Upper Temenos


It is worth climbing to the upper part of the Great Temple to gain a sense of the enormity of a structure that would once have occupied 7000 sq m. It is also worth pausing to sit on the steps at the back of the platform: from here there is a grand view of the Colonnaded Street below – a pageant of colour and activity as camels, mules, tourists and the odd tunic-wearing centurion pass along the ancient pavement.


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1. Great Temple

0.03 MILES

A major Nabataean temple of the 1st century BCE, this structure was badly damaged by an earthquake not long after it was built, but it remained in use …

2. Lower Temenos

0.04 MILES

The lower section of the Great Temple, with its stepped enclosure, is thought to have been a sacred part of this major monument, the whole of which…

3. Upper Market

0.05 MILES

Shops would have lined the Colonnaded Street along the front side of this colossal and as yet unexcavated building.

5. Colonnaded Street

0.05 MILES

Downhill from the Theatre, the Colonnaded Street marks the centre of the Ancient City. The street was built around AD 106 and follows the standard Roman…

6. Pharaun Column

0.05 MILES

A good landmark and the lone surviving column of a Nabataean temple.

7. Temenos Gateway

0.08 MILES

Built in the 2nd century AD, the gateway originally had huge wooden doors and side towers. It marked the entrance to the temenos (sacred courtyard) of the…