Nabatean Sites and the Location of Dhat Ras
Temple at er-Rabbah
Nabateans settled throughout the Transjordan area. Several sites contain temples, including Petra, Qsar, er-Rabbah, Dhat Ras, Khirbet et-Tannur, Khirbet edh-Dherih, Nakhl, and probably temples at Karak, Mesheirfeh, and Ma’an. Unlike the other sites, Khirbet et-Tannur was a religious site with only a temple structure, that is, it had no adjacent settlement. Tannur is located in the middle of the Wadi el-Hasa and is only 4 miles southwest of Dhat Ras.
The village of Dhat Ras is located just north of the Wadi el-Hasa on the Karak Plateau along the old Roman road. The village is on a small hill in the center of a fertile plain. There were three temples at Dhat Ras. Two of the temples were large; however, they are all but destroyed now. The third temple, the focus of this study, often is referred to as “the small temple.”
The Karak Plateau is just a small section of a larger area of Nabatean presence. This map shows some of the major Nabatean sites on the Karak Plateau, including Dhat Ras.
The small temple is located on the southeast side of the hill, on a small knoll. The temple probably dates to the first or early second century AD.
