Jordan contains Petra, the ancient city famous for its rock-cut Treasury.
Petra lies in southern Jordan, in a basin surrounded by mountains and reached through the narrow Siq. The Nabataeans developed it into a major city and trading centre, probably from the fourth century BC. Its location connected caravan routes carrying incense, spices, textiles, and other goods between Arabia, the Levant, and the Mediterranean.
The building commonly called the Treasury is actually a monumental rock-cut façade known as Al-Khazneh. Its exact original function remains debated, but it was probably connected with a tomb or royal monument rather than a storehouse of treasure. Petra contains many other tombs, temples, houses, and water-management structures.
The Roman Empire annexed the Nabataean kingdom in AD 106. Petra later declined as trade routes changed and earthquakes damaged the city. It became widely known in the West after its 1812 description by Johann Ludwig Burckhardt, though local communities had long been familiar with the site.