What is the conventional archaeological date of Petra and the Khazneh (Treasury), Jordan, and what alternative dates have been proposed?

Conventional date: The rock-cut capital of the Nabataeans. Ortloff (2005) says Nabataean Petra was founded about 300 BC. The date of the Khazneh itself is debated (see below). Alternative proposals: Contested: Nabil Khairy (2011): A tomb from a king's reign: Khairy argues the Khazneh is a tomb. He dates its carving to the reign of the Nabataean king Aretas IV (9 BC to AD 40). He also suggests the carvers worked from the top down, with scaffolding at each level. Contested: Peter Parr (2008): Maybe later: Parr questions how the water works in the Siq were dated. He argues the dam, the tunnel and the paved road may date to the middle of the 1st century AD or later. He suggests the Khazneh could date to that time too. Press release, not yet a journal paper: St Andrews (2024): Dates from the tomb walls: The release says light-based dating (OSL) of sediment dated the walls inside the tomb to the mid 1st century BC to the early 2nd century AD. We have not seen these results in a peer-reviewed paper. Open question: Lucy Wadeson (2026): Tombs with portraits: Most Nabataean tombs avoid images of people. A 2026 study looks at five big tombs at Petra with busts or statues that may show the people buried there. It finds these tombs share design features, which may help date them.

What has been measured at Petra and the Khazneh (Treasury), Jordan in peer-reviewed studies?

Half built, half carved: UNESCO says Petra is partly built and partly carved into red sandstone. Its tomb and temple fronts, including the Khazneh, blend Greek-style design with Nabataean rock-cut tombs. Water in a dry land: Channels, tunnels, dams, cisterns and reservoirs caught and stored seasonal rain. UNESCO says this let people settle in a very dry area. Clever plumbing: A 2005 study mapped the water system. It found basins that let dirt settle out of drinking water. It also found pipes designed to carry a steady flow without leaking. A tomb found by radar: Ground-penetrating radar showed a buried room. Digging then confirmed a buried tomb. The 2025 paper by Bates and colleagues says it held "at least 11" human skeletons. Two counts, two sources: A University of St Andrews press release (2024) says the tomb lies beneath the Khazneh and held 12 skeletons. The peer-reviewed paper says at least 11. We give both. Petra was the capital of the Nabataeans, a trading people of ancient Arabia. Much of the city is carved straight into red sandstone cliffs. Its best-known front is the Khazneh, or Treasury, at the end of a narrow gorge called the Siq. When the Khazneh was carved, and for whom, is still argued over.

What are the stone types, heaviest block masses, and quarry transport distances at Petra and the Khazneh (Treasury), Jordan?

These are not reported in the sources cited on this page.

Sites › Asia › Petra and the Khazneh (Treasury), Jordan

Petra and the Khazneh (Treasury), Jordan

📍 Where It Is Southern Jordan 30.3306°, 35.4433°

🏛️ Mainstream Date City founded about 300 BC (Ortloff 2005); Khazneh date debated Excavated baseline

🧭 Leading Edge / Open Angle Contested: reign of Aretas IV (Khairy) or mid-1st century AD or later (Parr)? Debated or newly revised

🪨 Heaviest Stone & Quarry Stone weights not reported in our sources Compare all 78 sites →

30-SECOND TAKEAWAY

In Plain English — The 30-Second Takeaway

What It Is:

The rock-cut capital of the Nabataeans in southern Jordan.

What Everyone Agrees On (Measured Facts):

A buried tomb was found at the Khazneh. The journal paper says at least 11 skeletons; a St Andrews release says 12.

🏛️ Mainstream Archaeology View:

Scholars agree the Nabataeans carved Petra. The Khazneh's exact date is still argued.

🧭 Leading Edge View:

Khairy dates the Khazneh to Aretas IV's reign. Parr suggests it may be later.

Site Story & Overview

Petra was the capital of the Nabataeans, a trading people of ancient Arabia. Much of the city is carved straight into red sandstone cliffs.

▸ Read Full Archaeological & Engineering Context

Its best-known front is the Khazneh, or Treasury, at the end of a narrow gorge called the Siq. When the Khazneh was carved, and for whom, is still argued over.

