an1}to carve a Petra-style tomb. 17 00:01:04,466 --> 00:01:06,666 TOM PARADISE: We're looking at something that hasn't been witnessed 18 00:01:06,700 --> 00:01:08,666 {\an1}for almost 2,000 years. 19 00:01:08,700 --> 00:01:12,700 NARRATOR: And archaeologists and hydro-engineers 20 00:01:12,733 --> 00:01:15,033 {\an1}discover how a group of nomads 21 00:01:15,066 --> 00:01:19,433 {\an1}transformed this desert city into an oasis, 22 00:01:19,466 --> 00:01:21,700 the Las Vegas of the ancient world. 23 00:01:21,733 --> 00:01:23,533 LEIGH-ANN BEDAL: It's really conspicuous consumption 24 00:01:23,566 --> 00:01:25,200 {\an1}of this precious resource, water, 25 00:01:25,233 --> 00:01:26,500 {\an1}in this desert environment. 26 00:01:28,700 --> 00:01:31,700 NARRATOR: Finally, after 2,000 years, 27 00:01:31,733 --> 00:01:35,966 {\an1}the secrets of Petra are about to be revealed. 28 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:41,200 Up now on NOVA, "Petra: Lost City of Stone." 29 00:02:13,933 --> 00:02:17,700 NARRATOR: It's one of the driest places on Earth. 30 00:02:17,733 --> 00:02:19,833 (camel grunting) 31 00:02:19,866 --> 00:02:24,433 Yet concealed among the canyons of this harsh desert 32 00:02:24,466 --> 00:02:29,866 {\an1}in the Kingdom of Jordan is a magnificent ancient city: 33 00:02:29,900 --> 00:02:32,066 Petra. 34 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:39,633 {\an1}For over a thousand years, its location remained hidden, 35 00:02:39,666 --> 00:02:43,000 protected by fortress-like cliffs 36 00:02:43,033 --> 00:02:46,733 {\an1}and Bedouin tribeswho fiercely guarded its secret. 37 00:02:48,566 --> 00:02:50,533 {\an1}Then, in 1812, 38 00:02:50,566 --> 00:02:54,100 {\an1}a Swiss adventurer disguised as an Arab pilgrim 39 00:02:54,133 --> 00:02:58,500 {\an1}risks his life to search for the legendary city. 40 00:02:58,533 --> 00:03:02,766 {\an1}Johann Ludwig Burckhardt makes his way through the Siq, 41 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:06,666 {\an1}a dramatic canyon rising almost 600 feet 42 00:03:06,700 --> 00:03:09,666 {\an1}that twists and turns for nearly a mile. 43 00:03:09,700 --> 00:03:14,033 Near its end, the canyon widens 44 00:03:14,066 --> 00:03:17,800 {\an1}to reveal a towering temple-like facade. 45 00:03:23,433 --> 00:03:29,133 {\an1}It is called the Treasury, or "Khazneh" in Arabic. 46 00:03:29,166 --> 00:03:31,633 {\an1}Built 2,000 years ago, 47 00:03:31,666 --> 00:03:35,733 {\an1}it is a masterpiece of design and engineering. 48 00:03:35,766 --> 00:03:40,700 {\an1}Majestic columns rise from the canyon floor, 49 00:03:40,733 --> 00:03:43,600 {\an1}topped by ornately carved capitals. 50 00:03:43,633 --> 00:03:48,433 {\an1}Statues of mythological figures adorn its facade. 51 00:03:51,466 --> 00:03:54,733 {\an1}A fanciful urn graces its roof. 52 00:03:54,766 --> 00:03:58,566 {\an1}And a towering doorway leads inside 53 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:01,266 {\an1}to a room with three chambers. 54 00:04:01,300 --> 00:04:05,433 {\an1}Here, there is no elaborate carving, 55 00:04:05,466 --> 00:04:10,166 {\an1}just the simple, natural beauty of the stone. 56 00:04:10,200 --> 00:04:12,433 {\an7}And then we back away and we realize 57 00:04:12,466 --> 00:04:15,333 {\an7}not only is this building unique and fantastic, 58 00:04:15,366 --> 00:04:20,466 {\an1}but it has been carved into the sheer face of living rock. 59 00:04:20,500 --> 00:04:23,800 NARRATOR: The Treasury is actually a sculpture 60 00:04:23,833 --> 00:04:25,466 {\an1}on a monumental scale. 61 00:04:25,500 --> 00:04:31,100 At 80 feet wide and 127 feet tall, 62 00:04:31,133 --> 00:04:34,800 {\an1}it is twice the height of the Mt. Rushmore memorial. 63 00:04:37,433 --> 00:04:40,100 {\an1}As Burckhardt continues through the canyon, 64 00:04:40,133 --> 00:04:41,866 {\an1}he discovers hundreds 65 00:04:41,900 --> 00:04:45,233 {\an1}of magnificently carved facades everywhere, 66 00:04:45,266 --> 00:04:48,700 {\an1}many rivaling the grandeur of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. 67 00:04:52,700 --> 00:04:58,400 {\an1}But there is more: the ruins of an entire city. 68 00:04:58,433 --> 00:05:03,900 {\an1}A 6,000-seat theater carved right out of the sandstone, 69 00:05:03,933 --> 00:05:10,100 {\an1}a main street lined with huge temple-like structures, 70 00:05:10,133 --> 00:05:14,066 {\an1}and even more spectacular monuments 71 00:05:14,100 --> 00:05:16,933 {\an1}carved higher in the mountains. 72 00:05:19,733 --> 00:05:22,900 {\an1}But Burckhardt's rediscovery of the legendary city 73 00:05:22,933 --> 00:05:26,966 {\an1}sparks more questions than answers. 74 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:29,966 {\an1}Who built Petra, and why? 75 00:05:34,300 --> 00:05:36,200 {\an1}Burckhardt was inspired by stories 76 00:05:36,233 --> 00:05:38,433 {\an1}of a mysterious desert tribe 77 00:05:38,466 --> 00:05:41,433 {\an1}who gained their wealth trading spices and silks 78 00:05:41,466 --> 00:05:44,866 {\an1}among China, India, Egypt, and Rome, 79 00:05:44,900 --> 00:05:48,400 {\an1}and then hid their treasures of gold in the cliffs. 80 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:54,266 {\an1}Greek and Roman sourcesprovide a name for these people: 81 00:05:54,300 --> 00:05:57,366 {\an1}the Nabataeans. 82 00:06:00,466 --> 00:06:03,266 {\an8}An account from the 4th century BCE 83 00:06:03,300 --> 00:06:07,000 {\an7}describes the Nabataeans as nomadic tent-dwellers. 84 00:06:09,733 --> 00:06:12,533 {\an7}But three centuries later, another source describes them 85 00:06:12,566 --> 00:06:17,466 {\an7}as a sophisticated people inhabiting a prosperous city. 86 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:21,500 {\an7}Around the time of Jesus, 87 00:06:21,533 --> 00:06:25,333 {\an7}Nabataea is a thriving kingdom surrounded by Egypt, Judea, 88 00:06:25,366 --> 00:06:28,266 {\an8}and the vast North Arabian Desert. 89 00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:33,466 {\an1}How, in just a few centuries, 90 00:06:33,500 --> 00:06:38,033 {\an1}did a village of tents become a wealthy kingdom? 91 00:06:38,066 --> 00:06:41,533 And how, in the middle of a desert, 92 00:06:41,566 --> 00:06:44,633 {\an1}did they build Petra? 93 00:06:48,200 --> 00:06:51,433 {\an1}Tom Paradise has spent over three decades 94 00:06:51,466 --> 00:06:54,033 {\an1}trying to find out. 95 00:06:54,066 --> 00:06:55,800 {\an1}He is a geoscientist 96 00:06:55,833 --> 00:06:59,400 {\an1}who specializes in preserving ancient structures. 97 00:06:59,433 --> 00:07:04,300 {\an1}Alongside the Treasury, he sees strange square marks 98 00:07:04,333 --> 00:07:06,900 {\an1}that could be a clue to how it was built. 99 00:07:06,933 --> 00:07:09,600 {\an1}Are these marks the remnants 100 00:07:09,633 --> 00:07:13,066 {\an1}of where an ancient scaffoldwas anchored to the cliff face? 101 00:07:13,100 --> 00:07:17,133 PARADISE: For many years, people considered these to be holds 102 00:07:17,166 --> 00:07:20,000 {\an1}for wooden scaffolding that may have been used 103 00:07:20,033 --> 00:07:22,533 {\an1}for the actual carving. 104 00:07:22,566 --> 00:07:25,100 NARRATOR: But Paradise has doubts. 105 00:07:25,133 --> 00:07:27,600 If these are scaffolding marks, 106 00:07:27,633 --> 00:07:30,566 {\an1}why did the Nabataeans leave them here? 107 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:34,666 {\an1}And why are they found nowhere else in Petra? 108 00:07:34,700 --> 00:07:37,600 {\an1}Paradise believes the real reason for the marks 109 00:07:37,633 --> 00:07:40,066 {\an1}may be tied to the fanciful name 110 00:07:40,100 --> 00:07:43,266 {\an1}given to this monument centuries ago. 111 00:07:43,300 --> 00:07:47,200 PARADISE: This building is calledthe Khazneh, it is the Treasury, 112 00:07:47,233 --> 00:07:50,633 {\an1}and so legend goes back millennia 113 00:07:50,666 --> 00:07:52,866 {\an1}that this housed riches. 114 00:07:52,900 --> 00:07:55,066 NARRATOR: Because it is known as the Treasury, 115 00:07:55,100 --> 00:07:56,900 {\an1}people have searched it for treasure. 116 00:07:56,933 --> 00:08:01,200 {\an1}Bullet holes riddle the urn at the top, 117 00:08:01,233 --> 00:08:03,933 {\an1}and these marks may be footholds 118 00:08:03,966 --> 00:08:06,933 to climb up and get a closer look. 119 00:08:06,966 --> 00:08:09,933 We think maybe those footholds were carved 120 00:08:09,966 --> 00:08:13,066 {\an1}for the purpose of raiding the upper parts of the Khazneh 121 00:08:13,100 --> 00:08:15,833 {\an1}looking for the treasure. 122 00:08:15,866 --> 00:08:20,733 NARRATOR: But the urn holds no gold; it's solid rock. 123 00:08:20,766 --> 00:08:24,733 {\an1}The only treasures here are the magnificent sculptures. 