Conservators from the Courtauld Institute of Art have been working closely with the Petra National Trust to restore 2,000-year-old Nabataean cave drawings at Jordan's most important UNESCO World Heritage site.
Stephen Rickerby and Lisa Shekede from the Courtauld’s Conservation of Wall Painting Department have worked for three years on rare and beautiful Nabataean wall paintings to reveal the original colours and clarity of the drawings.
Who Were the Nabataeans?
The Nabataeans, originally a nomadic people from ancient Arabia, were highly successful merchants. Petra, their capital city, was an important economic and religious centre for at least four hundred years from the 3rd Century BC onwards. The city was a flourishing hub for the silk, spice and other trade routes that linked China, India and Southern Arabia with Egypt, Syria, Greece and Rome.
Why is This Painting Important?
The painting dates from around the 1st Century AD and is particularly important because it is the only surviving in situ figurative cave painting. The scene provides vital historical facts about Nabataean civilisation.
The cave complex is located about 5 km from the main site, at the canyon of Siq al-Barid in Beidha, known as 'Little Petra'. The paintings are within a 'biclinium', which comprises a main chamber and a recess. The murals cover the vault and walls of the recess, which it is thought was used for ritual dining. The paintings became blackened by a thick layer of soot from fires lit by the community. Not only were the paintings sooty, they were also damaged by graffiti, as well as by attempts to steal parts of the vault. The images show the vault paintings before and after conservation.
Conserving Petra's Nabataean Paintings
When conservators started work the painting was unstable and extremely fragile. Initially, the Courtauld’s experts thought it would not be possible to clean the painting, so they concentrated on stabilising it instead. However, in 2008, a safe way to clean it was found, with remarkable results.
Conservation work has revealed the true value and rarity of this painting. It was created with a broad range of colours and conservators were amazed to discover that the original artists used luxurious materials such as gold leaf and translucent glazes.
What Does Petra's Cave Painting Show?
The painting clearly shows the influence of Hellenistic–Roman culture with three different varieties of vines, grape, ivy and bindweed, all linked to the ancient Greek god of wine, Dionysis. Birds such as Demoiselle cranes and Palestine sunbirds also appear, accompanied by putti: one, who wears a fur skin, sits in a vine scroll playing a lute. Others pick fruit, or defend the grapes from marauding birds.
On completing the project, Stephen Rickerby described the painting as "really exceptional and staggeringly beautiful, with an artistic and technical quality that's quite unlike anything else".
Further information is available from the Courtauld Institute of Art and the Petra National Trust.
Sources:
- Courtauld Institute of Art
- Petra National Trust
Frances Spiegel - Frances Spiegel, B.A. Hons. (Open)., Dip.Eur.Hum., read Art History/European Modern History at the Open University.
