DOCTORAL THESIS Interpretation and Presentation of Nabataeans Innovative Technologies: Case Study Petra/Jordan Submitted to the Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering, and Urban Planning Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus, Germany, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctorate of Engineer (Dr. Ing), 2006-2011 by Yazan Safwan Al-Tell (Born 07-04-1977 in Amman, Jordan) Supervisors: Prof. Dr. h.c. Jörg J. Kühn Prof.Dr. Stephen G. Schmid Prof. Dr. Ing. Adolf Hoffmann I Abstract The Nabataeans were people of innovation and technology. Many clear evidences were left behind them that prove this fact. Unfortunately for a site like Petra, visited by crowds of visitors and tourists every day, many major elements need to be strengthened in terms of interpretation and presentation techniques in order to reflect the unique and genuine aspects of the place. The major elements that need to be changed include: un-authorized tour guides, insufficient interpretation site information in terms of quality and display. In spite of Jordan‘s numerous archaeological sites (especially Petra) within the international standards, legislations and conventions that discuss intensively interpretation and presentation guidelines for archaeological site in a country like Jordan, it is not easy to implement these standards in Petra at present for several reasons which include: presence of different stakeholders, lack of funding, local community. Moreover, many interpretation and development plans were previously made for Petra, which makes it harder to determine the starting point. Within the work I did, I proposed two ideas for developing interpretation technique in Petra. First was using the theme technique, which creates a story from the site or from innovations done by the inhabitants, and to be presented to visitors in a modern approach. The purpose of this story is to link the visitor to the site emotionally, by providing them with the sense and feel of the site‘s real events by that time together with a good amount of information that gives the visitor the chance to live and feel an unforgettable experience of the place. The second idea was how to tailor a useful interpretation plan that could be implemented on all other archaeological sites in Jordan right after ―evaluating the results of its implementation in Petra‖. The aim of this thesis is to develop interpretation criteria for ―local governments and nongovernmental organizations‖, as well as an interpretation plan in a Jordanian context and apply them on all other archaeological sites in Jordan. Tourists would benefit from the quality of interpretation services offered by the interpreters and the techniques of presentation available on the site, in addition to tour guides who have received training programs derivate from this study, which would guarantee in return a more sustainable tourism movement to the site of Petra in the future. II Zusammenfassung Die Nabatäer waren ein Volk der Innovationen und Technologie. Sie haben uns viele Beweise hinterlassen, die diese Behauptung unterstützen. An einem Ort wie Petra, der jeden Tag von Mengen von Touristen besucht wird, müssen leider viele wesentliche Elemente in ihrer Präsentation verbessert und in ihrer Interpretation gestärkt werden, um die Einmaligkeit und die Bedeutung des Ortes zu vermitteln. Dazu gehören vor allem nicht autorisierte Führer und das sowohl inhaltliche als auch formal ungenügende Informationsmaterial. Obwohl es eine große Anzahl von internationalen Standards, Richtlinien und Konventionen für die zahlreichen archäologischen Stätten in Jordanien und besonders für Petra gibt, die intensiv diskutiert werden, ist es nicht einfach dieses Standards in Petra zu implementieren. Die Gründe dafür sind unterschiedliche Interessensgruppen, nicht ausreichende finanzielle Unterstützung und die lokale Gesellschaft. Es wurden sogar viele Präsentations- und Entwicklungspläne für Petra selbst erarbeitet, die jedoch den Ausgangspunkt für eine Neuorientierung eher erschweren. In der vorliegenden Arbeit habe ich zwei Interpretationsansätze vorgeschlagen: der erste ist Technik als Leitthema, in dem die konkrete Geschichte des Ortes als eine von den Innovationen der Nabatäer erzählt wird, die dem Besucher in moderner Form vermittelt wird. Der Besucher soll emotional mit dem Ort verbunden werden und ihn auf unvergessliche Weise erfahren, in dem ihm schrittweise Informationen gegeben werden und ihn eine Zeitreise durch die Geschichte Petras antreten lassen. Der zweite Ansatz versucht, ein allgemeines Präsentationskonzept für Petra zu entwickeln, das nach einer kritischen Auswertung in Petra für alle archäologischen Stätten in Jordanien eingeführt werden könnte. Das Ziel dieser