This Day in History
In present-day Jordan, Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt came upon the ancient city of Petra, on this date in 1812. Petra, the capital of the Nabataeans from the 4th century BCE until the Romans captured it in 106, was taken by the Muslims in the 7th century and by the Crusaders in the 12th century. Referred to by John William Burgon as a "rose red city half as old as time," Petra was walled in by rock mountains, yet controlled the main trade routes in the area. In 1985, Petra was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site; in 2007, it was named one of New Open World Corporation's New Seven Wonders of the World.
"A land without ruins is a land without memories; a land without memories is a land without history." — Abram Joseph Ryan
