| On footsteps of St Augustine |
From La Forêt you visit several
archaelogical sites, some of them are listed below and in our GALLERY.
They witnessed the peaceful action of St Augustine, who unified
the African Church. All his life, he used the main road, back
and forth, from his native diocese Hippone nearby, to Carthage, preaching
all the way his message for peace and à l'unisson.
With an experienced guide, La Forêt
arranges for you cultural excursions - with no hurrying - to enjoy
and discover sites of early civilizations which shaped the Mediterranean
World. La Forêt includes an evening discussion with
a PhD lecturer on history and archaeology to satisfy your aim.
Chemtou
(Simithus) : (for more pictures
click here)
35
minutes from La Forêt, roundtrip visit: ½ day A Numidian
Citadel since many centuries BC. It was held away from Carthaginian
settlement but supporting its influence. Chemtou retained a strong
Berber identity, honoring its indigenous pantheon called Dii-Mauri
(the God of Moors). In 78 BC, the first shipment of Chemtou golden
marble reached Rome to the great excitement of the Emperor who annexed
the quarries to his privy purse, and supplied them with slaves sentenced
to Damnatio Ad Marmora, among them many early Christians. Romans,
in order to save quarries, built temples to popular indigenous deities
as Tanit-Caelestis, Baal Hammon, Locus Sanctus and Dii Mauri. Chemtou
had its own bishop during Byzantine empire, where its slave workforce
did not have better conditions. The brand new museum of Chemtou houses
a uniquely rich collection from indigenous Berber culture and carving
art.
Bulla-Regia
: (for
more pictures click here)
35 minutes from La Forêt, roundtrip
visit: ½ day A capital of a Numidian Berber kingdom since the 4th
century BC. It survived well the Jugurthine and all merciless wars
and was prosperous during Carthaginians (Punic), Romans and Christian
(Byzantine) empires until 647 AC. In 399 Saint Augustine pronounced
a sermon and complained of its easy welcome to strangers. Bulla-Regia
is famous by: Its underground and richly decorated houses, its museum,
its mosaics, La maison de la pêche, La maison d'Amphitrite, La maison
de la chasse ( the finest underground villa), La maison du trésor…
etc.
Makthar
(Mactaris) : (for more pictures
click here)
2
hours from La Forêt, roundtrip visit: ½ day. It was
a center of Carthaginian influence annexed to Numidian Kingdom by
Massinissa in 155 BC, and saved it from Roman destruction after the
famous battle of Zama in 202 BC which ended the Punic wars and the
end of the Carthaginian civilization.
Zama
: (for
more pictures click here)
1 hour from Makthar (Mactaris) On your way
back to La Forêt, have just a glance to Zama, nearby.
It is a battle field. It is not common as any other fields. Zama battle
signed the end of Carthaginian civilization.
Aïn Tonga (Thignica) :
(for more pictures click here)
90
minutes from La Forêt, roundtrip visit: ½ day An other
Numidian Citadel known for the Cult of Saturn. It reached its heyday
during the Roman Empire. It was heavily dominated by the personal
estates of the Emperor and Nero increased that situation when he executed
the six largest landowners in Africa to obtain their estates. It 6th
century Byzantine Fortress is one of the best preserved in Tunisia.
Dougga
(Thugga) : (for
more pictures click here)
1h30 minutes from La Forêt,
roundtrip visit: ½ day (Protected by UNESCO since December 1997) Dougga
reached its architectural splendor and unique elegance by the late
3rd Century AD. "It had a social, cultural and religious pre-eminence,
fuelled by a long history which the others could not hope to touch".
It was a second capital of a Numidian kingdom and survived to both
Carthaginians and Roman conquests. Almost all realizations were donations
from its rich families indigenous or roman settlers. Integration of
these families pushed up the glory of Dougga. During the Christian
Era, it became an increasingly isolated pagan outpost.