124 00:08:27,366 --> 00:08:29,333 {\an1}Whatever the true purpose of these marks, 125 00:08:29,366 --> 00:08:32,566 {\an1}Paradise is certain they're not for scaffolding. 126 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:39,500 {\an1}After all, in this desert, wood is relatively scarce. 127 00:08:39,533 --> 00:08:42,633 {\an1}So how on earth could the ancient Nabataeans 128 00:08:42,666 --> 00:08:46,866 {\an1}carve such a huge monument so high up in the cliff face 129 00:08:46,900 --> 00:08:49,500 {\an1}without scaffolding? 130 00:08:49,533 --> 00:08:54,100 {\an1}Paradise has a bold plan to find out. 131 00:08:54,133 --> 00:08:56,700 {\an1}That go all the way downto the top... 132 00:08:59,633 --> 00:09:02,066 NARRATOR: Working with a team of stonemasons, 133 00:09:02,100 --> 00:09:04,900 {\an1}they will try to carve a Nabataean-style facade 134 00:09:04,933 --> 00:09:06,566 {\an1}for the first time in 2,000 years. 135 00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:10,233 PARADISE: I may be sitting on the answer to the age-old question 136 00:09:10,266 --> 00:09:12,833 {\an1}as to how were these facades carved. 137 00:09:12,866 --> 00:09:17,300 NARRATOR:At the same time, archaeologists and hydro-engineers 138 00:09:17,333 --> 00:09:20,266 {\an1}are investigating how the Nabataeans could even survive 139 00:09:20,300 --> 00:09:22,800 {\an1}in this bone-dry environment. 140 00:09:22,833 --> 00:09:26,033 BELLWALD: The entire hydraulic infrastructure was built, 141 00:09:26,066 --> 00:09:30,033 {\an7}as I think I may prove, following one master plan. 142 00:09:30,066 --> 00:09:32,266 NARRATOR:Their groundbreaking discoveries 143 00:09:32,300 --> 00:09:35,133 are revealing the engineers of Petra 144 00:09:35,166 --> 00:09:39,366 were not only masters of stone, but also of water, 145 00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:42,100 {\an1}transforming a desert city 146 00:09:42,133 --> 00:09:45,500 {\an1}into the Las Vegas of the ancient world. 147 00:09:47,900 --> 00:09:50,666 {\an1}Now, can scientists finally uncover 148 00:09:50,700 --> 00:09:54,800 {\an1}how a nomadic tribe built this city of stone, 149 00:09:54,833 --> 00:09:59,733 {\an1}and why Petra ultimately vanished into legend? 150 00:10:05,833 --> 00:10:08,866 {\an1}("Indiana Jones" theme playing) 151 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:14,266 NARRATOR: Most people will recognize the Treasury 152 00:10:14,300 --> 00:10:15,600 {\an1}from the climactic scene 153 00:10:15,633 --> 00:10:18,400 ofIndiana Jones and the Last Crusade, 154 00:10:18,433 --> 00:10:20,000 {\an1}where Harrison Ford and Sean Connery 155 00:10:20,033 --> 00:10:25,166 {\an1}enter a secret temple to discover the Holy Grail. 156 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:28,500 {\an1}But despite the great Hollywood story, 157 00:10:28,533 --> 00:10:31,766 {\an1}the Treasury and most of Petra's iconic buildings 158 00:10:31,800 --> 00:10:35,866 are not temples; they're tombs. 159 00:10:38,333 --> 00:10:40,700 {\an1}The Nabataeans left very little writing, 160 00:10:40,733 --> 00:10:44,133 {\an1}but on some of their facades are inscriptions 161 00:10:44,166 --> 00:10:47,300 {\an1}in an Aramaic script, the common language 162 00:10:47,333 --> 00:10:50,366 {\an1}of the Middle East in the time of Jesus. 163 00:10:50,400 --> 00:10:55,033 {\an1}This one, on a facade called Turkmeniya, reads in part, 164 00:10:55,066 --> 00:10:57,833 {\an1}"This tomb is sacred. 165 00:10:57,866 --> 00:10:59,800 {\an1}"Nothing of all that is inside 166 00:10:59,833 --> 00:11:03,066 shall be changed or removed forever." 167 00:11:03,100 --> 00:11:06,466 Tomb raiders disregarded notices like this, 168 00:11:06,500 --> 00:11:10,433 so human remains and grave goods rarely survive. 169 00:11:10,466 --> 00:11:13,900 {\an1}But body-sized niches leave no doubt 170 00:11:13,933 --> 00:11:17,533 {\an1}these were burial chambers. 171 00:11:17,566 --> 00:11:22,066 {\an1}In all, the cliffs of Petra hold over 800 tombs. 172 00:11:23,866 --> 00:11:26,400 {\an1}CHRISTOPHER TUTTLE: The prominence of these monuments 173 00:11:26,433 --> 00:11:30,100 {\an1}led many of the early explorers to consider the possibility 174 00:11:30,133 --> 00:11:33,133 {\an7}that this might just be a city of the dead, a necropolis. 175 00:11:33,166 --> 00:11:35,033 {\an1}But over the past 200 years, 176 00:11:35,066 --> 00:11:37,300 {\an1}all of the research has actually shown 177 00:11:37,333 --> 00:11:40,233 {\an1}it was a city of the living as well. 178 00:11:40,266 --> 00:11:44,366 NARRATOR: Chris Tuttle has been working here for more than ten years. 179 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:47,800 {\an1}Although less than two percentof the site has been excavated, 180 00:11:47,833 --> 00:11:51,333 {\an1}archaeologists have mapped and surveyed the area. 181 00:11:51,366 --> 00:11:55,866 All in all, ancient Petra was a metropolis 182 00:11:55,900 --> 00:11:58,700 about the size of the island of Manhattan. 183 00:11:58,733 --> 00:12:01,500 {\an1}There is a two-square-mile downtown 184 00:12:01,533 --> 00:12:06,066 {\an1}where people lived, worked, and prayed. 185 00:12:06,100 --> 00:12:11,066 {\an1}Suburbs housing more peoplestretch to the north and south. 186 00:12:11,100 --> 00:12:16,800 {\an1}Based on these surveys, Tuttle can estimate the population. 187 00:12:16,833 --> 00:12:18,433 TUTTLE: At its height, we expect this city 188 00:12:18,466 --> 00:12:21,166 {\an1}housed somewhere between 20,000 or 30,000 people. 189 00:12:21,200 --> 00:12:26,866 NARRATOR: Yet unlike cultures that bury their dead in isolated areas, 190 00:12:26,900 --> 00:12:31,333 in Petra, tombs are everywhere. 191 00:12:31,366 --> 00:12:36,000 {\an1}Why did the Nabataeans carvetheir tombs throughout the city? 192 00:12:36,033 --> 00:12:39,100 {\an1}And how did they do it? 193 00:12:39,133 --> 00:12:40,700 Paradise hopes his carving project 194 00:12:40,733 --> 00:12:43,600 {\an1}will provide some answers. 195 00:12:43,633 --> 00:12:48,666 PARADISE: Creating an experimentin which we reconstruct a facade 196 00:12:48,700 --> 00:12:51,600 {\an7}will give us insight into how the Nabataeans 197 00:12:51,633 --> 00:12:54,933 {\an7}carved these fantastic facades 2,000 years ago. 198 00:12:54,966 --> 00:12:59,966 NARRATOR: But Paradise can't carve his facade here. 199 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:03,100 {\an1}Petra is a protected World Heritage site. 200 00:13:03,133 --> 00:13:05,500 {\an1}He must find a cliff face 201 00:13:05,533 --> 00:13:08,300 {\an1}with the right kind of sandstone somewhere else. 202 00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:15,766 {\an1}His search takes him a world away, 203 00:13:15,800 --> 00:13:17,333 {\an1}to Southern California. 204 00:13:17,366 --> 00:13:19,833 NATHAN HUNT: This looks like a promising prospect. 205 00:13:19,866 --> 00:13:22,400 NARRATOR: While the ocean view is a sharp contrast 206 00:13:22,433 --> 00:13:24,266 {\an1}to the Jordanian desert, 207 00:13:24,300 --> 00:13:27,766 {\an1}the sandstone is identical to Petra's. 208 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:33,533 {\an1}Paradise enlists stonemasons Blake Rankin and Nathan Hunt. 209 00:13:33,566 --> 00:13:36,300 With permission from the landowner, 210 00:13:36,333 --> 00:13:39,566 they search for just the right rock. 211 00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:43,200 {\an1}Hunt is a classically trained master carver 212 00:13:43,233 --> 00:13:48,733 {\an1}and architectural sculptor with over 18 years of experience. 213 00:13:48,766 --> 00:13:51,266 {\an8}We're looking for a fine-grained sandstone 214 00:13:51,300 --> 00:13:52,933 {\an7}which lends itself to ornamental carving. 215 00:13:52,966 --> 00:13:56,233 NARRATOR: Sandstone is a soft rock 216 00:13:56,266 --> 00:14:00,033 {\an1}made of compressed layers of sand and minerals. 217 00:14:00,066 --> 00:14:01,800 RANKIN: That looks like the type of stone we're looking for. 218 00:14:01,833 --> 00:14:03,500 {\an1}Yeah, this is great. 219 00:14:03,533 --> 00:14:05,266 {\an1}It looks like it's going to carve really well. 220 00:14:05,300 --> 00:14:09,433 NARRATOR: The team has foundthe perfect rock and cliff face. 221 00:14:09,466 --> 00:14:15,400 {\an1}Now, they must find the right tools for the job. 222 00:14:15,433 --> 00:14:20,266 {\an1}Back in Petra, Paradise discovers a clue in the stone: 223 00:14:20,300 --> 00:14:24,300 chisel marks made from iron tools. 224 00:14:24,333 --> 00:14:26,666 PARADISE: The technologies used with chisels in stonework 225 00:14:26,700 --> 00:14:28,800 haven't changed in 2,000 years. 