The Nabataeans greatest accomplishment was probably their system of water management. They developed a system to collect rainwater using water channels, pipes, and underground cisterns. Added to this, they developed very strong, waterproof cement, some of which is still in existence to this day.
Cement mortar and plaster played an important role in Nabataean life. They used this essential technology from their very earliest years in the desert. Without their special knowledge of cement, the Nabataeans would never have conquered the desert, and would never have risen to the status of a civilization.
The Nabataeans were experts at collecting water and storing it in underground cisterns. All along their caravan routes, secret water collection systems collected water and stored it for later use. The ancient historian Diodorus noted:
"For in the waterless region, as it is called, they have dug wells at convenient intervals and have kept the knowledge of them from people of all other nations, and so they retreat in a body into this region out of danger. For since they themselves know about the places of hidden water and open them up, they have for their use drinking water in abundance." (II.48.2)
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Thanks for these pics. A couple of years ago we had a special exhibit from Petra at Calvin College. Lots of zodiacal stuff from the Hellenistic and Roman periods, monumental sculpture, all very cool. As you said, they were good at water management. I would think that they must have been at least as good at waste disposal (getting rid of sewage, basically), if indeed 30,000 people were living there. Sounds like a parallel can be drawn with Los Angeles — an artificial oasis (of sorts) in the desert, made possible through importation of water from a wide area surrounding the town.
they developed very strong, waterproof cementI thought the Romans did this, about the same time, or did the Romans use the Nabataeans invention? Whichever, almost all the famous Roman monuments depended on this waterproof concrete.