David Roberts in Petra (1839)



  

 

 (# 10) The eastern end of the valley - the royal tombs - the Palace Tomb.

 

David Roberts (1796-1864) was a Scottish artist. In 1838 he was in Egypt. In the following year he travelled to Syria and Jordan. During his stay in and around Petra, he made a series of 14 large and very detailed drawings in colour. This collection has recently been republished in full-scale and in colour.

As you can guess, the collection is on sale in the shops in the ancient city and in some of the shops in Wadi Musa – the modern town next to Petra.

Here is a brief overview of the motives. The 14 sheets are not numbered, but I have decided to divide them into four groups and to number them here, because this will send you on a virtual tour through the ancient city from the beginning of the Siq (in the east) to the Monastery (in the northwest):

PART A

# 1: Encampment of Bani Said

# 2: Arabs of the tribe of Benisaid
# 3: Approach to Petra (Bedouins in the shade of a huge rock)

PART B

# 4: The arch at the beginning of the Siq (in the east)

# 5: The Treasury (al-Khasneh)
# 6: Lower view of the Treasury (al-Khasneh)
# 7: The Theatre

PART C

# 8: The eastern end of the valley – The Royal Tombs – The Tomb of the Urn

# 9:  The Tomb of the Urn
# 10: The eastern end of the valley – The Royal Tombs – The Palace Tomb
# 11: Sight to the south
# 12: The Acropolis

PART D

# 13: Ruins of the Triumphal Arch (in the city centre)

# 14: The Monastery (Ad-Deir) (in the northwest)

In every modern book about Petra there is at least one drawing by Roberts among the illustrations, sometimes even three, four or five drawings. See for instance Francesca Ossorio, Petra: Splendors of the Nabataean Civilization (White Star Publishers, 2009). When they are placed in a book, you can study them and enjoy them, but you cannot take them out. They belong in the book.

The new collection is not a book. The 14 sheets are not bound together. There are 14 loose sheets. Each sheet measures 24 x 33 cm. They come in a folder which is slightly larger (25 x 35 cm). You can pick out one and put it in a frame and hang it on the wall, if you like.

When Roberts visited Petra in 1839, the ancient city was beginning to be famous in Europe - that is why he decided to go there - but apart from the local Bedouins almost nobody had ever been there. Almost nobody knew anything about the place. That is why his drawings are so exceptional and valuable.

It is interesting to compare the drawings he made in 1839 with the current conditions in the 21st century. The decorations and reliefs on the monuments are often sharper and clearer in the old drawings than they are today. A common explanation for this is that erosion by rain, wind and desert sand has done a lot of damage since Roberts was there. This may be true, but it does not have to be.

When you make a drawing, you do not have to draw what you see. You can draw what you like. Maybe the decorations and the reliefs were already heavily eroded in 1839. Maybe Roberts drew what he wanted to see. Maybe he embellished the decorations and the reliefs, because he wanted them to look good. We can never know if he did this on some occasion or not.

In general his drawings are considered very accurate. When you compare details which he could see and draw with what we can see today, we have to say that his drawings are almost like a photo. He was a very careful and meticulous artist.

Picture # 4 shows the arch that once spanned the beginning of the Siq. Unfortunately, it is not there anymore. It collapsed in 1895. But you can still see the niches cut in the rock below the arch, and on the left wall you can see the beginning of the arch. Roberts shows one of the niches below the arch (the one on the right side) – but perhaps the niche is placed a bit too high in his picture?

 

(# 5) The facade of the Treasury - the third column from the left is broken.

 

 

(# 6) The Treasury - seen from the side - notice the broken column.

 

Pictures # 5 and 6 show the Treasury. One of the six columns on the front is broken in this picture. This detail is a fact. Today the broken column has been repaired. When you closely at the column, you can see the difference between the original cut by the Nabataeans and the modern reconstruction which was done in the 20th century.

 

(# 14) The Monastery also known as Ad-Deir (in the northwest).

 

Picture # 14 shows the Monastery. As far as I can see, it is a very accurate rendition of the ancient monument. There are no decorations or reliefs in the niches today. There are none in the drawing from 1839. Roberts could have made something up, to make it look more like the Treasury, or just to make it look better. But he did not. It seems he was a very faithful and very talented observer.

If you have never been to Petra, you may still enjoy these drawings from the 19th century. The motives are beautiful, and the composition of each scene is well done with one element in the foreground and another element in the background. When you look at these drawings, you may be able to understand why so many people visit this ancient city every year.

If you have been there, I am sure you will cherish and appreciate these drawings as a special souvenir from one of the most extraordinary and fascinating places in the world.

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David Roberts in Petra (1839):

The Complete Collection

 

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For more information about Petra see my blog:

 

Petra: Art and History

 

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