PETRA
Located in what is now Jordan, the city of Petra was once a thriving trading center in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan that was established about the 6th century B.C. The city’s monuments and buildings were all cut from the rock formations; the word Petra even means “rock.” Thing is, rocks apparently don’t hold up real well to earthquakes. Most of the inhabitants were forced out between due to quakes, and only local Bedouin tribes remained aware of the city’s existence until 1812. Another fun fact: Petra’s Al Khazneh was used as the location of the holy grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (below).
