The International North-Eastern Petra Project

Preliminary Report on the 2014 Season

by Stephan G. Schmid, Zbigniew T. Fiema and Bernhard Kolb

III. The 2014 survey season

The 2014 fieldwork was basically the continuation of activities conducted in 2013. Specifically, the current activities included:

  • the architectural study of some of the largest structures at the site (Structures 9, 10 and 3), including the localization, description, mapping and photographing. This procedure requires the shallow surface clearance in some places in order to ascertain the course of walls.
  • documentation of all architectural blocks, including the localization, description, mapping and photographing. This procedure is intended to produce exact plans featuring the exact position of every identified architectural member, which in turn permits to locate – for instance – all column drums or door jambs found within or around a specific structure.
  • the description and mapping of some smaller structures or installations at the site, especially if water-related.

Although the collected material and obtained information will need proper study and assessment, the following preliminary observations can now be proposed.