Corinthian Tomb

East Ridge, Petra

The Corinthian Tomb was named by Leon de Laborde (1828), an early explorer who mistakenly thought that its capitals were of the Corinthian order (Taylor, p. 94). Actually the capitals and facade are examples of the Alexandrian style, like the Khazneh. The Corinthian Tomb's upper order, with its central tholos interrupting a broken pediment, is comparable both to the Khazneh and the Deir. In the lower order, a rather puzzling mixture of entrances and blank walls is distributed amongst eight engaged columns. Between the lower and upper orders there is a third, truncated, order with short columns and a broken pediment.