The lion fountain, located along the sacred route from Wadi Al Farasa to the high place, served as a public drinking fountain. Water appeared to spout from the lion's mouth and was directed down the hillside through a visible rock-cut channel alongside the stairway. Carved above the lion's head was a channel to receive water from the Ayn Braq spring, situated along the mountain slope on the way to Taybeh, approximately 4 kilometers above Petra. The water collected in a basin and then flowed down to a large cistern at the base of the mountain.