The 2000-year-old rose red city ranked second, with the Great Wall of China taking first place, organisers of an international contest declared in a special ceremony held in Lisbon. The ceremony was broadcast live on Jordan Television, which devoted Saturday evening airtime to a national celebration held in front of Petra's main monument, the Treasury.

As soon as the results were announced after 1:00am local time Sunday, fireworks lit the sky of Amman.

The Nabatean-built city has been running for a spot in the international contest along with 20 other landmark sites around the world since March 2006.

According to the New 7 Wonders organisers, a tally of 100 million votes had been cast since voting for the global campaign kicked off in March 2006. People around the world cast their votes over the Internet and by cellphone text messages, the nonprofit organisation that conducted the poll said, quoted by the Associated Press.

Officials here said 22 million votes were cast for Petra, which was officially listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985.

Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer, Peru's Machu Picchu, Mexico's Chichen Itza pyramid, the Colosseum in Rome and India's Taj Mahal were named the other New Seven Wonders of the World.

Among the places left out were the Acropolis in Athens, Greece, the Statues of Easter Island, Chile, Cambodia's Angkor, Turkey's Hagia Sophia, and Russia's Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral.

In a telephone call with Jordan Television prior to the announcement of results, Her Majesty Queen Rania commended the zeal shown by Jordanians in supporting the ancient city.

She also commended the efforts of all people from the four corners of the globe for supporting Petra in the competition.

In the call, Queen Rania said: "His Majesty King Abdullah and I have been following closely the activities and the efforts exerted to introduce the rose-red city, which is a historical site that we are proud of."

The ancient city, located 210km to the south of Amman, has been among the leaders for the past weeks, as a result of a nationwide campaign to rally votes for the stone-carved town, an emblem of Jordan.

Petra -- popularised by the movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" -- is known for its dramatic tombs and temple facades, including one that served as a church during Byzantine times. The city's inhabitants, Nabataean Arabs, carved structures into the soft sandstone more than two millennia ago.

The once bustling city was the capital of the Nabataean Arabs, who controlled the trading routes that passed through Petra to Gaza in the west, Basra and Damascus in the north, Aqaba in the south, and across the desert to the Arabian Gulf.

The rose-red rock city was forgotten for centuries until Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burchhardt, disguised as a bedouin nomad, went into the city and rediscovered it in 1812. The ancient city was hidden behind an almost impenetrable barrier of rugged mountains.

In an effort to boost tourism in Jordan, private businesses and the government were spending an estimated tens of thousands of dollars to promote Petra by urging people to vote for the contest. Along with the print, radio and TV ad campaign, visitors to the country have been handed leaflets upon arrival at Amman's airport, urging them to visit the city and vote for it.

The New 7 Wonders campaign was launched in 2000 by Swiss film producer, author and aviator Bernard Weber to select the seven new wonders of the world via the first global voting campaign.

Half of the profits generated will be donated to global good causes for restoration and preservation of monuments.

Screens were set for live broadcast of the event in Jabal Al Qalaa, King Hussein Gardens and the Treasury in Petra.

Jordan spared no effort with millions of votes cast by government and private sector entities, including ministries, schools, universities, professional associations, hospitals and businesses.

Saturday evening's ceremony, which took place at Portugal's largest venue, the Estadio da Luz Stadium in Lisbon, began at 9:30pm Lisbon time (11:30pm local time) and results were announced around 1:00am local time, received by cheering Jordanians, especially the thousands who gathered in Petra for a folklore night in which singers and dabka dancers performed.

The ceremony included award-presentation appearances by Hilary Swank, Ben Kingsley, Bipasha Basu, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neil Armstrong and Bertrand Piccard, and also featured performances by Chaka Khan, Jennifer Lopez, Jose Carreras, Alessandro Safina, Joaquín Cortés and Dulce Pontes.

The competition, organisers have said, is not intended to replace the Ancient Seven Wonders declared by Philo of Byzantium in 200BC, but rather to preserve other historical landmarks and enhance global cultural heritage awareness.

Winners

• Great Wall of China

• Petra

• Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer

• Peru's Machu Picchu

• Mexico's Chichen Itza pyramid

• The Colosseum in Rome

• India's Taj Mahal

© Jordan Times 2007

 

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