Showing posts with label Tunisia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tunisia. Show all posts

Thursday, November 19, 2015


Medina of Sousse


Sousse was an important commercial and military port during the Aghlabid period (800–909) and is a typical example of a town dating from the first centuries of Islam. With its kasbah, ramparts, medina (with the Great Mosque), Bu Ftata Mosque and typical ribat (both a fort and a religious building), Sousse was part of a coastal defence system.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/498


Sousse is considered one of the best examples of seaward-facing fortifications built by the Arabs. Its ribat, a soaring structure that combined the purposes of a minaret and a watch tower, is in outstanding condition and draws visitors from around the world. The city retains a medieval heart of narrow, twisted streets, a kasbah and medina. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/sousse.html

Dougga / Thugga


Before the Roman annexation of Numidia, the town of Thugga, built on an elevated site overlooking a fertile plain, was the capital of an important Libyco-Punic state. It flourished under Roman and Byzantine rule, but declined in the Islamic period. The impressive ruins that are visible today give some idea of the resources of a small Roman town on the fringes of the empire.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/794


Dougga / Thugga is an impressive Roman ruin in northern Tunisia located on a 65 hectare site. Dougga was originally a fortified Berber village (the name Thugga meant "pastures"). Later, it served as the seat of the Numidian king Masinissa in the 2nd century BC. The Romans occupied the city in the late 2nd century BC.

Dougga declined under Byzantine, then Vandal, occupation. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/dougga.html

Archaeological Site of Carthage


Carthage was founded in the 9th century B.C. on the Gulf of Tunis. From the 6th century onwards, it developed into a great trading empire covering much of the Mediterranean and was home to a brilliant civilization. In the course of the long Punic wars, Carthage occupied territories belonging to Rome, which finally destroyed its rival in 146 B.C. A second – Roman – Carthage was then established on the ruins of the first.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/37


The Site of Carthage comprises the remains of a capital city that has been influential in the Mediterranean region, especially as representative of the Phoenico-Punic civilization.

Carthage is an ancient city in Tunisia, originally founded by Phoenician colonists. Under the leadership of Elissa, Queen Dido, Carthage became a large and rich city and thus a major power of the Mediterranean until her destruction in the Third Punic War in 146 BC. 

Although the center of the Punic culture was destroyed, it continued in Roman times. Rome also refounded Carthage, becoming one of the three most important cities of the Empire, a position that would last until the Muslim conquest when it was destroyed a second time in 698. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/carthage.html

Amphitheatre of El Jem


The impressive ruins of the largest colosseum in North Africa, a huge amphitheatre which could hold up to 35,000 spectators, are found in the small village of El Jem. This 3rd-century monument illustrates the grandeur and extent of Imperial Rome.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/38


The Amphitheater of El Jem is an immense theatre in the classic Roman town of Thysdrus (now El Jem), dating from the 3rd century. The elliptical theatre had room for 60.000 spectators.

The amphitheatre of El Jem was made a WHS because of the accomplishment of its construction and as a symptom of Roman imperial propaganda.

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/eljem.html