Little Petra

Little Petra or Al Beidhais the next most important site for the casual visitor in Wadi Musa. The entrance to Al Beidha contains a small siq (crack in the rock). The Siq Al-Barid is located to the north of Petra, only a 10 minute drive away. A classical temple stands guard outside the miniature siq which would appear to have been an important suburb of the city of Petra, situated at the point where several ancient caravan routes met, which linking Wadi Araba with Gaza, Egypt and the Mediterranean coast. The narrow file, only some 350m long, is crammed with tombs, temples, triclinia, houses, water channels and cisterns, in brief, a Little Petra. Of particular note are the remains of painted frescoes on plaster dating from the 1st century AD, which are to be found in one on the biclinia.