Geoarchaeological Database for Petra Archaeological Site Conservation and Management

A comprehensive and multidisciplinary database has been created for the World Cultural Heritage site of Petra. One section of it has focused on the geoarchaeological characterization and impact of lithologic and structural heterogeneities in the pattern and rate weathering of the rockcut and built monuments of the archaeological site. An untapped set of tools for characterizing these heterogeneities and their impact on a weathering rate and pattern was attempted through the combination of surface investigation, mapping and characterization of lithologic and structural heterogeneities, typing and dating the weathering in them using visual investigation techniques, environmental tracers, and statistical modeling of the key controlling factors that dominate their behavior. The typing and dating activities were found to be particularly important as they allow for the determination of potential conservation measures and management plans. In the sandstone of Petra as in many other sedimentary rocks, fault and fracture formation can lead to significant variations in the rates and patterns of surface and subsurface weathering of the rock. The physical and chemical properties of the rock may be further degraded in regards to many surface and subsurface factors like human activities, environmental changes, overburden load and tectonic stress which may alter their ability to stand the various active weathering agents. This was found particularly true in monuments located in an active hill slope or wadi beds where much salt-rich water is normally available for the different chemical weathering agents and physical loss due to runoff. Understanding these heterogeneities and the controls on their behavior is a key component of the characterization and quantification of any conservation and site management plan where understanding-weathering behavior in large scales is desired. This study will directly address the question of the geoarchaeological factors impact in the preservation and destruction of the archaeological site through documentation and comprehensive databasing.