Petra

Petra is an ancient archaeological city in southern Jordan, carved directly into rose-red sandstone cliffs. The Nabataean people built Petra around the 4th century BCE, and it became the prosperous capital of their kingdom at the crossroads of ancient trade routes. At its peak, Petra was home to 30,000 people. The Nabataeans were brilliant engineers — they created an sophisticated water management system including pipes, dams, and reservoirs that allowed a city to thrive in the desert. The most iconic structure is Al-Khazneh (the Treasury) — a massive 40-meter tall facade carved directly into the rock face. The Monastery (Ad Deir) is even larger but less visited. The city also contains a Roman-style colonnaded street, temples, tombs, and a 4,000-seat amphitheater. Petra declined after Rome annexed the Nabataean kingdom in 106 CE and trade routes shifted. After a devastating earthquake in 363 CE, it was largely abandoned and forgotten until rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812. It's now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the Seven Wonders of the World.