Just past the entrance, look out for three enormous, squat monuments, known as Djinn Blocks or God Blocks. Standing guard beside the path, they take their name from the Arabic word for spirit, the source of the English word genie . Other than the fact they were built by Nabataeans in the 1st century AD, little is known about their why or wherefore – they could have been tombs, funerary dedications, or related to the worship of water and fertility.
Whatever their intended function, they are the lodestar for the modern visitor – a tantalising taste of the monuments to come, or announcing journey’s end on your weary return.
