The Temple of the Winged Lions, Petra

Abstract

The Temple of the Winged Lions (TWL) in Petra is a Nabataean ritual complex, with workshops and domestic spaces, founded in the early first century CE and active until the earthquake of 363 CE. This paper begins to fill lacunae in the published record about the TWL, offering a summary of its less-reported aspects and suggesting that conclusions drawn from earlier excavations (1974–2005) must be reassessed through a full study that draws from recent work in Petra and the wider region. The TWL is a contextually rich site for the study of ancient ritual, economy, and society in the Nabataean and Greco-Roman world, providing opportunities to test ideas on social identity, cultural hybridity, and indigeneity through a combined study of architecture, objects, and spatial organization. In parallel to this research, the TWL Cultural Resource Management Initiative of ACOR (2009–present) has also undertaken major public archaeology, conservation, and site presentation activities.