Street of Facades (Petra)

About this place

The Street of Facades is the row of Nabataean tombs cut into the cliffs beyond the Treasury, where the Outer Siq widens on its way to the Theatre. More than forty facades line both sides of the route, many crowned with crow-steps, a stepped motif often likened to Assyrian architecture; most date from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD. Simpler than the Treasury or the Royal Tombs, these fronts stand side by side like houses on a street and probably belonged to senior officials or princes. At one end, raised above the path, is the tomb usually identified as that of Unayshu, from an inscription found in the 19th century; he was minister to Queen Shaqilat II, regent for her son Rabbel II from about 70 to 76 AD. Some doorways sit low because flood debris has raised the valley floor over the centuries. Tomb 67 has a burial chamber in its upper storey, and tomb 70 beside it rises over 15 metres, freed from the rock on three sides like a small fort. Further on, older tombs were cut away to make room for the Theatre; their remains still show in the cliff at the back of the auditorium. The street is on Petra's Main Trail, about half a kilometre past the Treasury and just before the Theatre, so you walk it on the way to the city centre. The Royal Tombs are about 300 metres away on Jabal al-Khubtha, and the High Place of Sacrifice trail starts near the Theatre.