Editing Petra (section)

=== Exterior platform ===

In 2016, archaeologists using [[satellite imagery]] and [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drones]] discovered a very large, previously unknown monumental structure whose beginnings were tentatively dated to about 150 BC, the time when the Nabataeans initiated their public building programme. It is located outside the main area of the city, at the foot of Jabal an-Nmayr and about {{cvt|0.5|mi|1}} south of the city centre, but is facing east, not towards the city, and has no visible relationship to it. The structure consists of a huge, {{cvt|184|by|161|ft}} platform, with a monumental staircase along its eastern side. The large platform enclosed a slightly smaller one, topped with a comparatively small building, {{cvt|28|by|28|ft}}, which was facing east toward the staircase. The structure, second in size only to the [[Ad Deir|Monastery complex]], probably had a ceremonial function of which not even a speculative explanation has yet been offered by the researchers.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Parcak |first1= Sarah |last2= Tuttle |first2= Christopher A. |title= Hiding in Plain Sight: The Discovery of a New Monumental Structure at Petra, Jordan, Using WorldView-1 and WorldView-2 Satellite Imagery |journal= Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume= 375 |date= May 2016 |issue= 375 |pages= 35–51 |jstor= 10.5615/bullamerschoorie.375.0035 |issn= 0003-097X |doi= 10.5615/bullamerschoorie.375.0035|s2cid= 163171099 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Archaeologists discover massive Petra monument that could be 2,150 years old |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/09/petra-buried-monument-discovered-jordan |access-date= 10 June 2016 |work= The Guardian |date= 10 June 2016 |archive-date= 10 June 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160610072915/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/09/petra-buried-monument-discovered-jordan |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Massive New Monument Found in Petra |url= http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/06/space-archaeology-satellite-petra-ancient-city-discovery-jordan-monument/ |access-date= 10 June 2016 |work= National Geographic |date= 8 June 2016 |archive-date= 9 June 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160609215944/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/06/space-archaeology-satellite-petra-ancient-city-discovery-jordan-monument/ |url-status= dead }}</ref>