226 00:14:28,833 --> 00:14:30,400 {\an1}We use the same chisels, 227 00:14:30,433 --> 00:14:33,766 {\an1}and so they leave the same marks. 228 00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:37,366 NARRATOR: By matching modern day tool marks 229 00:14:37,400 --> 00:14:41,533 {\an7}with those found in Petra, their adviser Tom Paradise 230 00:14:41,566 --> 00:14:45,400 {\an7}tells them exactly which tools to use: 231 00:14:45,433 --> 00:14:47,800 the claw chisel, 232 00:14:47,833 --> 00:14:49,633 the flat chisel, 233 00:14:49,666 --> 00:14:52,166 {\an1}and the pointed chisel. 234 00:14:52,200 --> 00:14:55,866 PARADISE: The pointed chisel is used for the coarser chiseling 235 00:14:55,900 --> 00:14:57,933 that removes large amounts of rock. 236 00:14:57,966 --> 00:15:01,400 NARRATOR: So the pointed chisel 237 00:15:01,433 --> 00:15:04,200 {\an1}is exactly what Hunt and Rankin use to begin work. 238 00:15:04,233 --> 00:15:05,333 RANKIN: Yeah! 239 00:15:05,366 --> 00:15:06,466 {\an1}It feels good to be carving. 240 00:15:08,033 --> 00:15:11,966 NARRATOR:But their exuberance fades fast. 241 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:14,833 Carving by hand is seriously slow. 242 00:15:14,866 --> 00:15:17,533 HUNT:There's no waywe can do it by hand. 243 00:15:17,566 --> 00:15:21,766 NARRATOR: A Greek source says the Nabataeans had few slaves, 244 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:23,466 {\an1}but they probably did have 245 00:15:23,500 --> 00:15:25,600 {\an1}plenty of skilled manpower and time. 246 00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:32,800 {\an1}Hunt and Rankin have neither, but they have power tools. 247 00:15:37,333 --> 00:15:41,166 {\an1}Even so, Rankin insists they're not cheating. 248 00:15:41,200 --> 00:15:42,966 RANKIN: This is a chisel very similar to one 249 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:44,666 {\an1}that the Nabataeans would have used. 250 00:15:44,700 --> 00:15:45,900 {\an1}The only difference is that 251 00:15:45,933 --> 00:15:48,100 {\an8}we've mechanized the hammer process 252 00:15:48,133 --> 00:15:50,966 {\an7}so that we can move a lot of stone really quickly. 253 00:15:54,966 --> 00:15:56,900 NARRATOR: The carvers have found the right rock 254 00:15:56,933 --> 00:16:01,400 and the right tools for the job. 255 00:16:01,433 --> 00:16:04,700 {\an1}As Hunt and Rankin prepare the cliff face, 256 00:16:04,733 --> 00:16:08,566 {\an1}Paradise must decide what exactly to carve. 257 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:12,466 {\an1}What makes a Nabataean tomb Nabataean? 258 00:16:12,500 --> 00:16:15,700 {\an1}Many of the facades in Petra 259 00:16:15,733 --> 00:16:19,100 {\an1}actually look like they belong somewhere else. 260 00:16:19,133 --> 00:16:23,433 {\an1}At the Treasury, Paradise finds statues, columns, and capitals 261 00:16:23,466 --> 00:16:26,333 {\an7}reminiscent of ancient Greece and Rome. 262 00:16:28,733 --> 00:16:30,866 {\an1}And across Petra, 263 00:16:30,900 --> 00:16:34,466 {\an1}he finds architectural features from other far-flung empires: 264 00:16:34,500 --> 00:16:39,300 {\an1}a step design associated with Assyria and Mesopotamia, 265 00:16:39,333 --> 00:16:43,933 {\an1}elephant-headed capitals evoking India, 266 00:16:43,966 --> 00:16:46,266 {\an1}even Egyptian obelisks. 267 00:16:50,133 --> 00:16:52,433 {\an1}But among the familiar 268 00:16:52,466 --> 00:16:56,233 {\an1}are designs Paradise has seen nowhere else. 269 00:16:56,266 --> 00:17:00,166 PARADISE: There's a pediment at the top that is split in the middle, 270 00:17:00,200 --> 00:17:05,100 {\an1}capped by a cone, a capital, and an urn at the top. 271 00:17:05,133 --> 00:17:07,200 {\an1}This isn't Greek, this isn't Roman. 272 00:17:07,233 --> 00:17:11,000 NARRATOR: This new design is seamlessly mixed 273 00:17:11,033 --> 00:17:14,166 with features from far-off cultures. 274 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:17,100 PARADISE: The architecture is this synthesis. 275 00:17:17,133 --> 00:17:20,833 {\an1}And this begins to tell usa story that is the real Petra. 276 00:17:20,866 --> 00:17:24,600 NARRATOR: What makes a Nabataean tomb Nabataean 277 00:17:24,633 --> 00:17:28,066 is the combining of their own unique style 278 00:17:28,100 --> 00:17:30,266 with designs from other empires. 279 00:17:30,300 --> 00:17:34,800 {\an1}But how did these people in the middle of the desert 280 00:17:34,833 --> 00:17:38,633 {\an1}come into contact with such faraway places? 281 00:17:41,033 --> 00:17:45,100 Two words: frankincense and myrrh. 282 00:17:48,233 --> 00:17:49,933 {\an1}Frankincense and myrrh 283 00:17:49,966 --> 00:17:52,866 {\an1}were must-have luxury items in antiquity. 284 00:17:52,900 --> 00:17:55,733 {\an1}In the New Testament, they are among the gifts 285 00:17:55,766 --> 00:17:59,400 {\an1}the Three Kings bring to the baby Jesus. 286 00:17:59,433 --> 00:18:01,666 {\an1}Made from dried sap from trees 287 00:18:01,700 --> 00:18:03,900 {\an1}in the southern Arabian peninsula, 288 00:18:03,933 --> 00:18:07,000 {\an1}they were burned obsessively in religious ceremonies 289 00:18:07,033 --> 00:18:09,333 {\an1}in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. 290 00:18:09,366 --> 00:18:12,933 {\an1}But to get that incense to consumers 291 00:18:12,966 --> 00:18:14,533 {\an1}throhout the Mediterranean, 292 00:18:14,566 --> 00:18:17,733 {\an1}it first had to be transported through the desert. 293 00:18:24,300 --> 00:18:26,333 After centuries of living as nomads, 294 00:18:26,366 --> 00:18:30,033 {\an1}the Nabataeans knew every secret source of water. 295 00:18:32,800 --> 00:18:34,933 If you wanted to cross the desert 296 00:18:34,966 --> 00:18:38,100 {\an1}and make it out alive,you had better have a Nabataean 297 00:18:38,133 --> 00:18:41,166 {\an1}leading the way. 298 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:43,400 (camel grunting) 299 00:18:43,433 --> 00:18:45,800 Along the route, they built outposts 300 00:18:45,833 --> 00:18:49,433 {\an1}to guard their goods and extract a toll. 301 00:18:49,466 --> 00:18:53,033 {\an1}In a valley just over the mountain from Petra, 302 00:18:53,066 --> 00:18:57,700 {\an1}Andrew Smith has excavated this fort called Bir Madhkhur. 303 00:18:57,733 --> 00:18:59,900 ANDREW SMITH: There was definitely a Nabataean presence here, 304 00:18:59,933 --> 00:19:03,400 most likely related to the trade that came out of Petra. 305 00:19:06,666 --> 00:19:08,800 NARRATOR:Among the artifacts he excavated 306 00:19:08,833 --> 00:19:13,966 {\an1}are dozens of tiny clay perfume bottles. 307 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:15,600 The Nabataeans were most likely processing 308 00:19:15,633 --> 00:19:17,000 {\an1}some of the raw frankincense, 309 00:19:17,033 --> 00:19:20,600 {\an1}and they would have bottled and then packed them tightly 310 00:19:20,633 --> 00:19:22,466 {\an1}so that they weren't going to break 311 00:19:22,500 --> 00:19:25,233 {\an1}and probably loaded them on camels or even donkeys. 312 00:19:27,866 --> 00:19:31,700 NARRATOR: The Incense Road becamethe lifeblood of the Nabataeans, 313 00:19:31,733 --> 00:19:35,866 {\an1}pulsing from Saudi Arabia to the port of Gaza, 314 00:19:35,900 --> 00:19:38,733 {\an1}the gateway to Greece and Rome. 315 00:19:41,933 --> 00:19:44,066 {\an1}The financial reward from this trade 316 00:19:44,100 --> 00:19:48,700 {\an1}catapults a desert tribe into a powerful kingdom. 317 00:19:48,733 --> 00:19:52,233 {\an1}Nabataean towns and tombs spring up 318 00:19:52,266 --> 00:19:55,000 {\an1}throughout the northwestern Arabian peninsula. 319 00:19:58,800 --> 00:20:01,566 {\an1}By the first century, the Roman writer Pliny 320 00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:05,566 {\an1}called the Nabataeans "the richest race on earth." 321 00:20:08,566 --> 00:20:10,333 {\an1}Much of their wealth 322 00:20:10,366 --> 00:20:13,600 {\an1}went into building their capital city, Petra. 323 00:20:18,100 --> 00:20:20,133 {\an1}Tom Paradise believes 324 00:20:20,166 --> 00:20:22,933 the Nabataeans' far flung trade connections 325 00:20:22,966 --> 00:20:25,933 influenced their domestic designs. 326 00:20:25,966 --> 00:20:28,966 PARADISE: Because Petra is a crossroads for the region, 327 00:20:29,000 --> 00:20:31,633 {\an7}it makes sense that they would adopt and adapt 328 00:20:31,666 --> 00:20:33,333 {\an7}different architectural styles 329 00:20:33,366 --> 00:20:35,000 {\an7}from a lot of their trading partners. 330 00:20:35,033 --> 00:20:38,800 NARRATOR: But with all these different styles, 331 00:20:38,833 --> 00:20:43,333 {\an1}what should Paradise pick for his carving experiment? 