Archaeological sights in Africa
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Chellah
Abandoned, crumbling and overgrown, the Merenid necropolis of Chellah is one of Rabat’s most evocative sights.
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Karnak
More than a temple, Karnak is an extraordinary complex of sanctuaries, kiosks, pylons and obelisks dedicated to the Theban gods and the greater glory of pharaohs. Everything is on a gigantic scale: the site covers over 2 sq km, large enough to contain about 10 cathedrals, while its main structure, the Temple of Amun, is the largest religious building ever built. This was where the god lived on earth, surrounded by the houses of his wife Mut, and their son Khonsu, two other huge temple complexes on this site. Built, added to, dismantled, restored, enlarged and decorated over nearly 1500 years, Karnak was the most important place of worship in Egypt during the New Kingdom.…
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Catacombs of Kom ash-Shuqqafa (Kom ash-Shuqqafa)
About five minutes' walk south of Pompey's Pillar are the Catacombs of Kom ash-Shuqqafa (Kom ash-Shuqqafa). Discovered accidentally in 1900 when a donkey disappeared through the ground, these catacombs are the largest known Roman burial site in Egypt. This impressive feat of engineering was one of the last major works of construction dedicated to the religion of ancient Egypt.
Demonstrating Alexandria's hallmark fusion of Pharaonic and Greek styles, the architects used a Graeco-Roman approach in their construction efforts. The catacombs consist of three tiers of tombs and chambers cut into bedrock to a depth of 35m. The bottom level, some 20m below street level, is…
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Leptis Magna
If you only see one archaeological site in Libya, this is the one to choose. Regarded as the best Roman site in the Mediterranean, Leptis Magna's spectacular architecture and massive scale will impress even the most ruin-weary traveller.
The city was originally a Phoenician port, settled during the first millennium BC. Slaves, gold, ivory and precious metals brought it great wealth, which was supplemented by the rich agricultural land surrounding it. Roman legions ousted the Carthaginians following the third Punic War, after which the city flourished until the Vandals did their namesake thing in 455.
Roman rule briefly returned to Leptis in 533, and intensive repairs were…
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Volubilis
Volubilis is the site of the largest and best-preserved Roman ruins in Morocco. Dating largely from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, excavations have revealed that the site was originally settled by Carthaginian traders even earlier. At its peak, it is estimated that the city housed up to 20,000 people. Take a guide, a hat and plenty of water. Magical at dusk.
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Timgad
Nothing in the surrounding area – certainly nothing in concrete-clad Batna, the jumping-off point 40km away – prepares you for the grandeur of Timgad. Even the entrance is deceptive, a large car park, a line of trees, a museum and then… an entire Roman town. At first sight it may seem just a vast field of stones and rubble, but walk around, take the time, inhabit the place, and Timgad will more than repay the effort. Whatever happened at this site before AD 100 is of little consequence: the story of Timgad begins in grand style when the Emperor Trajan decided to build a colony for soldiers and veterans of his Legion III Augusta. The Colonia Marciana Traiana Thamugadi,…
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Amun Temple Enclosure - Main Axis
The most important place of worship at Karnak was the massive Amun Temple Enclosure (Precinct of Amun), dominated by the great Temple of Amun-Ra, which contains the famous hypostyle hall, a spectacular forest of giant papyrus-shaped columns. On its southern side is the Mut Temple Enclosure, once linked to the main temple by an avenue of ram-headed sphinxes. To the north is the Montu Temple Enclosure, which honoured the local Theban war god.
The 3km-long paved avenue of human-headed sphinxes that once linked the great Temple of Amun at Karnak with Luxor Temple, is now again being cleared.
The Quay of Amun was the dock where the large boats carrying the statues of the gods…
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Djemila Ruins
Djemila is small enough to allow you to walk around the entire site comfortably in half a day. But spend longer here, linger in the temples and markets, stroll through the bath chambers, or just lie down on one of the pavements or in the shade of villa walls (as a number of locals were doing during our visit); the magic will be felt and this unique place will be better understood. The museum is to the left on entering the site and is best visited before the ruins. At quiet times, it is kept locked, but will be opened if you ask at the entrance to the site. Outside the museum building there are many tombstones and other funerary sculptures, the outer walls lined with…
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Tiddis
Although it in no way compares to the splendour of Djemila, the Roman town of Tiddis makes a great day trip from Constantine. The guardian will appear at your arrival to sell you a ticket and may want you to pay for guiding services. Drinks and snacks are sometimes available, but you should be sure at least to bring your own water in summer. There was a settlement on this site from early times, at least since the Neolithic Berbers, but it was the Romans who developed Castellum Tidditanorum, which, as its name suggests, was a castellum or fortress, one of a series of fortified villages that surrounded the larger settlement at Constantine (then Cirta) and protected its…
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Lambèse-Tazoult
The road from Batna towards Timgad and Khenchela makes a slight detour around the modern village of Tazoult, infamous as the location of a high-security prison, the latest incarnation of a penitentiary built by the French in 1855. But military presence here goes back much further than the French because all around (and beneath) Tazoult lie the remains of a settlement that once served as the capital of Roman Numidia and was, for a long time, the partner and sometime rival of nearby Timgad. Lambaesis has disappeared from most itineraries and, if seen at all by visitors, it is usually glimpsed from the window of a car or bus as they shuttle between Batna and Timgad. There…
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Carthage
Founded by Phoenicians and home of Hannibal, Carthage was one of the greatest cities of the ancient world. The site retains its natural splendour, with lush vegetation and superb views over the gulf. Highlights are the museum and excavated quarter atop Byrsa Hill, the Antonine baths, the Punic ports, the Roman amphitheatre and the Sanctuary of Tophet.
