A Real-Life Indiana Jones Who Converted To Islam And Discovered An Ancient City
BASEL – Johann Ludwig Burckhardt’s bust can be seen at the foot of the monumental staircase of his family’s palace in Basel, Switzerland. It is hard to believe that this is his family home when you see his long curled beard and oriental turban.
Burckhardt – also known as Sheikh Ibrahim – who died at the age of 33 in 1817, was one of the most accomplished explorers of his time. In 1812, he discovered the ruins of the ancient city of Petra, a red sandstone village that had been forgotten for nearly 1,000 years in the desert of Jordan. Having died from dysentery in Cairo, he was never able to return to Switzerland to tell his stories.

In Basel’s Museum of Antiquities, the exhibit “Petra, Splendor of the Desert” reminds us of the role played by Burckhardt, displaying 150 archeological objects found recently in Petra.
After studying in the universities of Leipzig and Gottingen, Burckhardt left for England to be a part of the African Association, a British society whose aim was to beat France to the discovery of Africa and its riches. Burckhardt was not a hotheaded adventurer. He prepared his trip to Africa in Cambridge, where he began to learn the Arabic language.
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