332 00:20:43,366 --> 00:20:45,766 PARADISE: This sort of facade represents 333 00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:49,933 {\an1}more than 500 other facades in Petra. 334 00:20:49,966 --> 00:20:54,300 {\an1}So this style really is the archetype of the tomb facades. 335 00:20:54,333 --> 00:20:59,300 NARRATOR: To Paradise, this tomb is typically Nabataean. 336 00:20:59,333 --> 00:21:01,366 {\an1}Although it appears plain, 337 00:21:01,400 --> 00:21:04,800 {\an1}it's a mash-up of different architectural styles. 338 00:21:07,033 --> 00:21:09,766 {\an7}It has the remains of a Greco-Roman doorway, 339 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:13,466 {\an7}Nabataean capitals, an Egyptian cornice, 340 00:21:13,500 --> 00:21:15,833 {\an1}and a design from Assyria 341 00:21:15,866 --> 00:21:17,966 {\an1}that may represent a stairway to heaven, 342 00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,566 {\an1}called a crow step. 343 00:21:20,600 --> 00:21:22,233 {\an1}But when the carving team 344 00:21:22,266 --> 00:21:24,666 {\an1}transfers the design to California, 345 00:21:24,700 --> 00:21:27,500 {\an1}it isn't wide enough to fit the rock. 346 00:21:27,533 --> 00:21:29,633 You never really know how it's going to work 347 00:21:29,666 --> 00:21:31,233 in the stone until you get started. 348 00:21:31,266 --> 00:21:34,066 We think it's going to look a lot better 349 00:21:34,100 --> 00:21:35,900 if we widen the facade. 350 00:21:35,933 --> 00:21:40,233 NARRATOR: But how will making the facade wider affect the design? 351 00:21:40,266 --> 00:21:43,566 Make each block of the crow step seven by seven inch. 352 00:21:43,600 --> 00:21:45,500 {\an1}This would be the edge of the crow steps. 353 00:21:45,533 --> 00:21:47,166 {\an1}RANKIN:That would be great. 354 00:21:47,200 --> 00:21:49,333 NARRATOR: Grappling with this problem, the team may shed light 355 00:21:49,366 --> 00:21:53,900 on a mystery that has confounded scholars for decades. 356 00:21:53,933 --> 00:21:56,700 {\an1}Why do Nabataean tbs, while similar, 357 00:21:56,733 --> 00:21:59,066 {\an1}have unique variations? 358 00:21:59,100 --> 00:22:02,933 PARADISE: There is one motif they modify a lot, 359 00:22:02,966 --> 00:22:05,066 {\an1}and that is the crow step. 360 00:22:05,100 --> 00:22:07,033 {\an1}Why the differencewe have never really understood. 361 00:22:07,066 --> 00:22:10,566 NARRATOR: Some of the tombs in Petra have crow steps 362 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:13,100 {\an1}that reach all the way down to a narrow ledge 363 00:22:13,133 --> 00:22:15,233 {\an1}called the cornice. 364 00:22:15,266 --> 00:22:18,800 {\an1}Other crow steps meet in the middle. 365 00:22:18,833 --> 00:22:24,533 {\an1}Some scholars have argued thisreflects an evolution in design. 366 00:22:24,566 --> 00:22:30,066 {\an1}But Paradise thinks they havestruck upon a practical reason. 367 00:22:30,100 --> 00:22:34,533 {\an1}As we make the facade wider, it really requires us 368 00:22:34,566 --> 00:22:37,200 {\an1}to take the crow stepsall the way down to the cornice. 369 00:22:39,233 --> 00:22:43,800 NARRATOR: If the facade is wider,the crow steps must break apart. 370 00:22:43,833 --> 00:22:47,233 PARADISE: Increasingly, we notice that changes of the rock 371 00:22:47,266 --> 00:22:51,366 {\an1}actually caused changes within the design elements. 372 00:22:51,400 --> 00:22:54,033 {\an1}I think we have to givemore credit to the rock 373 00:22:54,066 --> 00:22:55,700 {\an1}than we have in the past. 374 00:22:55,733 --> 00:22:58,466 {\an1}Just sort of roughly marknine inches on there. 375 00:22:58,500 --> 00:23:00,466 NARRATOR: By carving their own facade, 376 00:23:00,500 --> 00:23:04,333 they discover a basic principle of Petra: 377 00:23:04,366 --> 00:23:07,133 {\an1}the rock influences what they carve 378 00:23:07,166 --> 00:23:09,066 {\an1}and where they carve it. 379 00:23:12,900 --> 00:23:14,533 {\an8}But why here? 380 00:23:14,566 --> 00:23:18,466 {\an8}Choosing to build their capitalin the middle of a rocky desert 381 00:23:18,500 --> 00:23:22,066 {\an8}poses another age old question: 382 00:23:22,100 --> 00:23:25,200 {\an1}how did the Nabataeans get enough water 383 00:23:25,233 --> 00:23:29,366 to support such a magnificent city? 384 00:23:29,400 --> 00:23:32,833 {\an1}One clue is here, in the city center, 385 00:23:32,866 --> 00:23:36,033 at a structure known as the Great Temple. 386 00:23:36,066 --> 00:23:41,166 {\an1}Its monumental stairwayleads to a large stone platform 387 00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:46,100 {\an1}surrounded by over a hundred columns. 388 00:23:46,133 --> 00:23:49,166 {\an1}Holes in the courtyard show 389 00:23:49,200 --> 00:23:52,100 {\an1}there are channels running underneath it. 390 00:23:52,133 --> 00:23:53,633 {\an1}It's runningunder the floor. 391 00:23:53,666 --> 00:23:54,966 SUE ALCOCK: Oh, that'll do it. 392 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:56,466 NARRATOR: Sue Alcock leads a team 393 00:23:56,500 --> 00:23:59,300 {\an1}from Brown University to investigate. 394 00:23:59,333 --> 00:24:03,066 ALCOCK: If we could make all this surface architecture go away, 395 00:24:03,100 --> 00:24:05,066 you know, just kind of magically 396 00:24:05,100 --> 00:24:07,566 {\an7}lift it up and look down, I think we would see 397 00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:09,933 {\an7}quite a network of these channels and canals. 398 00:24:09,966 --> 00:24:13,100 NARRATOR: She may be sho on magic, 399 00:24:13,133 --> 00:24:16,433 but Alcock does have another way to look below the surface: 400 00:24:16,466 --> 00:24:23,533 {\an1}a technology called GPR-- ground-penetrating radar. 401 00:24:23,566 --> 00:24:26,033 TOMMY URBAN: Excavation is inherently destructive. 402 00:24:26,066 --> 00:24:29,066 {\an1}This is a way to get a look at what's down there 403 00:24:29,100 --> 00:24:30,833 {\an1}in the same way you would go in for an x-ray perhaps 404 00:24:30,866 --> 00:24:32,533 {\an7}before you went in for a surgery. 405 00:24:32,566 --> 00:24:37,666 NARRATOR:The radar sends a high-frequency radio wave into the ground. 406 00:24:37,700 --> 00:24:41,400 {\an1}When the wave passes through different materials, 407 00:24:41,433 --> 00:24:43,666 {\an1}like from stone to soil, 408 00:24:43,700 --> 00:24:47,000 part of the wave is reflected back. 409 00:24:47,033 --> 00:24:50,000 {\an1}But the speed of the wave changes 410 00:24:50,033 --> 00:24:52,100 {\an1}depending on the material: 411 00:24:52,133 --> 00:24:56,833 slower for soil, faster through air. 412 00:24:56,866 --> 00:24:59,500 {\an1}Detecting these changes 413 00:24:59,533 --> 00:25:05,233 {\an1}is how the GPR sees where the channels are. 414 00:25:05,266 --> 00:25:08,000 {\an1}The team systematically drags the radar 415 00:25:08,033 --> 00:25:10,800 back and forth across the courtyard. 416 00:25:10,833 --> 00:25:12,833 URBAN: There's some kind of a channel right there. 417 00:25:12,866 --> 00:25:14,900 ALCOCK:Oh yeah, look at that. 418 00:25:14,933 --> 00:25:17,900 NARRATOR: Beneath the Great Temple 419 00:25:17,933 --> 00:25:21,900 {\an1}is a network of channels that looks like plumbing. 420 00:25:21,933 --> 00:25:27,533 {\an1}Intriguingly, the channels seemto extend beyond the courtyard. 421 00:25:27,566 --> 00:25:29,133 ALCOCK: When we look at Petra, 422 00:25:29,166 --> 00:25:31,266 {\an1}we often tend to think about building by building, 423 00:25:31,300 --> 00:25:33,400 {\an1}and actually, I think it was all tied together. 424 00:25:33,433 --> 00:25:37,200 NARRATOR: Alcock believes these channels are evidence 425 00:25:37,233 --> 00:25:40,833 {\an1}of a massive city-wide water system. 426 00:25:40,866 --> 00:25:43,933 {\an1}Petra was an urban center, and it had urban water supply. 427 00:25:43,966 --> 00:25:48,633 NARRATOR: There's just one problem with this theory. 428 00:25:48,666 --> 00:25:53,666 {\an1}Petra is in one of the driest places on the planet. 429 00:25:53,700 --> 00:25:55,800 {\an1}If the Great Temple 430 00:25:55,833 --> 00:25:59,066 {\an1}is indeed the heart of a vast engineering system 431 00:25:59,100 --> 00:26:01,700 {\an1}that supplied an entire city with water, 432 00:26:01,733 --> 00:26:05,133 {\an1}where is all that water coming from? 433 00:26:13,433 --> 00:26:17,366 {\an1}One possible source is still used daily by locals. 434 00:26:17,400 --> 00:26:21,466 {\an1}It's called Ain Musa, or the spring of Moses. 435 00:26:21,500 --> 00:26:24,366 Allison Mickel and Cecelia Feldman 436 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:27,166 {\an1}of Brown University's survey team 437 00:26:27,200 --> 00:26:30,866 {\an1}join hydro-engineerCharles Ortloff to investigate. 