Despite Carthage's fascinating history and the position of dominance it held in the ancient world, the Romans did such a thorough job demolishing it that the ruins today are something of a disappointment. Most of what remains is of Roman origin. There are six main sights spread out over a wide area. The TGM (light rail) line…
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Amun Temple Enclosure - Southern Axis
The secondary axis of the Amun Temple Enclosure, running south from the third and fourth pylons, is a walled processional way from the seventh to the tenth pylon, leading to the Mut Temple Enclosure. The courtyard between the Hypostyle Hall and the seventh pylon, built by Tuthmosis III, is known as the cachette court, as thousands of stone and bronze statues were discovered here in 1903.
The priests had the old statues and temple furniture they no longer needed buried around 300 BC. Most statues were sent to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, but some remained, standing in front of the seventh pylon, including four of Tuthmosis III on the left.
The well-preserved eighth pylon,…
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Aksum
Sprawling, dusty, and rural - Aksum is modest almost to a fault. On first sight, it's hard to imagine that the town was ever the site of a great civilisation. Yet Aksum is one of Ethiopia's star attractions.
Littered with massive teetering stelae, ruins of palaces, underground tombs (most still undiscovered) and inscriptions rivalling the Rosetta stone itself, the town once formed part of the Aksumite kingdom. It has a vibrancy, life and continuing national importance very rarely found at ancient sites. Pilgrims still journey to Aksum and the great majority of Ethiopians believe passionately that the Ark of the Covenant resides here.
Though no longer a wealthy metropolis,…
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Qohaito
Historians debate whether or not the ruins of Qohaito were once the inhabited walls of the ancient town of Koloe, a commercially important place during the good times of the great Aksumite kingdom. Even if it wasn't, the city's impressively large remains - covering an area of 2.5km (1.5mi) by 15km (9mi) - are testament to its once-great stature.
Though only about 20% of the ruins have been excavated, it'll still take you half a day to pick your way through the digging's main sights. The four columns and assorted rubble of the Temple of Mariam Wakiro are thought to have begun life intact as an early Christian church and are surrounded by the dusty remains of a half-dozen…
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Cyrene
Second in importance only to Leptis Magna, Cyrene is a must see. It ranks as the best preserved of the Greek cities of Cyrenaica, with its temples, tombs, agora, gymnasium and theatre originally modelled on those at Delphi. Apart from the spectacular Greek ruins, its location high on a bluff overlooking the sea is stunning.
Founded by Greek settlers from the island of Thera (modern Santorini) in 631 BC, Cyrene was the pre-eminent city of the Greek world in the 4th century BC. It was renowned for its philosophers, astronomers, mathematicians and other scholars. After the change from Greek to Roman administration in 75 BC, Cyrene became an important Roman capital.
Amongst…
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Dahshur
Dahshur is an impressive 3.5km-long (2.2mi-long) field of 4th- and 12th-dynasty pyramids, older cousins of the Pyramids of Giza. Of the original 11 pyramids here, only the Bent and Red Pyramids remain intact. Also worth a look are the mud-brick remains of the Black Pyramid, which contain a maze of corridors and rooms designed to deceive tomb robbers.
Pharaoh Sneferu (2613-2589 BC), father of Khufu and founder of the 4th dynasty, built Egypt's first true pyramid here, the Red Pyramid. He also built an earlier version, the Bent Pyramid. These two pyramids were the same height. They are also the equal third-largest pyramids in Egypt, after the two largest at Giza.
Many…
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Wassu Stone Circles
Archaeologists believe the Wassu stone circles are burial sites constructed about 1200 years ago. Each stone weighs several tonnes and is between 1m (3.3ft) and 2.5m (7.5ft) in height. There's a small but well-presented museum with exhibits discussing the possible origins of the circles. Stonehenge this isn't, but nevertheless, it's fascinating evidence of ancient African cultures.
