Petra’s lower city is being gradually revealed by archaeologists, but it remains hard to fully grasp its significance. Visitors should imagine a Hellenistic-style settlement with markets, baths, temples and villas. The Nabataeans did not live in the rock-hewn monuments, which were used as tombs or places of worship. The streets of Petra were inhabited by a heterogeneous population, augmented by traders from all over the Classical world.