The second world heritage site after Italy in terms of the quantity, quality and preservation of ancient Roman ruins, Algeria reveals one of its most representative ancient faces at a number of sites, not surprisingly on the UNESCO list.
If the Sahara desert speaks to us of ancient civilisations that inhabited the green valleys and prairies in prehistoric times, now occupied by the immense ocean of Saharan sand, the coast and the north of Algeria speak to us of the greatest civilisations of the Mediterranean, of peoples of merchants and navigators, of great empires and conquests, of the beginning of history.
Timgad is considered the African Pompeii. Founded from scratch under Trajan between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD and subsequently enlarged, it is now in an excellent state of preservation. Its original plan follows the pattern of the typical regular urbanisation of the Roman Empire, with two main streets, the decumanus and the cardo, and the forum, perfectly preserved in the paving that still shows the furrows left by the chariot wheels, and flanked by a Corinthian-style colonnade. Trajan’s triumphal arch is spectacular and imposing with its 12 metres of height, made of sandstone and with three vaults. Among the buildings that can still be admired in their almost intact state are the library, the basilica, the baths, the temple dedicated to Jupiter and the great amphitheatre that could hold up to 3000 spectators. Although it has been sacked and destroyed over the centuries by Vandals, Berbers, Arabs, or stratified in the Christian-Byzantine era, the ancient city of Timgad still retains the splendour that recalls the glories of the greatest empire in history.
Contemporary with Timgad is the foundation of Djemila, built under Nerva or Trajan on a pre-existing Berber settlement. Set in a spectacular hilly landscape, the ancient colony is one of the most important treasures of Roman Algeria and reached its peak in the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. Important for its numerous stratifications, its buildings and layout document the evolution of imperial architecture. From the forum you can admire the remains of the Capitoline temple, the civil basilica and the main porticoes. The temple dedicated to Venus, the baths and the market, the amphitheatre built under Antoninus, the baths from the Commodian era, or the second forum and the triumphal arch under Caracalla, are some of the best preserved buildings in the city, together with some later additions from the Christian era (the two basilicas, the baptistery, the chapel and a bishop’s residence).
A trip to discover Algeria‘s ancient archaeological treasures must include a visit to Tipaza. Tipaza is one of the oldest Mediterranean settlements whose layers encompass the history of at least five successive civilisations between the 6th century B.C. and the 6th century A.D. The Phoenicians, Punic, Romans, Numids and Byzantines settled in successive waves in this strategic location, each leaving behind valuable evidence. From the remains of the largest Punic necropolises, or of the stelae of the goddess Tanit, to Carthaginian coins, from the mausoleums or remains of furnishings from the Numidian period to the great urbanisation in Roman times, under the Emperors Claudius and Hadrian, Tipaza is a unicum that bears witness to the continuity of cultures and civilisations that developed in the Mediterranean area. It was not until the 19th century that massive archaeological excavations were carried out, bringing to light its ancient splendour, especially from Roman times, with reconstructions and restorations by the Byzantines. Today we can admire the well-preserved forum area, the basilicas of different periods, the decumanus, the amphitheatre, the theatre, the curia, several temples, the nymphaeum, many remains of beautiful columns of various styles and sarcophagi. Some of the mosaics and ornaments found are kept in the archaeological museum of Tipaza.