438 00:26:30,900 --> 00:26:32,066 CECELIA FELDMAN: In Numbers 20:11, 439 00:26:32,100 --> 00:26:34,133 {\an8}it talks about how the Israelites 440 00:26:34,166 --> 00:26:36,566 {\an7}were wandering in the desert. 441 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:39,600 {\an1}And Moses strikes this rockin anger, and water flows forth. 442 00:26:39,633 --> 00:26:43,566 NARRATOR:The story of Moses miraculously bringing forth water 443 00:26:43,600 --> 00:26:46,866 {\an1}has been linked in legend to this rock and spring. 444 00:26:46,900 --> 00:26:50,433 {\an1}But it would take an engineering miracle 445 00:26:50,466 --> 00:26:54,100 {\an1}to get this water from Ain Musa to Petra's city center-- 446 00:26:54,133 --> 00:26:57,233 {\an1}it's five miles away. 447 00:26:57,266 --> 00:27:00,466 In the Siq, the entrance to Petra, 448 00:27:00,500 --> 00:27:02,733 {\an1}the team finds evidence 449 00:27:02,766 --> 00:27:05,000 {\an1}for how the water may have been brought here. 450 00:27:11,900 --> 00:27:15,533 {\an1}Running along the sideof the path is a narrow channel 451 00:27:15,566 --> 00:27:19,933 {\an1}which has imprints of what were once enclosed ceramic pipes. 452 00:27:19,966 --> 00:27:24,066 CHARLES ORTLOFF: If you look inside of the channel, 453 00:27:24,100 --> 00:27:27,100 you can see the actual imprints of ceramic sections 454 00:27:27,133 --> 00:27:31,266 {\an1}that are roughly about a third of a meter long. 455 00:27:31,300 --> 00:27:33,366 NARRATOR: At roughly a foot long, 456 00:27:33,400 --> 00:27:36,533 it would require tens of thousands of segments 457 00:27:36,566 --> 00:27:39,333 {\an1}to create a five-mile pipeline from Ain Musa, 458 00:27:39,366 --> 00:27:41,533 {\an1}high in the mountains. 459 00:27:41,566 --> 00:27:43,466 {\an1}And every one of those joints 460 00:27:43,500 --> 00:27:47,100 {\an1}would have the potential to spring a leak. 461 00:27:50,433 --> 00:27:53,600 {\an1}Could the Nabataeans possibly have pulled off 462 00:27:53,633 --> 00:27:56,600 such a feat of hydro-engineering? 463 00:28:00,733 --> 00:28:03,500 {\an1}At California State University in San Jose, 464 00:28:03,533 --> 00:28:07,300 {\an1}Charles Ortloff and graduate student Shayan Mizrahosseini 465 00:28:07,333 --> 00:28:10,666 {\an1}are trying to figure that out using this 26-foot tank. 466 00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:18,666 {\an7}Water is extremely precious to the Nabataeans, 467 00:28:18,700 --> 00:28:20,933 {\an1}so ancient engineers 468 00:28:20,966 --> 00:28:24,500 {\an1}needed to design a pipeline that would be free of leaks. 469 00:28:24,533 --> 00:28:27,100 NARRATOR:Their challenge, and Ortloff's, 470 00:28:27,133 --> 00:28:30,900 {\an1}is how to get water to flow through a pipe 471 00:28:30,933 --> 00:28:33,966 {\an1}as quickly and efficiently as possible. 472 00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:36,266 {\an1}The different anglesrepresent different choices. 473 00:28:36,300 --> 00:28:38,500 NARRATOR: One choice seems obvious: 474 00:28:38,533 --> 00:28:41,333 {\an1}make the slope of the pipe steep. 475 00:28:44,300 --> 00:28:46,333 {\an1}Ortloff sets the slope to six degrees 476 00:28:46,366 --> 00:28:48,500 {\an1}and turns on the water. 477 00:28:52,733 --> 00:28:54,666 {\an1}Things start out well. 478 00:28:54,700 --> 00:28:57,966 {\an1}The water is flowing fast. 479 00:28:58,000 --> 00:29:01,533 {\an1}But it fills the pipe too quickly, 480 00:29:01,566 --> 00:29:05,500 {\an1}producing an area of turbulence known as a hydraulic jump, 481 00:29:05,533 --> 00:29:09,100 {\an1}which causes the water flow to slow down. 482 00:29:09,133 --> 00:29:12,800 ORTLOFF: This is the hydraulic jump, right here. 483 00:29:12,833 --> 00:29:14,666 NARRATOR: But there's a bigger problem: 484 00:29:14,700 --> 00:29:19,500 {\an1}the pipe is now filled with water, 485 00:29:19,533 --> 00:29:22,366 {\an1}raising the pressure. 486 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:23,866 {\an1}In the ceramic pipelines, 487 00:29:23,900 --> 00:29:27,566 {\an1}that pressure could create leaks at the joints. 488 00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:32,700 ORTLOFF: So that design,where we have the steeper slope, 489 00:29:32,733 --> 00:29:34,866 is not good. 490 00:29:34,900 --> 00:29:36,933 {\an1}SHAYAN MIZRAHOSSEINI: Okay, closing all the valves. 491 00:29:36,966 --> 00:29:39,700 ORTLOFF: If you can put the brick on the other side, 492 00:29:39,733 --> 00:29:42,500 we're just going to slide it over. 493 00:29:42,533 --> 00:29:45,900 NARRATOR: Ortloff adjusts the slope of the pipe to four degrees. 494 00:29:45,933 --> 00:29:48,033 A little more. 495 00:29:48,066 --> 00:29:49,900 There we go. 496 00:29:49,933 --> 00:29:50,833 Got it. 497 00:29:53,400 --> 00:29:58,033 NARRATOR: A small change in the slope, just two degrees shallower, 498 00:29:58,066 --> 00:30:01,400 has a big impact on the speed of the water. 499 00:30:01,433 --> 00:30:04,200 ORTLOFF:The big surprise here is thatwe have only changed the slope 500 00:30:04,233 --> 00:30:06,366 by two degrees, 501 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:10,533 and yet we have a completelydifferent flow pattern. 502 00:30:10,566 --> 00:30:13,333 NARRATOR: The flow is fast. 503 00:30:13,366 --> 00:30:17,233 And in this test, the pipe never completely fills with water, 504 00:30:17,266 --> 00:30:21,333 {\an1}which would be good news for Petra's plumbers. 505 00:30:21,366 --> 00:30:26,066 ORTLOFF: The entire flow has an exposed air space above the surface, 506 00:30:26,100 --> 00:30:29,000 {\an1}and this will prevent leakage in the system. 507 00:30:29,033 --> 00:30:32,266 NARRATOR: With the help of modern day tools, 508 00:30:32,300 --> 00:30:34,400 {\an1}Ortloff has shown that the best design 509 00:30:34,433 --> 00:30:36,933 {\an1}for delivering water fast and leak-free 510 00:30:36,966 --> 00:30:41,300 {\an1}is a four-degree slope. 511 00:30:41,333 --> 00:30:43,300 And when Ortloff measures the angle 512 00:30:43,333 --> 00:30:48,000 of the carved channel in Petra,he makes a remarkable discovery. 513 00:30:48,033 --> 00:30:50,333 ORTLOFF: If we look at actual field measurements, 514 00:30:50,366 --> 00:30:53,100 {\an1}we're able to see that with their pipeline, 515 00:30:53,133 --> 00:30:55,566 {\an1}the ancient Nabataean engineers 516 00:30:55,600 --> 00:30:58,933 {\an1}had a slope of approximately four degrees. 517 00:30:58,966 --> 00:31:01,533 NARRATOR: 2,000 years ago, 518 00:31:01,566 --> 00:31:05,466 {\an1}Petra's engineers worked out the perfect design 519 00:31:05,500 --> 00:31:07,766 {\an1}for their long-haul pipelines. 520 00:31:07,800 --> 00:31:10,966 ORTLOFF: They invented scientific principles 521 00:31:11,000 --> 00:31:14,233 {\an1}that were only officially discovered in the West 522 00:31:14,266 --> 00:31:16,400 {\an1}some 2,000 years later. 523 00:31:16,433 --> 00:31:23,233 NARRATOR:It is clear that the Nabataeanswere master hydraulic engineers. 524 00:31:28,666 --> 00:31:32,100 But water is not the only scarce resource in the desert. 525 00:31:32,133 --> 00:31:36,733 {\an1}Wood from local trees was also in short supply. 526 00:31:36,766 --> 00:31:40,100 {\an1}So how could the Nabataeans build their tombs 527 00:31:40,133 --> 00:31:42,300 {\an1}so high up in the cliff face 528 00:31:42,333 --> 00:31:45,266 {\an1}without using large wooden scaffolding? 529 00:31:45,300 --> 00:31:51,033 {\an1}Paradise finds an important clue in this unusual carving, 530 00:31:51,066 --> 00:31:54,966 aptly called "The Unfinished Tomb." 531 00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:56,833 {\an7}The top is finished. 532 00:31:56,866 --> 00:31:59,833 {\an7}The upper area of the capitals remains somewhat crude 533 00:31:59,866 --> 00:32:02,000 {\an1}and still in progress. 534 00:32:02,033 --> 00:32:05,866 {\an1}But then below that,nothing has been carved at all. 535 00:32:05,900 --> 00:32:10,200 {\an1}It's the natural sandstone face. 536 00:32:10,233 --> 00:32:13,833 NARRATOR: To Paradise, the progression of finished at the top 537 00:32:13,866 --> 00:32:19,066 {\an1}and barely started below can mean only one thing. 538 00:32:19,100 --> 00:32:23,666 {\an1}The Nabataeans started from the top and carved down. 539 00:32:23,700 --> 00:32:27,300 NARRATOR: The unfinished tomb shows that Nabataeans began 540 00:32:27,333 --> 00:32:30,533 {\an1}by sculpting the top layer of the facade, 541 00:32:30,566 --> 00:32:35,633 {\an1}and then worked their way down the cliff face. 542 00:32:36,700 --> 00:32:38,766 {\an1}Getting windy again. 