The Peppermint Facade

[AlanLichty]

Sextus Florentinus was a Roman governor of the province of Arab after the Romans came in around 106 A.D. We know about him because there were inscriptions inside of the edifice that said so. Can't really say that he did anything of importance beyond having this tomb facade carved for him and his family.

This tomb facade is perhaps my favorite as a photographic subject since it was carved out of some of the most colorful sandstone in Petra. As always it was plastered and painted in its day to hide the stone but our good fortune is that it was build with less protection from the elements than most and we get to see things as they are under the skin.

It is critical to catch the light just right to illuminate all of the details and in this case there is lots of reflected light but shade for the whole facade save the branches of the small plant growing out of the cracks.

The Tomb of Sextus Florentinus

• AlanLichty
• Feb 12, 2018

A rather colorful tomb facade in Petra.

I was surprised to find a treasure in my slide stash - a pair of images that stitched together perfectly for a panorama of the facade details. This shows well the insanity of trying to decide which part of this scene to let your eyes follow.

Closeup of a Facade

• AlanLichty
• Feb 12, 2018

A closeup of the details on a Petra tomb facade.

Don't stare too long - this one can cause brain damage

C&C always welcome.

 

[Ben Egbert]

Very neat Alan, I like the swirled effect in the rocks. It appears that some of the original rock has fallen away as the lines of the arch are interrupted etc. The shape of the doorway seems odd as well.

This is a neat series you are showing, keep them coming.

 

[JimFox]

Hey Alan,

How cool these are! I really like reading about the history and seeing your photos capturing it.

Are these all converted with your temp set up you showed us the other day?

 

[AlanLichty]

Very neat Alan, I like the swirled effect in the rocks. It appears that some of the original rock has fallen away as the lines of the arch are interrupted etc. The shape of the doorway seems odd as well.

This is a neat series you are showing, keep them coming.

Thanks. - the door would have been properly shaped 1900 years ago but erosion has removed a lot of it. Quite a few of the facades have doorways with erosional issues.

 

[AlanLichty]

Hey Alan,

How cool these are! I really like reading about the history and seeing your photos capturing it.

Are these all converted with your temp set up you showed us the other day?

Yup that temp setup has been working great and isn’t limited to 35mm slides . Still trying to decide is I need a fancier stand or not.

 

[MonikaC]

I love all the different textures & details of both the carved & natural rock. I could scroll up & down for a long time on this one!

 

[BarryHamilton]

Wow! Absolutely fascinating! Great work!

 

[AlanLichty]

Thanks for the comments. There is yet another geologic layer in this visual puzzle I forgot to describe - a softer tan colored sandstone layer that sits above the peppermint stripped stuff. Over the last 1900 years it has eroded away from above and has been drooling down onto the vertical face below ever since. As you see it here it almost looks like its melting down over the top of the mixture of the facade and it's eroded face.

Scenes like this one timed right would be worth a reshoot if you could arrange the circumstances.

 

[Mike Mancil]

Fascinating place, stories and excellent photo work.