Tomb filled with skeletons found underneath the Treasury in Petra

October 15, 2024 4:41 AM

"While many tombs uncovered within Petra are found empty or disturbed, the chamber was filled with complete skeletal remains and grave goods made from bronze, iron and ceramic."

Discovery documentary info. NYT.

CW: Indiana Jones

posted by cupcakeninja (10 comments total)

(To be clear, I'm fond of the adventures of Dr. Jones, both Jr. and Sr., but I think even Indy would be scratching his head at the preponderance of... non-news coverage in the news coverage.)
posted by cupcakeninja at 4:48 AM on October 15

When I first saw the NYT photo I thought for sure the man on the left was Phil Harding. Imagine my disappointment! Time Team would do this site justice.
posted by orrnyereg at 6:01 AM on October 15 [2 favorites]

I seem to recall that British troops passed through Petra at some point in the 19th Century and attempted to use explosives inside the Treasury, hoping that one of the walls was false and would lead to buried riches. Turns out they had just aimed their explosives in the wrong direction.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 6:15 AM on October 15

I'm scratching my head at their playing up the Indiana Jones connection, yet have things like this in the article: "Within the tomb beneath the Treasury, archaeologists found a ceramic vessel resembling the Holy Grail."

It's a pretty important plot point in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade that nobody knows what the Grail really looks like!

posted by Halloween Jack at 7:09 AM on October 15 [2 favorites]

I don't care much about Indiana Jones and I don't need that angle to be interested in this. Petra is AMAZING, truly one of the wonders of the world and I'm so glad I got to see it when I was in the area.
If you're ever in Jordan and have the chance to see just one site of interest, by all means make it Petra. You won't regret it.
posted by Too-Ticky at 7:11 AM on October 15 [4 favorites]

I know it's a real org, but "The American Center for Research" is such a generic name it sounds made up.
posted by thecjm at 7:24 AM on October 15 [8 favorites]

Absolutely loving Josh Gates' venture to Petra and learning about this fascinating and beautiful place. Glad to see it getting attention outside of the archeology/Discovery sphere!
posted by davidmsc at 7:37 AM on October 15 [1 favorite]

To be fair, any cup, platter, or stone could be said to “resemble the Holy Grail,” and that’s not even getting esoteric!
posted by GenjiandProust at 9:30 AM on October 15

Any others have Petra on their radars because Civ 6?
posted by Aardvark Cheeselog at 11:33 AM on October 15

"The American Center for Research" is such a generic name it sounds made up.
All the top men are working there.
posted by Arctic Circle at 3:20 PM on October 15