✓ What Is Physically Measured on Site

Dated samples, laser scans, stone weights, and dug finds kept separate from opinion.

Half built, half carved: UNESCO says Petra is partly built and partly carved into red sandstone. Its tomb and temple fronts, including the Khazneh, blend Greek-style design with Nabataean rock-cut tombs. [1]
Water in a dry land: Channels, tunnels, dams, cisterns and reservoirs caught and stored seasonal rain. UNESCO says this let people settle in a very dry area. [1]
Clever plumbing: A 2005 study mapped the water system. It found basins that let dirt settle out of drinking water. It also found pipes designed to carry a steady flow without leaking. [2]
A tomb found by radar: Ground-penetrating radar showed a buried room. Digging then confirmed a buried tomb. The 2025 paper by Bates and colleagues says it held "at least 11" human skeletons. [5]
Two counts, two sources: A University of St Andrews press release (2024) says the tomb lies beneath the Khazneh and held 12 skeletons. The peer-reviewed paper says at least 11. We give both. [6][5]

🏛️ Mainstream Archaeological View

Accepted timeline: The rock-cut capital of the Nabataeans. Ortloff (2005) says Nabataean Petra was founded about 300 BC. The date of the Khazneh itself is debated (see below).
Stone & hardness: Not reported in the sources on this page. Mohs hardness: not reported in our sources.
Quarry distance & alignment: Stone source not reported in the sources on this page. Orientation: Not reported in the sources on this page.

🧭 Leading Edge Proposal & Open Questions

Contested: Nabil Khairy (2011): A tomb from a king's reign: Khairy argues the Khazneh is a tomb. He dates its carving to the reign of the Nabataean king Aretas IV (9 BC to AD 40). He also suggests the carvers worked from the top down, with scaffolding at each level. [3]
Contested: Peter Parr (2008): Maybe later: Parr questions how the water works in the Siq were dated. He argues the dam, the tunnel and the paved road may date to the middle of the 1st century AD or later. He suggests the Khazneh could date to that time too. [4]
Press release, not yet a journal paper: St Andrews (2024): Dates from the tomb walls: The release says light-based dating (OSL) of sediment dated the walls inside the tomb to the mid 1st century BC to the early 2nd century AD. We have not seen these results in a peer-reviewed paper. [6]
Open question: Lucy Wadeson (2026): Tombs with portraits: Most Nabataean tombs avoid images of people. A 2026 study looks at five big tombs at Petra with busts or statues that may show the people buried there. It finds these tombs share design features, which may help date them. [7]

Primary Academic Sources

▸ View All Cited Primary Sources & DOIs (7 papers)

UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Petra (list no. 326), accessed 2 November 2026 https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/326 background
Ortloff, C. R. (2005). The Water Supply and Distribution System of the Nabataean City of Petra (Jordan), 300 BC–AD 300. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 15(1): 93–109. doi:10.1017/s0959774305000053 data
Khairy, N. I. (2011). The Mada'in Saleh Monuments and the Function and Date of the Khazneh in Petra. Palestine Exploration Quarterly 143(3): 167–175. doi:10.1179/003103211x13092562976135 data
Parr, P. J. (2008). Dating the Hydraulic Installations in the Siq at Petra. Palestine Exploration Quarterly 140(2): 81–86. doi:10.1179/003103208x312836 critique
Bates, R., Langton, M. & Viberg, A. (2025). Geophysical Surveys at Petra World Heritage Site. ArchéoSciences 49-1: 55–56. doi:10.4000/14nqw data
University of St Andrews news (15 October 2024). St Andrews researchers make historic discovery underneath one of the seven wonders of the world (university press release; the dating results it reports were not seen by us in a journal paper) https://news.st-andrews.ac.uk/archive/st-andrews-researchers-make-his… background
Wadeson, L. (2026). Depicting the dead: sculpted funerary portraits at Petra. Levant (online 30 October 2026): 1–27. doi:10.1080/00758914.2026.2747576 data

Dates and stone checks are summed up in plain English from the papers above. Measured facts stay separate from opinion. Methodology.