Terra Petraea: The Archaeological Landscape of the Petrean Hinterland from the Hellenistic to the Byzantine Period

To better understand the ancient Nabataean capital of Petra, it is important to consider its rural surroundings as well. The city's unfavorable geostrategic location makes this already clear: Situated in a deep valley and flanked by high mountain ranges, Petra's urban development was only possible through a well-structured organization of its surrounding landscape. This study presents a first comprehensive archaeological and culture-historical characterization of the Petraean hinterland and researches overall strategies of the spatial organization of the city's rural environs. Based on an extensive set of archaeological survey data from the Petra region, this study explores a variety of archaeological site types and features diachronically. While the main chronological focus is clearly set on the Nabataean and Roman periods, it also considers the preceding Iron Age and Hellenistic periods, as well as the subsequent Byzantine period. The aim is to examine rural settlement patterns and subsistence strategies, aspects of rural water management, the extensive infrastructural network, the funerary and religious landscape, the military disposition, as well as the industrial potential of rural Petra. Following a unique landscape archaeological approach, this study provides a differentiated analysis of the various archaeological sites and features for a broad, regional understanding of the Petraean hinterland and offers new insights into the socio-political and administrative, military, economic and infrastructural development of Terra Petraea through time.