Provenance of marbles from the Nabatean site at Qasr el Bint, Petra, Jordan

 

Nizar Abu-Jaber

Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences

Yarmouk University

Irbid 21163

Jordan

 

And

 

Ziad al-Saad

Department of Archaeology

Yarmouk University

Irbid 21163

Jordan

 

The sources of various materials used in antiquity can help in reconstructing various aspects of life during a particular time period.  Specifically, trade routes and technical competence of the workmen can be assessed.  In this paper, we will discuss the sources of the various marbles used at Qasr el Bint during the Nabatean period. 

 

The provenance of these marbles can be roughly divided into local and imported marble.  The local marbles are similar to that which is exploited in Jordan today. One type of these is a metamorphosed fossiliferous limestone which is common in various locations in eastern Jordan. The second type is a travertine, which is common at hot springs which emanate in the Jordan valley region.

 

The imported marbles seem to come from various sources in modern Greece and Turkey.  These marbles can be divided into three types based on their mineralogy, petrographic characteristics and stable isotopic composition.  The highest quality variety seems to be a white dolomitic marble which was mined on the island of Thasos in modern Greece.  The second type is a grayish calcitic marble which is well crystallized and also seems to have been imported from Thasos, albeit from another quary on the island.  The third type is a friable white marble which was probably mined from ancient Docimium in modern Turkey.