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Petra: The Ancient City Carved Into Stone | Smartest Year Ever (June 10, 2025)
Petra wasn’t built—it was carved. Straight into rose-red cliffs in the Jordanian desert.
In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives into the lost city of Petra, a marvel of ancient engineering, water mastery, and architectural fusion. Once a bustling capital of the Nabataean kingdom, Petra is famous for its towering façade known as Al-Khazneh—but there’s way more hidden beneath the surface.
With temples, tombs, aqueducts, and amphitheaters all sculpted out of solid rock, Petra stands as a literal monument to human ingenuity. Gordy unpacks the history, the mystery, and the legends surrounding this New Wonder of the World—including what Indiana Jones got wrong.
Less than 20% of Petra has been excavated. What’s still buried? What secrets lie beneath the stone?
Follow along as we uncover one of the most spectacular cities ever forgotten.
Sources:
Hammond, P. C. (1973). The Nabataeans: Their History, Culture and Archaeology. Brepols.
Rababeh, S. (2005). How Petra Was Built: An Analysis of the Construction Techniques of the Nabataean Freestanding Buildings and Rock-cut Monuments in Petra, Jordan. BAR International Series 1460.
Joukowsky, M. S. (1998). Petra Great Temple: Brown University Excavations. Brown University.
Indiana, N. (2003). Petra Rediscovered: Lost City of the Nabataeans. Art Services International.
Liddell, H. G., & Scott, R. (1996). A Greek-English Lexicon. Oxford University Press.
The Holy Bible, Matthew 16:18. (Greek New Testament translation).
Politis, K. D. (2007). The World of the Nabataeans. Franz Steiner Verlag.
Ortloff, C. R. (2005). Water Engineering in Petra. Civil Engineering History and Heritage, ASCE Library.
Rollinger, R. (2012). A Companion to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East. Wiley-Blackwell.
Burckhardt, J. L. (1822). Travels in Syria and the Holy Land. John Murray.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Johann-Ludwig-Burckhardt
UNESCO World Heritage Centre. (n.d.). Petra. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/326/
#Petra #AncientArchitecture #SmartestYearEver #WorldHistory #HiddenWonders #sevenwonders #wondersoftheworld #jordan #lostcity #ancienthistory Music thanks to Zapsplat.
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By GordyPetra wasn’t built—it was carved. Straight into rose-red cliffs in the Jordanian desert.
In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives into the lost city of Petra, a marvel of ancient engineering, water mastery, and architectural fusion. Once a bustling capital of the Nabataean kingdom, Petra is famous for its towering façade known as Al-Khazneh—but there’s way more hidden beneath the surface.
With temples, tombs, aqueducts, and amphitheaters all sculpted out of solid rock, Petra stands as a literal monument to human ingenuity. Gordy unpacks the history, the mystery, and the legends surrounding this New Wonder of the World—including what Indiana Jones got wrong.
Less than 20% of Petra has been excavated. What’s still buried? What secrets lie beneath the stone?
Follow along as we uncover one of the most spectacular cities ever forgotten.
Sources:
Hammond, P. C. (1973). The Nabataeans: Their History, Culture and Archaeology. Brepols.
Rababeh, S. (2005). How Petra Was Built: An Analysis of the Construction Techniques of the Nabataean Freestanding Buildings and Rock-cut Monuments in Petra, Jordan. BAR International Series 1460.
Joukowsky, M. S. (1998). Petra Great Temple: Brown University Excavations. Brown University.
Indiana, N. (2003). Petra Rediscovered: Lost City of the Nabataeans. Art Services International.
Liddell, H. G., & Scott, R. (1996). A Greek-English Lexicon. Oxford University Press.
The Holy Bible, Matthew 16:18. (Greek New Testament translation).
Politis, K. D. (2007). The World of the Nabataeans. Franz Steiner Verlag.
Ortloff, C. R. (2005). Water Engineering in Petra. Civil Engineering History and Heritage, ASCE Library.
Rollinger, R. (2012). A Companion to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East. Wiley-Blackwell.
Burckhardt, J. L. (1822). Travels in Syria and the Holy Land. John Murray.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Johann-Ludwig-Burckhardt
UNESCO World Heritage Centre. (n.d.). Petra. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/326/
#Petra #AncientArchitecture #SmartestYearEver #WorldHistory #HiddenWonders #sevenwonders #wondersoftheworld #jordan #lostcity #ancienthistory Music thanks to Zapsplat.