Archaeologists working in the Jordanian city of Petra have uncovered a tomb containing at least 12 skeletons and a trove of artifacts that experts hailed as an “extremely rare discovery.” CNN reported.
The tomb was located in the underground chambers of the famous Khaznah (or Treasury) monument, which scholars have long theorized. The site rose to prominence around 1989 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade here he played the role of the Holy Grail quite aptly.
The director general of the American Research Center, Dr. Pearce Paul Creasman and his team of archaeologists discovered the first underground chamber in 2003 and concluded that there must be more than one. To confirm their suspicions, archaeologists used ground-penetrating radar, which uses pulses to detect objects underground. They found that the physical features of the first tomb matched those on the other side of the structure.
They excavated the monument, which was filmed for an episode of Discovery in August. Expedition Unknown. While many tombs in Petra were found empty, this tomb contained at least a dozen human remains and funerary items made of iron, ceramics and bronze. Experts believe this is the largest collection of human remains unearthed in a single location in the city. Some were probably better preserved than others due to seasonal flooding and the sandstone in which they were set. A cadaver was also found holding a chalice that resembled the Holy Grail vessel from which Jesus drank at the Last Supper.
Creasman said the discovery dates the kingdoms to B.C. He says it offers a previously unknown perspective on the ancient Arab nomadic tribe known as the Nabataeans, who ruled from the 4th century to AD 106. “The remains can be a really valuable tool in this regard,” he explained. “Since the bodies in this grave were jointed, the bones were not mixed and moved, so this is an extremely rare situation.”
“This is an extremely rare discovery; nothing like it has ever been found before in the two centuries that Petra has been explored by archaeologists,” said show host Josh Gates. Expedition Unknownexplained. “Even in front of one of the most famous buildings in the world… there are still tremendous discoveries to be made.”
Expedition Unknown It streams on Amazon Prime Video. You can check out a preview of the Khaznah excavation episode below.