George Albert Cooke

“ Brünnow thinks that “the rock” in question was the sacred mountain en-Nejr (above) , but Buhl suggests a conspicuous height about 16 m north of Petra, Shobak, the Mont-royal of the Crusaders. [5] More satisfactory evidence of the date at which the earliest Nabataean settlement began is to be obtained from an examination of the tombs. Two types may be distinguished broadly, the Nabataean and the Graeco-Roman. The Nabataean type starts from the simple pylon-tomb with a door set in a tower crowned by a parapet ornament, in imitation of the front of a dwelling-house ”

“ The stream of Wadi Mūsā crosses the plain and disappears among the mountains opposite; on either bank, where the ground is fairly level, the city was built, covering a space of about 11/4 sq. m. Among the ruins on the south bank stand the fragments of a temple called Kasr Fir‛aun of late Roman date; just beyond this rises a rocky height which is usually regarded as the acropolis. ”

“ Associated with Dhū-sharā was Allāt, the chief goddess of the ancient Arabs. Sanctuary chambers may be seen at various points in the site of Petra, and many places of sacrifice open to the sky are met with among the tombs, marked by remains of altars. ”

“ West of the obelisks are three other places of sacrifice; and on the rocks below worshippers have carved their names (CIS. ii. 390-404) . En-Nejr, with the theatre at its foot, must have been the sacred mountain, the original sanctuary of Petra, perhaps “the very high mountain of Arabia called Dusarē after the god Dusares” referred to by Steph. Byz. (s.v. Δονσάρη) . Christianity found its way into Petra in early times; Athanasius mentions a bishop of Petra (Πετρών τής 'Αραβίας, ad Antioch. 10) named Asterius; at least one of the tombs (the “tomb with the urn”) was used as a church ”