A team of American archaeologists has made an exceptional discovery: an “intact” burial containing 12 entire skeletons was unearthed under the Khaznah, the “Treasure” of Petra, in Jordan.
The secrets of the “Treasure” begin to emerge. Featured as the site of the Holy Grail in the 1989 film “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” the Khaznah (also called the Treasury) has long held the fascination of archaeologists. Located in the heart of the ancient city of Petra, in Jordan, this impressive monument carved into pink sandstone cliffs raises the question of its function.
The most popular theory is that it served as a mausoleum, but this hypothesis has been undermined by the fact that no skeletal remains have been found inside the building itself. The mystery nevertheless began to grow in 2003 with the discovery of two tombs under the left side of the monument. Scholars had speculated that these were surely not the only secret underground tombs. But no one had been able to demonstrate the opposite… Until today.
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CNN reveals, in fact, that archaeologists from the American Research Center discovered, in August 2024, a tomb containing at least 12 human skeletons and artifacts whose age is estimated at at least 2,000 years.
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“An extremely rare discovery”
Archaeologists say that while many tombs discovered in Petra were empty, the one discovered this summer was filled with complete skeletons and funerary objects made of bronze, iron and ceramic. Among these artifacts, several containers, but above all a ceramic chalice in the shape of the Holy Grail. You can’t make this up!
The discovery of this “intact burial” is not only “the largest collection of human remains found in a single location in Petra”, but above all it offers “a rare insight into the life of the Nabataeans, ancient Arab nomads whose kingdom of the desert flourished from the fourth century BC to 106 AD,” said Dr. Pearce Paul Creasman, executive director of the American Research Center.
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“This is an extremely rare discovery. In the two centuries that Petra has been studied by archaeologists, nothing like this has been discovered before,” said Josh Gates, host of Discovery Channel’s “Expedition Unknown,” whose latest episode was dedicated to the discovery. . “Even in front of one of the most famous buildings in the world, there are still enormous discoveries to be made. »
The vagaries of time
The only bad news is that the skeletons are “in a more fragile state than expected”, due to the ambient humidity, particularly due to seasonal flooding in Petra, as well as the porous sandstone surrounding the tomb. Some of the bones showed mold, and researchers suspect that many of the textiles and jewelry typically found in Nabataean burials were lost because of humidity and floodwaters seeping into the tomb.
The question that now haunts specialists is who are these twelve people buried under the “Treasure”? “These are very important people because they’re buried in a very valuable place, it’s really the main entrance to the city,” Josh Gates said. “I think knowing who they are will really help us understand some of the history of the Treasury. »
