Siq al-Barid, located in Petra's northern suburb, was a resting place outside the main city for trade caravans traveling between southern Arabia and Gaza. Caravans would stop here to rest, eat, and do business in the comfortable, shady spots.  

Siq al- Barid is sometimes referred to as ‘Little Petra’ because there is a natural cleft in the rock that is similar to the Siq, though much smaller, which forms the entrance to the area.  It was gated and inside there is a complex of cisterns and dams, along with dining halls and carved facades.  All the needs of traders were provided for here; the cisterns supplied water and Bayda was a center of agriculture production. 

Also, there are several tricliniums or dining halls at Siq al-Barid, which may have been used to receive visitors and for ritual dining. The custom of organized feasting was apparently widespread, and it is confirmed by a passage by the ancient writer Strabon, which said, they [the nabataeans] organize common meals together in groups of thirteen persons; and they have two girl-singers for each banquet. The king holds many drinking-bouts in magnificent style, but no one drinks more than eleven cupfuls, each time using a different golden cup. The king is so democratic that, in addition to serving himself, he sometimes even serves the rest himself in his turn. Excavations in Petra and at other Nabataean sites have unearthed pottery statues representing musicians with their instruments. These statues, one of which is illustrated here, possibly replicate what took place at ritual dining and banquets, and they also show the type of instruments used at that time.