Most of the stone circles in the region date from AD 500 to AD 1000, before the Mandinka people migrated to this area. Excavations have unearthed human bones and artefacts at the centre of many circles, indicating that they were burial sites, although dating techniques show that bodies may have…
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Meroe Sites
The ancient royal cemetery of Meroe is one of Sudan's most spectacular sights. The Meroitic pharaohs thrived from 592 BC until overrun by the Abyssinians in AD 350. Although nothing here compares with better-known sites in Egypt, the clusters of narrow pyramids blanketing the sand-swept hills are quite a sight, and there's not a tout pushing camel rides within 100km.
Some well-preserved hieroglyphics can still be seen in the tombs' antechambers, and even the graffiti here dates back centuries!
You can also visit the remains of the Royal City itself, but it's for archaeological buffs only.
If you want to catch the sunset over the pyramids you can sleep in the desert (head…
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Tomb of Amenemhat
Amenemhat was a 12th-dynasty governor of Oryx. His tomb is the largest and possibly the best at Beni Hasan and, like that of Khnumhotep, its impressive façade and interior decoration mark a clear departure from the more modest earlier ones. Entered through a columned doorway and with its six columns intact, it contains beautifully executed scenes of farming, hunting, manufacturing and offerings to the deceased, who can also be seen with his dogs.
As well as the fine paintings, the tomb has a long, faded text in which Amenemhat addresses the visitors to his chapel: 'You who love life and hate death, say: Thousands of bread and beer, thousands of cattle and wild fowl for…
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The Osireion
Directly behind Seti's temple, the Osireion is a weird, wonderful building that continues to baffle Egyptologists, though it is usually interpreted as a cenotaph to Osiris. Originally thought to be an Old Kingdom structure, on account of the great blocks of granite used in its construction, it has now been dated to Seti's reign, its design is believed to be based on the rock-cut tombs in the Valley of the Kings.
At the centre of its columned 'burial chamber', which lies at a lower level than Seti's temple, is a dummy sarcophagus. This chamber was originally surrounded by water, but thanks to a rising water table, the entire structure is now flooded, making inspection of…
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Nilometer
Built in AD 861, the Nilometer was designed to measure the rise and fall of the river, and thus predict the fortunes of the annual harvest. If the water rose to 16 cubits (a cubit is about the length of a forearm) the harvest was likely to be good, inspiring one of the greatest celebrations of the medieval era; any higher, though, and the flooding could be disastrous, and lower levels presaged hunger. The Turkish-style pencil-point dome is a Farouk-era reconstruction of an earlier one wrecked by Napoleon’s troops. The measuring device, a graduated column, sits below the level of the Nile at the bottom of a flight of precipitous steps, which the guard will cheerfully let…
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Ancient Quarries of Aksum
Near the Lioness of Gobedra, at a site on Gobedra Hill known as Wuchate Golo, are the Ancient Quarries of Aksum, the birthplace of the famous stelae. Mystery still surrounds the tools that were used by the master craftsmen of Aksum, but you can see clearly, in one area, the process by which they cut the hard stone from the rock. After the intended break was mapped out, a row of rectangular sockets were cut.
Wooden wedges were next inserted into the sockets and made to expand either by the use of water, by percussion or by hammering in metal wedges, which caused the rock to fracture. In another place, you'll see a stele almost completely freed from the rock, but strangely…
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Jenné-Jeno
About 3km from Djenné are the ruins of Jenné-Jeno, an ancient settlement that dates back to about 300 BC. Implements and jewellery discovered here suggest that it may have been one of the first places in Africa where iron was used, and exposed the myth that no organised cities existed in West Africa before trade began and external influences were brought to bear upon it.
In the 8th century AD, Jenné-Jeno was a fortified town with walls 3m thick, but around 1300 it was abandoned. Today, there's nothing much to see - some mounds and millions of tiny pieces of broken pottery - so a visit is of greater historical rather than aesthetic interest.
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Temple of Kom Ombo
Standing on a promontory at a bend in the Nile, where in ancient times sacred crocodiles basked in the sun on the riverbank, is the Temple of Kom Ombo. Unique in Egypt, it has a dual dedication to the local crocodile god Sobek and Haroeris, from har-wer, meaning Horus the Elder. This is reflected in the temple’s plan: perfectly symmetrical along the main axis of the temple, there are twin entrances, two shared hypostyle halls with carvings of the two gods on either side, and twin sanctuaries. It is assumed that there were also two priesthoods. The left (western) side of the temple was dedicated to Haroeris, the right (eastern) half to Sobek.
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Ta'akha Maryam
Early excavations revealed that Ta'akha Maryam was a magnificent palace, probably dating from the 4th or 5th century AD. Unfortunately, much of the stone was removed and what remained was obliterated when the Italians cut a road straight through it. Today, little more than a few piles of rubble and a couple of dressed stone blocks remain, strewn on either side of the road.
Covering a vast area of some 120m by 80m and encircled by huge stone walls, Ta'akha Maryam would have been far larger than medieval European palaces of the time, and contained at least 50 rooms.
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