543 00:32:38,800 --> 00:32:40,366 Yep. 544 00:32:40,400 --> 00:32:43,333 NARRATOR: Back in California, Paradise tells Hunt and Rankin 545 00:32:43,366 --> 00:32:46,400 {\an1}they must carve their facade Nabataean style: 546 00:32:46,433 --> 00:32:49,866 top down and without scaffolding. 547 00:32:49,900 --> 00:32:51,866 HUNT: There's a lot of challenges involved 548 00:32:51,900 --> 00:32:54,066 {\an1}in trying to figure out how the Nabataeans 549 00:32:54,100 --> 00:32:56,166 {\an1}carved a piece like this. 550 00:32:56,200 --> 00:32:58,233 {\an7}I die like a Nabataean is my worst fear. 551 00:32:58,266 --> 00:32:59,733 {\an8}(laughing) 552 00:32:59,766 --> 00:33:01,433 {\an7}Falling off the rock. 553 00:33:01,466 --> 00:33:06,300 NARRATOR: Up to now, they've been using safety harnesses. 554 00:33:06,333 --> 00:33:10,033 {\an1}But the Nabataeans' top-down approach 555 00:33:10,066 --> 00:33:12,633 {\an1}gives them an ingenious idea for how to carve 556 00:33:12,666 --> 00:33:15,933 {\an1}without harnesses or a large wooden scaffold. 557 00:33:15,966 --> 00:33:18,533 RANKIN: We've drilled into the stone here 558 00:33:18,566 --> 00:33:22,466 {\an1}and placed a couple of pins and then put a plank on top 559 00:33:22,500 --> 00:33:27,300 {\an1}and created a temporary and movable ledge 560 00:33:27,333 --> 00:33:29,566 {\an1}that doesn't require a lot of material. 561 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:33,866 NARRATOR: They drive three pins into the rock 562 00:33:33,900 --> 00:33:37,900 and lay just a couple of planks of wood across them, 563 00:33:37,933 --> 00:33:40,800 {\an1}forming a platform. 564 00:33:40,833 --> 00:33:42,700 {\an1}As their carving descends, 565 00:33:42,733 --> 00:33:44,933 {\an1}it erases the holes they've made, 566 00:33:44,966 --> 00:33:46,700 leaving no sign of their platform. 567 00:33:46,733 --> 00:33:48,466 {\an1}By the time we get to the bottom, 568 00:33:48,500 --> 00:33:51,133 {\an1}we've pretty much removed all evidence of any plank. 569 00:33:51,166 --> 00:33:56,600 NARRATOR: The pin and plank solution works perfectly. 570 00:33:56,633 --> 00:33:58,966 It could explain how the Nabataeans 571 00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:02,400 {\an1}were able to carve so high up without scaffolding, 572 00:34:02,433 --> 00:34:07,200 {\an1}and why no evidencefor the technique can be found. 573 00:34:07,233 --> 00:34:10,700 {\an1}Halfway through the carving, 574 00:34:10,733 --> 00:34:12,700 the team makes another discovery. 575 00:34:12,733 --> 00:34:15,033 RANKIN: We can move a lot of stone really quickly 576 00:34:15,066 --> 00:34:16,700 {\an1}with these chisels. 577 00:34:16,733 --> 00:34:20,800 {\an1}We've been moving a surprising amount of stone every day. 578 00:34:20,833 --> 00:34:26,133 NARRATOR: A little carving creates a lot of rubble. 579 00:34:26,166 --> 00:34:28,000 I really cannot believethat much carving 580 00:34:28,033 --> 00:34:29,666 produced this much rubble. 581 00:34:31,566 --> 00:34:33,533 NARRATOR: The rubble has formed a ramp. 582 00:34:33,566 --> 00:34:36,866 {\an7}This means they don't need their platform anymore. 583 00:34:36,900 --> 00:34:40,266 {\an7}Now they can just walk up to the façade. 584 00:34:40,300 --> 00:34:43,133 PARADISE: When we see this much materialbeing produced from the carving, 585 00:34:43,166 --> 00:34:46,233 {\an1}we now realize that we create ramps from this rubble 586 00:34:46,266 --> 00:34:49,600 {\an1}that gives you access to the facade for the stone carvers. 587 00:34:49,633 --> 00:34:52,833 NARRATOR: Combining the clues found in Petra 588 00:34:52,866 --> 00:34:55,366 {\an1}with the discoveries in the carving project, 589 00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:57,333 {\an1}a new theory emerges 590 00:34:57,366 --> 00:35:00,466 {\an1}for how the Nabataeans may have carved the Treasury. 591 00:35:03,400 --> 00:35:06,500 {\an1}They begin by climbing to the top. 592 00:35:06,533 --> 00:35:09,600 {\an1}Here, they cut a narrow ledge into the cliff face. 593 00:35:12,366 --> 00:35:16,033 {\an1}Using ancient drills, they fix pins below the ledge 594 00:35:16,066 --> 00:35:20,700 {\an1}and lay planks across to provide a platform for the carvers. 595 00:35:20,733 --> 00:35:23,800 {\an1}The first thing they carve is the urn, 596 00:35:23,833 --> 00:35:26,733 {\an1}and the upper layer of the monument. 597 00:35:26,766 --> 00:35:29,400 {\an1}They work their way down, 598 00:35:29,433 --> 00:35:34,100 {\an1}sculpting the split pediment and the magnificent statues. 599 00:35:34,133 --> 00:35:40,600 {\an1}About halfway down, the debris from the carving forms a ramp. 600 00:35:40,633 --> 00:35:44,033 {\an1}Now the carvers can walk up to theacade 601 00:35:44,066 --> 00:35:46,866 {\an1}and continue carving the elaborate capitals 602 00:35:46,900 --> 00:35:50,400 {\an1}and the handsome columns. 603 00:35:50,433 --> 00:35:53,766 We don't knowof any other culture or society 604 00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:55,866 using this kind of engineering technique 605 00:35:55,900 --> 00:35:59,333 for this scale of construction. 606 00:35:59,366 --> 00:36:03,333 NARRATOR:The top-down approach turns out to be a brilliant innovation 607 00:36:03,366 --> 00:36:07,900 {\an1}for carving these tombs in Petra's sandstone cliffs. 608 00:36:11,900 --> 00:36:15,800 {\an1}But carving is only part of the Treasury's grandeur. 609 00:36:18,866 --> 00:36:22,933 {\an1}Its impressive locationcommands the head of the canyon 610 00:36:22,966 --> 00:36:27,900 {\an1}and the entrance to the city. 611 00:36:27,933 --> 00:36:33,200 {\an1}Yet the same narrow canyon that creates this dramatic reveal 612 00:36:33,233 --> 00:36:36,366 {\an1}can also be a death trap. 613 00:36:40,566 --> 00:36:44,933 {\an1}These amateur videos capturea rare but deadly desert hazard: 614 00:36:44,966 --> 00:36:47,966 {\an1}flash floods. 615 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:51,166 {\an1}Petra's average annual rainfall of just a few inches 616 00:36:51,200 --> 00:36:53,166 {\an1}can hit all at once 617 00:36:53,200 --> 00:36:56,900 {\an1}and pour down this gorge with lethal force. 618 00:36:56,933 --> 00:37:03,766 {\an1}Flash floods took the lives of22 French tourists here in 1963, 619 00:37:03,800 --> 00:37:07,033 and even today could damage the Treasury. 620 00:37:07,066 --> 00:37:13,300 Ueli Bellwald, a Swiss architect and archaeologist, 621 00:37:13,333 --> 00:37:16,566 {\an1}has come to Petra to protectboth tourists and the Treasury. 622 00:37:16,600 --> 00:37:21,433 {\an1}He's searching for clues to how the Nabataeans 623 00:37:21,466 --> 00:37:23,633 {\an1}held back the floods. 624 00:37:23,666 --> 00:37:28,000 BELLWALD: When they decided to carve this facade into the cliff, 625 00:37:28,033 --> 00:37:32,066 they had to do something against flash floods in wintertime. 626 00:37:32,100 --> 00:37:36,566 NARRATOR: Next to the Treasury is a narrow gorge. 627 00:37:36,600 --> 00:37:39,500 Here, Bellwald finds huge blocks mortared together 628 00:37:39,533 --> 00:37:40,833 {\an1}to form an ancient dam. 629 00:37:43,933 --> 00:37:45,566 BELLWALD: It's 2,000 years old 630 00:37:45,600 --> 00:37:47,533 {\an1}and still totally preserved. 631 00:37:47,566 --> 00:37:53,300 NARRATOR: But this one dam would not beenough to protect thTreasury, 632 00:37:53,333 --> 00:37:56,866 {\an1}so Bellwald is on the hunt for more dams. 633 00:37:56,900 --> 00:38:01,466 {\an1}While the landscape appears to be plain rock, 634 00:38:01,500 --> 00:38:04,633 to Bellwald, it is packed with clues. 635 00:38:04,666 --> 00:38:08,600 {\an1}He notices different colors on the canyon wall. 636 00:38:08,633 --> 00:38:13,466 Above this line, the stone is dark. 637 00:38:13,500 --> 00:38:15,400 {\an1}Below, it's lighter, 638 00:38:15,433 --> 00:38:18,166 {\an1}which Bellwald believes is caused by mineral deposits 639 00:38:18,200 --> 00:38:20,933 {\an1}from water once stored here in a reservoir. 640 00:38:24,133 --> 00:38:27,233 {\an1}Following this water line brings him to an area 641 00:38:27,266 --> 00:38:31,700 {\an1}where two deep grooves have been carved into the canyon walls. 642 00:38:31,733 --> 00:38:36,866 The grooves show where a dam once stood. 643 00:38:36,900 --> 00:38:39,300 BELLWALD: All of these dams had to be anchored 644 00:38:39,333 --> 00:38:42,300 {\an1}into the cliffs on both sidesthat they could easily withstand 645 00:38:42,333 --> 00:38:45,966 the pressure of the retained water. 646 00:38:49,400 --> 00:38:51,200 NARRATOR: Following these clues, 647 00:38:51,233 --> 00:38:54,266 {\an1}Bellwald has uncoveredan ancient Nabataean dam system. 