Exploring North Africa's Roman Ruins

For half a millennium, the Romans controlled the entire coastline of North Africa, from Egypt to Morocco. With the exception of the Nile Valley, which created a fertile corridor deep into the desert, Roman control was limited to the temperate zone north of the Sahara. But within this narrow strip, intensive wheat and olive farming laid the foundations for a remarkably prosperous provincial society. The cities of Roman Africa vied with those of Italy, and African villas were decorated with some of the most spectacular mosaics ever commissioned. Although Latin and Roman culture predominated everywhere west of Libya, Punic and Berber communities continued to exist and flourish. This April, I spent two weeks exploring the Roman ruins of Algeria and Tunisia. In Algeria, I led a small tour group. In Tunisia, I traveled solo. By my best estimate, I covered about 2,000 kilometers by car, van, and local flight. I started in Algeria, which is not an especially easy country to visit. The first hurdle is the visa, which requires a bulging folder of documents and weeks of processing time. My visa was delayed, so I had to fly to New York and visit the Algerian consulate in person to receive it before my departure. Visa finally in hand, I flew to Paris, and then from Paris to Constantine in eastern Algeria. As the plane descended, I was treated to a spectacular view of sunset over the green mountains of the coast. At the Constantine airport, I met Roshdi Ahmed Alal, an Algerian tour guide and Toledan stone fan with extensive knowledge of his country's ancient heritage. Roshdi and I spent the following day filming, most memorably, at Hama Masalahin, the only Roman bath still in use today. The day after, we were joined by Jerry Sorkin, our American tour partner, and by four fantastic guests. Together, we spent the next eight days exploring Algeria's Roman ruins. Our itinerary was focused on western Algeria, using the cities of Constantine, Batna, and Annaba as bases. Near the end of the trip, we flew to Algiers, which served as the point of departure for sites in the center of the country. Instead of covering our trip day by day, if you want that level of detail, you can find it in my travel blog on toledanstone.com. I'll only mention the highlights. Chief among these were Timgad and Jamila, Algeria's most famous Roman sites. In some respects, these cities were mirror images of each other. Founded only a few years apart as military colonies for discharged veterans, they featured the same basic buildings, flourished in the same centuries, and vanished together during the collapse of Roman Africa. But there, the similarities end. Timgad stood on level ground, allowing the Roman surveyors to lay out a tidy checkerboard of streets centered on a forum. Jamila, by contrast, was founded on a ridge, and its streets and buildings follow the lay of the land. At Timgad, the overall feeling is of spaciousness, of open plain, and expansive sky. At Jamila, every view is bounded by ranges of green hills. Both sites, however, were among the most spectacular that I have ever visited. I was especially struck by the view of Timgad at sunset, coppery light washing over the wildflowers and broken walls. After Timgad and Jamila, Algeria's best-known Roman site is probably Tepasa, near Algiers. The highlight here is the ambiance of the ruins, which extend along a rocky shore shaded by olive groves. Some of Algeria's more obscure sites are equally interesting. The colossal mausolea built by Numidian kings and chieftains, for example, recall the lost monuments of Carthage. The legionary camp at Lambasis is the best preserved in the Roman world. The Byzantine castle at Medaurus is among the most remarkable late-antique forts anywhere, and features a long subterranean passage to a well. The views from the minor Roman cities of Tidus and Commissa, finally, are as spectacular as those from Jamila. The sites themselves would be major attractions in almost any other country, but we had them to ourselves. At the end of my Algerian tour, I flew to Tunis. Back in 2014, when I visited Tunisia for the first time, I spent a week grappling with non-existent buses, delayed trains, and overstuffed shared taxis. On this visit, I had decided I would save time by renting a car and driving to the sites. I did save time, but at the cost of more than a few gray hairs, since Tunisian traffic is not for the faint of heart. Unlike Algeria, Tunisia has embraced tourism. Most visitors, however, go directly to the all-inclusive beach resorts of the Mediterranean coast. Tunis itself is an active cruise port, and excursion buses sometimes make their way to nearby archaeological sites. But even at the busiest sites, tourist numbers are small by comparison with Italy or Greece. I began the Tunisian leg of my trip by driving to Bula Regia, where I explored the subterranean rooms of Roman mansions built to ward off the summer heat. Some of these elaborate basements still feature perfectly preserved mosaic floors. I continued to Shem 2, where the Romans quarried the red-veined golden stone they called Numidian marble. Extensive remains of the city that grew up in the vicinity still survive, but most of the ruins, like the vast work camps below the quarries, remain unexcavated. A drive through rolling hills brought me to the town of Al-Kef, where I spent the night. The following day, I drove to Duga, Tunisia's premier Roman site. As at Timgad and Jamila, almost the entire city is intact. But unlike its counterparts in Algeria, Duga was founded centuries before the Romans arrived. The tomb of a Numidian prince still dominates the lower part of the site. Gradually, Duga acquired the usual trappings of Roman city, including a theater and a famously well-preserved Capitolium. The streets, however, were never straightened, and the most impressive temple was dedicated to Juno Celestis, a thinly Romanized version of the Carthaginian goddess Tanit. After leaving Duga, I explored more obscure sites, including a mysterious monument that may commemorate the defeat of Hannibal at Zama. The next day, I visited the amphitheater at El Jem, which may be the best preserved anywhere in the Roman world. I was especially impressed by the stairs and passageways of the seating area, which can still be climbed to the highest tier. Before returning my car, I followed the Zagwan Aqueduct, one of the longest ever built, from its sources to its terminus in Carthage. Then, on my final day in North Africa, I took the train from Tunis to Carthage. The Punic metropolis that challenged Rome survives in isolated fragments. Besides the infant necropolis known as the Salambo Tafet and the quiet lagoon that served as the military harbor, only a few clusters of houses are visible, most prominently on the Birsa, the ancient citadel. Roman Carthage has fared little better. With the exception of the Antonine Baths, now reduced to their colossal foundations, few traces are visible of the Western Empire's second city. At the end of my visit, I walked down to the so-called Magun Quarter, where the foundations of a few Punic houses can be seen beneath buildings from the late Roman era. Along the nearby beach, walls protrude from the sand, their age and purpose obscure, before disappearing into the sun-splashed bay and the deeper blue of the African sky. If you're interested in joining me on a future excursion to North Africa or other parts of the Roman world, follow the link on-screen and in the description to learn more about my upcoming guided trips. Thanks for watching!