Dougga and Roman Numidia

Located in northeastern Tunisia along the fertile Mejerda river valley, the ruins of the great cities of ancient Numidia are some of the finest survivals from the Roman world.

Dougga (ancient Thugga) is arguably the most impressive Roman site in Tunisia and has a beautiful, rugged rural location. It was the seat of a Numidian principality until annexed by Rome following the battle of Thapsus in AD 46. The site is extensive, and notable buildings include the theatre, which dates to 168 AD and once seated an audience of 3500, and the exceptionally well-preserved Capitoline Temple built during the reigns of emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. Other highlights are the extensive honey-coloured temple dedicated to Juno Caelistis and the astonishing needle-like Mausoleum of Ateban, which rises to a height of 21m and is crowned by a small pyramid with a figure of a lion on top of it.

Bulla Regia was the capital of the 2nd century BC Numidian king, Micipsa. In Roman times, the cultivation of olives brought great wealth to the inhabitants but also corruption. St. Augustine, passing through Bulla Regia in 339 AD, complained of the moral turpitude of the population and the lurid performances in the theatre! The site is noted for the massive 2nd-century public baths built by Julia Memnia and its well-preserved underground villas, built by the Romans to escape the summer heat. The villas contain some stunning mosaics.

Chemtou is the site of a famous African quarry that produced a highly prised yellow-flecked marble. Chemtou’s interesting local museum documents the history of the once notorious quarry where enslaved people and felons were condemned to work in incredibly harsh conditions.