648 00:38:57,666 --> 00:39:01,000 {\an1}The Nabataeans built five dams. 649 00:39:01,033 --> 00:39:05,066 {\an1}And to make those dams even more effective, 650 00:39:05,100 --> 00:39:10,600 {\an1}they carved a channel 140 feet long and 16 feet deep 651 00:39:10,633 --> 00:39:13,433 {\an1}to reroute some of the water. 652 00:39:13,466 --> 00:39:17,833 {\an1}This created a large area to store overflow 653 00:39:17,866 --> 00:39:20,333 {\an1}and reduce the force of the water 654 00:39:20,366 --> 00:39:22,966 {\an1}before it reached the Treasury. 655 00:39:23,000 --> 00:39:25,200 {\an1}It's an engineering feat 656 00:39:25,233 --> 00:39:29,233 {\an1}almost as impressive as the Treasury itself. 657 00:39:29,266 --> 00:39:33,533 BELLWALD: They realized that if they divert the water, 658 00:39:33,566 --> 00:39:37,066 {\an1}they allow the water to spread out to a much bigger surface. 659 00:39:37,100 --> 00:39:39,533 And this reduced its speed tremendously. 660 00:39:39,566 --> 00:39:43,833 {\an1}It worked perfectly. 661 00:39:43,866 --> 00:39:48,500 NARRATOR: So perfectly, Bellwald can't improve on this design. 662 00:39:51,800 --> 00:39:54,700 {\an1}Today, a team is repairing this ancient dam network 663 00:39:54,733 --> 00:39:58,366 {\an1}so it can once again protect the Treasury. 664 00:39:58,400 --> 00:40:02,300 BELLWALD:If we want to keep the Treasury for the future, 665 00:40:02,333 --> 00:40:06,200 {\an1}we have to protect it again as 2,000 years before 666 00:40:06,233 --> 00:40:07,733 {\an1}from flash floods. 667 00:40:07,766 --> 00:40:09,300 {\an1}And that's exactly what I'm doing. 668 00:40:09,333 --> 00:40:13,066 NARRATOR: Because the threat of floods was so great, 669 00:40:13,100 --> 00:40:17,033 Bellwald believes the Nabataeans must have built the dam system 670 00:40:17,066 --> 00:40:21,633 and the Treasury at the same time. 671 00:40:21,666 --> 00:40:25,366 {\an1}In fact, scholars now believe the grand tombs, 672 00:40:25,400 --> 00:40:28,533 the city center, and the water systems-- 673 00:40:28,566 --> 00:40:30,933 {\an1}most of the ancient city of Petra-- 674 00:40:30,966 --> 00:40:35,200 {\an7}were built within 100 years around the birth of Jesus. 675 00:40:35,233 --> 00:40:39,533 {\an8}BELLWALD: The entire hydraulic infrastructure of Petra 676 00:40:39,566 --> 00:40:41,500 was built following one master plan. 677 00:40:41,533 --> 00:40:46,666 NARRATOR: So just how much water did that system provide? 678 00:40:49,466 --> 00:40:53,466 {\an1}Back in San Jose, Charles Ortloff is figuring that out. 679 00:40:53,500 --> 00:40:55,200 These are the main supplies of water 680 00:40:55,233 --> 00:40:58,100 from all of the cisterns,all the dams. 681 00:40:58,133 --> 00:41:02,033 NARRATOR: Ortloff has mapped every water feature 682 00:41:02,066 --> 00:41:04,566 {\an1}he and other archaeologists have discovered: 683 00:41:04,600 --> 00:41:08,033 eight springs for fresh drinking water, 684 00:41:08,066 --> 00:41:12,900 {\an1}36 dams to protect the city from flash floods, 685 00:41:12,933 --> 00:41:17,500 {\an1}over 100 cisterns and reservoirs to collect and hold rainwater, 686 00:41:17,533 --> 00:41:20,866 {\an1}and 125 miles of pipeline 687 00:41:20,900 --> 00:41:23,033 to connect many of these features 688 00:41:23,066 --> 00:41:26,766 {\an1}into one integrated water system. 689 00:41:26,800 --> 00:41:29,333 From the map and his flume experiments, 690 00:41:29,366 --> 00:41:33,200 {\an1}Ortloff can estimate the total amount of water available 691 00:41:33,233 --> 00:41:35,833 {\an1}to Petra's 30,000 people. 692 00:41:35,866 --> 00:41:39,566 {\an7}If you sum up all of the water from various sources, 693 00:41:39,600 --> 00:41:44,666 {\an7}that would lead to eight liters per person per day. 694 00:41:44,700 --> 00:41:48,800 {\an8}NARRATOR: Eight liters is about two gallons. 695 00:41:48,833 --> 00:41:51,966 {\an7}In a world before showers and washing machines, 696 00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:55,133 {\an1}that's more than enough water to survive on. 697 00:41:55,166 --> 00:41:58,833 {\an1}In fact, new discoveries reveal that the Nabataeans 698 00:41:58,866 --> 00:42:04,666 {\an1}had enough water to transform Petra into a desert oasis. 699 00:42:07,966 --> 00:42:10,500 {\an1}Evidence of that water surplus is being found 700 00:42:10,533 --> 00:42:15,300 {\an1}right next to the Great Temple, in a large open terrace. 701 00:42:15,333 --> 00:42:20,100 {\an1}It was named by early explorers as the Marketplace, 702 00:42:20,133 --> 00:42:23,833 {\an1}so when Leigh-Ann Bedal began digging here in 1998, 703 00:42:23,866 --> 00:42:26,300 {\an1}that's what she expected. 704 00:42:26,333 --> 00:42:28,766 LEIGH-ANN BEDAL: Because it had been called a marketplace, 705 00:42:28,800 --> 00:42:31,100 {\an1}I came in prepared to excavate a market. 706 00:42:31,133 --> 00:42:35,766 NARRATOR: But as she began digging, at eight feet deep, 707 00:42:35,800 --> 00:42:38,100 she discovered waterproof cement. 708 00:42:38,133 --> 00:42:40,733 BEDAL:So we knew that we had something containing water, 709 00:42:40,766 --> 00:42:42,233 something deep. 710 00:42:42,266 --> 00:42:44,666 NARRATOR: Her team excavated further 711 00:42:44,700 --> 00:42:47,433 and discovered a subterranean structure. 712 00:42:47,466 --> 00:42:49,600 BEDAL: We have the southwest corner here, 713 00:42:49,633 --> 00:42:53,933 {\an1}and directly to the north is the northwest corner. 714 00:42:53,966 --> 00:42:56,966 NARRATOR: Bedal located all four corners 715 00:42:57,000 --> 00:43:02,333 {\an1}to discover overall dimeions of 140 by 80 feet, 716 00:43:02,366 --> 00:43:05,866 nearly the size of an Olympic swimming pool. 717 00:43:05,900 --> 00:43:07,433 {\an1}Then, in the middle, 718 00:43:07,466 --> 00:43:10,433 {\an1}she found evidence of a stone platform 719 00:43:10,466 --> 00:43:14,733 and surroundingthe sunken structure, channels, 720 00:43:14,766 --> 00:43:18,033 {\an1}likely used for irrigating a lower terrace 721 00:43:18,066 --> 00:43:22,800 {\an1}where soil samples suggest the area had been cultivated. 722 00:43:22,833 --> 00:43:25,500 When she puzzles the evidence together, 723 00:43:25,533 --> 00:43:27,600 Bedal concludes the marketplace 724 00:43:27,633 --> 00:43:31,300 was in fact a huge ornamental pool complex 725 00:43:31,333 --> 00:43:36,866 {\an1}including an island pavilionand a garden on a terrace below. 726 00:43:36,900 --> 00:43:39,166 BEDAL: If you could imagine below us 727 00:43:39,200 --> 00:43:43,633 {\an7}this large pool of water and then a green garden 728 00:43:43,666 --> 00:43:45,466 {\an7}with date palm trees and flowers. 729 00:43:45,500 --> 00:43:49,800 {\an1}This is something that is for showing off. 730 00:43:49,833 --> 00:43:54,266 NARRATOR: Throughout the city center, archaeologists are finding 731 00:43:54,300 --> 00:43:57,900 other decorative water features like fountains, 732 00:43:57,933 --> 00:44:03,700 {\an1}and a canal running beside a colonnaded street. 733 00:44:03,733 --> 00:44:05,366 {\an1}It's really conspicuous consumption 734 00:44:05,400 --> 00:44:07,033 {\an1}of this precious resource, water, 735 00:44:07,066 --> 00:44:08,733 {\an1}in this desert environment. 736 00:44:08,766 --> 00:44:14,300 NARRATOR:Conspicuous consumption of water in the middle of a desert? 737 00:44:14,333 --> 00:44:19,366 {\an1}It seems Petra resembled another flashy desert destination. 738 00:44:24,500 --> 00:44:26,600 BEDAL:A great comparison is Las Vegas, 739 00:44:26,633 --> 00:44:30,166 where you have this very arid desert 740 00:44:30,200 --> 00:44:34,733 {\an1}surrounding this oasis city, where everywhere you go, 741 00:44:34,766 --> 00:44:36,900 {\an1}you see the use of water, fountains. 742 00:44:38,966 --> 00:44:43,866 {\an1}By diverting a precious resource into a wealthy center, 743 00:44:43,900 --> 00:44:46,533 {\an1}it sends a message to anybody who sees it 744 00:44:46,566 --> 00:44:48,933 {\an1}that it is a place of wealth and power. 745 00:44:48,966 --> 00:44:51,933 NARRATOR: For ancient visitors, 746 00:44:51,966 --> 00:44:56,133 after days of traveling on camelthrough the hot, parched desert, 747 00:44:56,166 --> 00:45:01,866 {\an1}entering this oasis city musthave made a powerful impression. 748 00:45:01,900 --> 00:45:05,466 {\an1}Petra's luxurious pools 749 00:45:05,500 --> 00:45:08,166 {\an1}and internationally inspired architecture 750 00:45:08,200 --> 00:45:12,300 {\an1}likely sparked the legends that echoed through the ages. 751 00:45:19,300 --> 00:45:21,000 {\an1}Back iCalifornia, 752 00:45:21,033 --> 00:45:24,433 {\an1}after two months of carving and nearly 2,000 years, 753 00:45:24,466 --> 00:45:30,500 {\an1}architecture of far-off lands emerges from the rock. 754 00:45:30,533 --> 00:45:32,633 PARADISE: We've got Assyrian, Egyptian, Greco-Roman, 755 00:45:32,666 --> 00:45:35,200 {\an1}but you put it together, 756 00:45:35,233 --> 00:45:37,200 {\an1}you stand backand it's Nabataean. 