Doktorarbeit ist es, am Beispiel von Petra Strategien und Kriterien für die Kommunalverwaltungen und für Nicht-Regierungsorganisationen zu entwickeln als Grundlage für Präsentations- und Entwicklungsplanungen für andere jordanische archäologische Stätten. Touristen würden von einer verbesserten Qualität der Interpretation und Präsentation profitieren, ebenso von Führern, die durch diese Studie veranlasst Trainingsprogramme absolviert haben. Damit würde ein nachhaltigerer Tourismus in der Zukunft von Petra ermöglicht werden. III Terms and abbreviations ACOR: American Center for Oriental Research AD: Anno Domini ADAJ: Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan B.C.: Before Christ DOA: Department of Antiquities ESCWA: Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia GDP: Gross Domestic Product GTZ: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit ICOMOS: International Committee on Monuments and Sites IFAPO: Institut Francais D'archeologie Du Proche-Orient ICAHM: International Committee on Archaeological Heritage Management ICOM: International Council of Museums IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature JADIS: Jordan Antiquities Database and Information System JICA: Japan International Cooperation Agency JTB: Jordan Tourism Board MOTA: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities NPS: National Park Services PAP: Petra Archaeological Park PNT: Petra National Trust UNESCO: United Nation Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization IV Acknowledgement The efforts of many individuals have helped make the production of this work possible; the scholar would like to express his sincere appreciation to the following individuals: Prof. Dr. Jörg Kühn, whose generous assistance made everything possible, he stimulated my interest on the archaeological way of thinking, and how to explain things deeper than a text book, how to be an ―architect archaeologist‖ at one time and to have a wider analyses and expectations in understanding the Nabataeans and their techniques. Prof. Dr. Ziad Alsaad, who inspired my interest in the subject of the Nabataeans and their achievements in Jordan and generously supported the scholar with time, knowledge, books and references. I would like to thank also Mrs. Julia Zillich, who proofed the manuscript and gave very helpful grammatical suggestions concerning it, as well as assisting in research and preparing the indices. I also would like to be grateful for the great efforts done by Nabil Al-Awawdeh in translating the abstract into German, it was highly appreciated. I particularly thankful for all those mentioned above for their patience and their attention to every single detail throughout my study; without their invaluable assistance and encouragement this study could never been completed. The thesis would not have been possible without the aid of many: My parents, for their unquestionable support and faith in me, they have been the strength and stability that kept me going, thank you for your patience and advices that kept me going through all hard problems I faced. And to my dear wife Salam who stood by me day and night, you cannot know how important your love, encouragement and passion have meant to me in these past years, and to my son Safwan, who was my major motive that let me going hard toward accomplishing my thesis, love you forever. I would have never completed the dissertation without them. And a special regard to my dear sister, who encouraged me when I faced difficulties, and helped me to defeat them, would like to thank you for your trust on me thank you all. V Statutory declaration I hereby declare that this thesis is the result of my original work carried out in Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus, Germany and in Yarmouk University, Irbid, Jordan, within the framework of the doctoral program in Interpretation and Presentation of Nabataeans Innovative Technologies. My research was supervised by Prof. Dr. Jörg Kuhn, BTU Cottbus, and Prof. Dr. Ziad Al-Saad, Yarmouk University, Irbid. All of the work contained within this text is original except where cited from an additional source. Quotations and other direct or indirect information have been clearly marked and noted. This work has not been submitted before or to other examination bodies, and is currently unpublished. _________________________ __06/09/2011__________________ Signature Date VI Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... I Zusammenfassung ........................................................................................................................ II Terms and Abbreviation .............................................................................................................. III Acknowledgement