Dougga Things to Do

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THE building with the best views over the surrounding countryside is the Temple of Saturn which is located to the north of the large Theatre. It was built in A.D. 195 on the site of a pre-Roman temple of Baal (a few ash-urns and funerary stelae from which were found by the excavators). At the east end is a vestibule with four Corinthian columns; the inner courtyard is surrounded on three sides by a Corinthian portico; and at the west end are three cellae. In a cistern under the courtyard was found the head of the cult statue of Saturn, which presumably stood in the central cella (it is now in the Bardo National Museum in Tunis). The cella on the south side has preserved part of its stucco-covered vaulting. Below the temple is a hypogeum, an underground burial-place entered by a flight of seven steps, originally in a pagan cemetery.

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Just down the hill from the Temple of Saturn to the north of the large Theatre, is this small church which was built in the early 5th century using stone taken from the surrounding temples. The church is the only evidence of Christianity at Dougga.

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If you follow the path out the back of the theatre and walk over the hill, you'll come to the remains of the Temple of Saturn. Before this, just down the slope of the hill, lies this small Christian Crypt for the Church of Victoria next door. The Crypt contains large stones and sarcophagi.

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One of the highlights of the ruins at Dougga is the Theatre which was built into the hillside in about A.D. 168. It has a diameter of 120m/395ft. The three tiers of seating in the semicircular cavea, with 19 rows in each, rise to a height of 15m/50ft, with an arched corridor running round the top, which, altogether could accommodate 3,500 spectators. The theatre was used for performances of comedies and pantomimes. A doorway on the stage leads into a hall with Corinthian columns, the foyer of the theatre. Here there is an inscription naming the generous founder of the theatre and describing its amenities. In the basement of the stage building were property stores and other store-rooms.

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The Square of the Winds was built around A.D. 190 as an extension to the forum. It takes its name from the "rose of the winds" incised in the paving in the 3rd century, with the names of the twelve winds (Septentrio, Aquilo, Euraquilo, Vulturnus, Eurus, Leuconotus, Auster, Libonotus, Africus, Favonius, Argestes and Circius).

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To the west of the monumental Capitole, stands the Forum which was built on the orders of General Solomon and laid out between A.D. 14 and 37. It measures 38.5m/126ft long by 24m/79ft wide) and was originally surrounded on three sides by porticoes of red-veined marble columns with Corinthian capitals of white marble. Opening off it were a number of public buildings. In the 6th century the Forum, Capitole and the Temple of Saturn were all incorporated in a Byzantine fortress with two added towers, built with stone taken from surrounding buildings.

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This is Dougga's landmark as it sits at the summit of the hill in which the town is built on and can be seen from virtually anywhere. Built in A.D. 166 or 167, it is one of the finest and best preserved Roman temples in North Africa and is dedicated to the triad of Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. It's in remarkable condition with 10m-high walls and six mighty Corinthian columns - each 8m high - supporting the portico. The massive walls are the finest known example of a construction technique called opus africanum, which uses large stones to strengthen walls built of small stones and rubble. An inscription on the architrave gives the names of the donors of the temple and contains a dedication to the Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. The badly weathered carving on the pediment depicts a man being carried upward by an eagle, perhaps symbolizing the deification of the Emperor Antoninus Pius. In the rear wall of the cella, which is almost square (13m/43ft by 14m/46ft), are three niches for statues of gods - a semicircular one in the middle for Jupiter, flanked by square niches for Juno and Minerva. In the basement of the temple was an aisled crypt, which may have been used as a church. Here the excavators found the white marble head of the cult statue of Jupiter.

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This was one building that was being repaired when I was visiting. The building is known as Dar el Acheb, thought to be a temple built in A.D. 164-166, with a rectangular doorway leading into a walled courtyard.