Transliterated Name | Source | Name |
---|---|---|
Main Theater | English | |
Petra Theater | English | |
Masrah al-Batra | Arabic | مسرح البتراء |
As one enters Petra through the Siq, after passing "The "Treasury", the Main Theater is the first structure one encounters before entering the valley that comprises the central part of Petra. The seats are carved out of a cliff of Nubian Sandstone. Hammond (1964) excavated the Main Theater over two seasons in 1961 and 1962.
Hammond has, however, identified eight phases of occupation which, in our opinion, can be reduced to four major periods
Phase | Date | Comments |
---|---|---|
1 |
|
|
2 | probably in 363 and/or 419 CE |
|
3 |
|
|
4 | mid 8th century CE ? |
|
Russell (1980) reports that during the 1961-1962 seasons,
Hammond (1965:13-17) found evidence of 4th century AD architectural collapse while excavating the Main Theater. From the stratigraphic evidence and the recovery of two coins of Constantine I (ruled 306 - 337 AD) and one of Constantius II (ruled 337-361 AD), he was able to date this event to the mid 4th century.Hammond (1964) labeled the destruction period as Period IV noting that
In this period the scaena and its stories, blockade walls, the tribunalia(e), and other built parts of the Theater were all cataclysmically destroyed.
Jones (2021:3 Table 1) reports a second potential seismic destruction of the Theater in Phase VII.
The Phase VII destruction of the Main Theatre is difficult to date, as the structure had gone out of use long before. It may be the result of either the late 6th century earthquake or the mid-8th century earthquake.
Effect | Location | Image(s) | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Collapsed Walls | Main Theater |
|
Effect | Location | Image(s) | Description | Intensity |
---|---|---|---|---|
Collapsed Walls | Main Theater |
|
VIII + |
Hammond, P. C. (1962). "Petra: The Excavation of the Main Theater." The American Scholar 32(1): 93-106.
Hammond, P. C. (1964). The Excavation of the Main Theater at Petra, 1961-1962, Bernard Quaritch, for Colt Archaeological Institute.
Hammond, P.C. (1964) The Excavation of the Main Theater At Petra, 1961-1962
Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 08/9
Paradise, T. (1999) Analysis of Sandstone Weathering of the Roman Theater in Petra, Jordan
Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 43
Hammond, P. C. (1996:7). The Temple of the Winged Lions, Petra, Jordan, 1973-1990, Petra Pub.