Stone city stargazing

The ancient Nabataeans entered and exited their capital, Petra, through a narrow gorge near this spot, winding their way through these cliffs to a city carved right into the stone walls. The world was a very different place over a millennium ago—but as those travelers looked up at the sky, they gazed on the same stars we do, no doubt picking out shapes in the celestial canopy and swapping stories about what they saw.We're not sure if the Nabataeans had a name for the prominent constellation at our image's center: Orion the hunter, with his famous triple-starred belt. We borrow this stellar fellow's name and occupation from the Greeks, but various cultures have identified the shape with a shepherd, a giant, a dancer, and other mythic figures.