Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier
Pre-Pottery Neolithic (7500-6500 BCE)·PPN Culture·🇯🇴 Petra region, Ma'an, Jordan
About
About Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier
Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier in Petra region, Ma'an, Jordan is a Pre-Pottery Neolithic (7500-6500 BCE) ancient village attributed to PPN Culture. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal necropolis 8 × 3 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 30.4061N 35.4718E controls access to Petra region, Ma'an resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey ancient-village for Petra region, Ma'an, illustrating PPN Culture construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Tribal capital and ritual aggregation
- 02Seasonal gathering locus
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 7000 BCE
- Period
- Pre-Pottery Neolithic (7500-6500 BCE)
- Culture
- PPN Culture
- Purpose
- Settlement with domestic structures and ancillary ritual space
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c. 7000 BCE
Initial construction of Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier main structure
c. 978 BCE
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically at Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier
19th–20th century
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
30.4061° N · 35.4718° E · 1152 m · 3 mapped features
- Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier — Main Ancient-Village FeatureenclosurePrimary enclosure at Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier — central chambered cairn with stratified deposits30.4047° N · 35.4738° E
- Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier — Secondary Enclosurerock artAncillary rock art at Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier — central chambered cairn with stratified deposits30.4049° N · 35.4707° E
- Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier — Outlier Rock Art PanelhydraulicOutlier hydraulic panel linked to Ba'ja Clifftop Cistern Terrace North — Eastern Outlier ceremonial landscape30.4071° N · 35.4722° E