Original lithograph showing the Lower End of the Valley and the Acropolis of Petra by David Roberts (1796-1864) and the lithographer Louis Haghe, (1806-1885). Published in London, 1842.David Roberts, considered one of the great architectural artists of his time, was born at Stockbridge near Edinburgh and at the age of 10, apprenticed to Gavin Buego, a house painter. Following his apprenticeship, Roberts did faux stone work and paneling at Scone Palace and Abercairney Abbey. In 1818, Roberts worked as an assistant scene painter in theaters in Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Drury Lane Theater in London. Throughout the 1820s, he exhibited at the Society of British Artists and the Royal Academy. By 1830, Roberts was firmly established as a topographical artist. He then was able to give up his theatre work and travel, touring the continent, Scotland and Spain. In 1839, he departed for Alexandria and spent the remaining part of the year in Cairo, visiting numerous tombs and other sites. The following year he crossed the desert to get to the Holy Land by way of Suez, Mount Sinai, Petra and Gaza. He went on to Jerusalem, spending several months visiting key biblical sites and returned to England at the end of 1839. Roberts' works were published in London as lithographs by Louis Haghe (1806 ? 1885), himself a lithographer and watercolor artist, in 41 parts over seven years, 1842 ? 1849. This became one of Haghe's most ambitious and successful projects and confirmed Roberts as one of Great Britain's greatest architectural and landscape artists.Petra is a honeycomb of caves, temples, and tombs carved from pink sandstone in the high desert of Jordan some 2,000 years ago. Little is known about the Nabateans?a nomadic desert people whose kingdom rose up from these cliffs and peaks, and whose incredible wealth grew from the lucrative incense trade. Raqmu, or Petra (as the Greeks knew it), grew into the Nabateans? most prominent city, linking camel caravans between the Mediterranean and Arabian Seas, from Egypt to Syria and beyond to Greece. Control of water sources and the defense vanishing into the cleft rocks ensured the Nabateans remained unconquered for centuries.The Romans arrived in 63 B.C., signaling a era of massive expansion and grandiose construction, like the theater that sat more than 6,000 spectators, as well as some of the city?s most impressive facades. Carved into the rock face, the Treasury and the Monastery both have unmistakable Hellenistic features, with ornate Corinthian columns, bas-relief Amazons, and fanciful acroteria. Petra?s sophisticated water system that supported some 30,000 inhabitants. Carved into the twisted passageway of the Siq, the irrigation channel drops only 12 feet over the course of a mile, while underground cisterns stored runoff to be used in drier times of the year. And yet it?s the raw beauty of Petra that draws in so many millions of visitors?the entire city of ruins is a work of art, painted on a natural stone backdrop that changes color every hour. The elegant Silk Tomb swirls with streaks of red, blue, and ocher, while vivid mosaics still pave the floors of a Byzantine-era church.Christianity came to Petra in the third and fourth centuries and flourished, but the city waned after an A.D. 336 earthquake and under the early Islamic dynasties of the seventh century.Petra was only rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johann Burckhardt in 1812. Even now, archaeologists have explored less than half of the sprawling site, and in 2016, with the help of satellite imagery, a monumental structure was found still buried in the sand. It?s no wonder that Petra remains Jordan?s top tourist attraction and one of the most revered of the World Heritage sites. Provenance: Phyllis Lucas Gallery, NYC. [Image size with caption: Height: 15.25 in (38.74 cm); Width: 24 in (60.96 cm). Outside dimensions: Height: 17.5 in; Width: 24.0 in]. In good condition, with cracking at extreme edges with losses.

In good condition, with cracking at extreme edges with losses.