757 00:45:37,233 --> 00:45:39,133 {\an1}And now it's a little bit Californian. 758 00:45:39,166 --> 00:45:40,133 {\an1}That's right. 759 00:45:43,166 --> 00:45:47,366 NARRATOR: Whether the Nabataeans were carving tombs for the dead 760 00:45:47,400 --> 00:45:50,166 {\an1}or water channels for the living, 761 00:45:50,200 --> 00:45:52,066 {\an1}their mastery of stone 762 00:45:52,100 --> 00:45:55,333 {\an1}was the key to Petra's wealth and beauty. 763 00:46:03,066 --> 00:46:05,966 So why did the Nabataean kingdom decline 764 00:46:06,000 --> 00:46:08,233 {\an1}and Petra largely disappear? 765 00:46:10,800 --> 00:46:12,600 Across the city, 766 00:46:12,633 --> 00:46:15,566 {\an1}collapsed columns point to a prime suspect: 767 00:46:15,600 --> 00:46:20,700 {\an1}ancient texts record a huge earthquake in 363. 768 00:46:20,733 --> 00:46:22,366 ALCOCK: As a result, for a while, 769 00:46:22,400 --> 00:46:24,633 {\an7}when archeologists came to Petra, 770 00:46:24,666 --> 00:46:26,733 {\an7}any time they saw something like this, they would say, 771 00:46:26,766 --> 00:46:28,900 {\an7}"Ah, this fell down in 363." 772 00:46:28,933 --> 00:46:31,500 NARRATOR:But one catastrophic earthquake 773 00:46:31,533 --> 00:46:36,066 {\an1}does not provide the whole picture of the city's decline. 774 00:46:36,100 --> 00:46:40,900 {\an1}At the Great Pl, the most luxurious place in Petra, 775 00:46:40,933 --> 00:46:45,566 {\an1}there's evidence that hard times hit the city even earlier. 776 00:46:45,600 --> 00:46:47,733 BEDAL: It may have been as early as the second century, 777 00:46:47,766 --> 00:46:49,833 {\an1}because at that point, 778 00:46:49,866 --> 00:46:52,366 {\an1}we find a lot of animal bones at the bottom of the pool, 779 00:46:52,400 --> 00:46:54,200 {\an1}so it seems to have been used for trash. 780 00:46:54,233 --> 00:46:56,633 NARRATOR: Found in the great pool, 781 00:46:56,666 --> 00:47:01,233 {\an1}this layer of fallen rocks dates to around the 363 quake. 782 00:47:01,266 --> 00:47:02,733 But below that, 783 00:47:02,766 --> 00:47:05,833 {\an1}the layer of soil containing the animal bones 784 00:47:05,866 --> 00:47:10,466 {\an1}indicates the pool filled in at least 100 years before. 785 00:47:10,500 --> 00:47:13,733 {\an1}And there is evidence of more destruction 786 00:47:13,766 --> 00:47:16,266 {\an1}100 years after the great quake, 787 00:47:16,300 --> 00:47:20,633 {\an1}which may have fatally weakened the city's protective dams. 788 00:47:23,700 --> 00:47:28,566 {\an1}Large sections of Petra'smain street are missing pavers. 789 00:47:28,600 --> 00:47:31,900 {\an1}Tom Paradise believes they were washed away 790 00:47:31,933 --> 00:47:34,700 {\an1}in a catastrophic flash flood. 791 00:47:34,733 --> 00:47:39,066 PARADISE: The floodwaters rushed down through Petra's city center, 792 00:47:39,100 --> 00:47:41,700 {\an1}ripping up cobblestones. 793 00:47:41,733 --> 00:47:44,733 {\an1}This flood inundated the city 794 00:47:44,766 --> 00:47:48,366 {\an7}and may have marked the end of Petra's golden age. 795 00:47:51,433 --> 00:47:56,266 NARRATOR: Ironically, the very water that brought life to Petra 796 00:47:56,300 --> 00:47:58,466 {\an1}may also have contributed to its demise. 797 00:48:09,533 --> 00:48:13,633 {\an1}Today, in the hills of Southern California, 798 00:48:13,666 --> 00:48:18,800 {\an1}the carving team is bringing a bit of Petra back to life. 799 00:48:18,833 --> 00:48:20,066 {\an1}The final flourish 800 00:48:20,100 --> 00:48:23,500 {\an1}will be a feature not found in other cultures: 801 00:48:23,533 --> 00:48:25,566 {\an1}a Nabataean-style capital 802 00:48:25,600 --> 00:48:29,866 {\an1}with a simple knob in its cter. 803 00:48:29,900 --> 00:48:31,633 Normally, there is a detail here. 804 00:48:31,666 --> 00:48:35,833 {\an1}Typically, there is a leaf or a flower here. 805 00:48:35,866 --> 00:48:40,466 {\an1}You never really see it left in this very abstract form. 806 00:48:40,500 --> 00:48:44,633 {\an1}It's quite beautiful in its splicity. 807 00:48:44,666 --> 00:48:47,300 NARRATOR:Paradise believes the Nabataeans 808 00:48:47,333 --> 00:48:49,866 {\an1}choose this simple form out of respect, 809 00:48:49,900 --> 00:48:53,733 {\an1}almost reverence, for the sandstone. 810 00:48:53,766 --> 00:48:55,833 PARADISE: Their sense of the rock as a living material 811 00:48:55,866 --> 00:49:01,300 that had to be sort of caressed and worked 812 00:49:01,333 --> 00:49:04,266 {\an1}was really as remarkableas their engineering expertise. 813 00:49:04,300 --> 00:49:07,733 NARRATOR: And the sandstone itself becomes a tool 814 00:49:07,766 --> 00:49:10,966 {\an1}to finish the surface of the tomb. 815 00:49:11,000 --> 00:49:14,100 HUNT: I'm using the same stone that we carved off the rock. 816 00:49:14,133 --> 00:49:16,200 I'm just rubbing the last little stages, 817 00:49:16,233 --> 00:49:20,700 {\an1}just kind of carefullyfinishing off that last surface. 818 00:49:34,300 --> 00:49:37,033 NARRATOR: Stone is at the core of Nabataean lives. 819 00:49:37,066 --> 00:49:40,400 {\an1}The very name for their city, Petra, 820 00:49:40,433 --> 00:49:43,233 {\an1}comes from the Greek word for rock. 821 00:49:43,266 --> 00:49:45,933 PARADISE: The Nabataean relationship with their sandstone 822 00:49:45,966 --> 00:49:49,433 was fundamental to who they were. 823 00:49:49,466 --> 00:49:52,400 They're born in this valley of rock, 824 00:49:52,433 --> 00:49:56,533 they live in this valley of rock, 825 00:49:56,566 --> 00:50:01,300 and then when they die, they are buried in the rock itself. 826 00:50:01,333 --> 00:50:07,800 {\an1}These hewn tomb facades become their final resting place. 827 00:50:20,233 --> 00:50:24,000 NARRATOR: Each year, over half a million tourists retrace the steps 828 00:50:24,033 --> 00:50:26,900 of the explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt 829 00:50:26,933 --> 00:50:29,833 {\an1}and gaze up in awe at the Treasury. 830 00:50:36,066 --> 00:50:37,700 {\an1}But in the two centuries 831 00:50:37,733 --> 00:50:40,033 {\an1}since Petra was re-opened to the Western world, 832 00:50:40,066 --> 00:50:43,566 {\an1}its distinctive engineering and culture 833 00:50:43,600 --> 00:50:48,033 {\an1}is proving equal to that of any ancient civilization. 834 00:50:48,066 --> 00:50:50,033 TUTTLE: Petra is more than a city. 835 00:50:50,066 --> 00:50:52,100 {\an1}It was the seat of a kingdom, 836 00:50:52,133 --> 00:50:53,800 {\an1}a kingdom whose peace and prosperity 837 00:50:53,833 --> 00:50:56,900 {\an8}was the envy of the ancient world. 838 00:50:56,933 --> 00:51:05,000 NARRATOR: Cisterns, channels, dams, even fountains and pools. 839 00:51:05,033 --> 00:51:07,100 {\an1}The Nabataean mastery of water 840 00:51:07,133 --> 00:51:11,166 {\an1}fueled their astonishing city of stone. 841 00:51:11,200 --> 00:51:13,333 ALCOCK: The water features are underpinning everything. 842 00:51:13,366 --> 00:51:14,933 {\an1}If the Nabataeans 843 00:51:14,966 --> 00:51:16,933 {\an1}couldn't control the water, you wouldn't have a city here. 844 00:51:16,966 --> 00:51:19,766 NARRATOR: Over 2,000 years ago, 845 00:51:19,800 --> 00:51:23,366 {\an1}a desert tribe settled among these forbidding cliffs 846 00:51:23,400 --> 00:51:29,700 {\an1}and transformed this hostile landscape into an oasis. 847 00:51:29,733 --> 00:51:32,300 PARADISE: The Nabataeans learned how tomaximize these limited resources 848 00:51:32,333 --> 00:51:34,833 {\an1}to produce a society and a culture 849 00:51:34,866 --> 00:51:38,933 {\an1}that thrived and prospered forhundreds and hundreds of years. 850 00:51:38,966 --> 00:51:43,800 NARRATOR: Burckhardt came here chasing legends of a city 851 00:51:43,833 --> 00:51:46,500 lost in the sands of the desert. 852 00:51:46,533 --> 00:51:50,633 {\an1}A city with riches from all over the known world, 853 00:51:50,666 --> 00:51:55,233 {\an1}buildings that rivaled Egypt and Rome, 854 00:51:55,266 --> 00:51:58,633 {\an1}and fountains and pools overflowing with water. 855 00:51:58,666 --> 00:52:04,133 {\an1}Today, it's clearmany of the legendary splendors 856 00:52:04,166 --> 00:52:07,733 {\an1}of the lost city of Petra are true. 857 00:52:36,600 --> 00:52:39,400 {\an1}The story continues online, 858 00:52:39,433 --> 00:52:44,900 {\an8}♪ 859 00:52:53,133 --> 00:52:55,766 {\an7}To order this program on DVD, 860 00:52:55,800 --> 00:53:01,166 {\an8}visit ShopPBS or call 1-800-PLAY-PBS. 861 00:53:01,200 --> 00:53:03,833 {\an8}Episodes of "NOVA" are available with Passport. 862 00:53:03,866 --> 00:53:06,500 {\an7}"NOVA" is also available on Amazon Prime Video. 863 00:53:06,533 --> 00:53:11,966 {\an8}♪