Name of Monument:

Dougga archaeological site

Location:

Dougga, Tunisia

Responsible Institution (original language):

Institut National du Patrimoine

Date of Monument:

Ancient site

History:

Dougga, which was a North African city under Roman control during the Numidian period, contains almost perfectly preserved remains of an ancient city and its different elements, and presents the best example of how indigenous cities were adapted, for better or for worse, to the Roman urban model. When the first European explorers travelled through the Regency of Tunis, the Dougga (Thugga) site attracted both theirs and the scientific community's attention more than any other ancient city. The site is remarkably preserved, and its ruins were therefore a great source of interest and fascination. This interest peaked when the Englishman Thomas Reade stole a Libyco-Punic inscription.

Description:

Located in the Teboursouk region in north-east Tunisia, this archaeological site is notable for its size - 70 hectares - its excellently preserved monuments and its rich past, having witnessed more than 15 centuries of history covering the Punic, Numidian, Roman and Byzantine eras. It contains a great variety of temples and sanctuaries, such as those dedicated to Ba'al/Saturn and to Tanit/Caelestis, a capitoline triad, a public square, a theatre, large public baths, private homes of varying wealth, funerary monuments and more. Many of these monuments were one of a kind, and so in December 1997 Dougga archaeological site was listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Citation of this web page:

Saloua Khadhar Zangar "Dougga archaeological site" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2025.
https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monuments;AWE;tn;31;en

Prepared by: Saloua Khadhar Zangar
Translation by: Flaminia Baldwin

MWNF Working Number: TN 031