Monuments to visit Leptis Magna

Leaving the Sévérienne basilica by the north, we follow a path that runs along the Byzantine wall to the Byzantine door. This wall wall was designed to protect the city from attacks by Berber tribes. The wall and door use stones from Roman buildings.

(An 12 Apr. ). Between Cardo and Theatre.

Leaving the south-east of the market, we lead to the path of the Cardo, with as a perspective the sober arc of Tiberius (35-36 apr. ) and then the arc de Trajan (109-110) in the second plan. The four-arch arch (tétrapyle) of Trajan, built in commemoration of the city's access to colony status, orne Libyan banknotes with a quarter of a dinar. The Trajan arc allowed traffic, unlike the arc De arc.

Between the two arches, one will note an engraved stone of an abundance horn, and a circle and a stick symbolizing the god Mercury.

The path you take at the entrance to the site leads to the right line with a view overlooking this fabulous arch, built in 203 apr. On the occasion of the visit of the emperor born in Leptis Magna in 146. The bow is located at the intersection of the two main tracks of the city, the Cardo maximus and the one which connected Tunisia (Carthage) to Alexandria. Raised from three large steps, the arc did not allow the passage of the tanks, which had to bypass the imposing monument.

This arc of 40 m in 40 has four entrances (tétrapyle arc) and three floors, for a height of about 20 m. It is entirely made of limestone, only its surface was covered with carved marble. Some marble ornamentations have been restored, including vine friezes. However, most of the original marble are at the Tripoli Museum. Thus winged victories on each side of the arcades and the great besieged on the four sides of the Attica (the summit of the arc on which statues were laid), which appear as August scenes of the life of the emperor and his family:

Continue straight and turn left at the Angle angle: Palaestra is located north of Hadrian's thermal baths. It was in this vast shaped stage divided by paved aisles that men were involved in physical exercises, such as struggle and race, before going to the baths. The palaestra is surrounded by about terrazzo columns in cipolin marble. During its construction, like the thermal baths in the 72nd century, columns supported the portico. Many of them were purchased from the Libyan tribes by French consul Claude Lemaire to be shipped to France in the th century.

More than 500 m later, between the Porte gate (Byzantine era) and the arc of Marc Aurèle (173 Apr. ), head to the amazing roofs of the Domes thermal baths near the shore. These baths belonged to a wealthy owner. Long buried beneath the sands, they seem to be intact, and it is striking to contemplate this concrete edifice that has gone through history perfectly. Stroll through the frigidarium, the tepidarium and the caldarium, admiring their beautiful frescoes painted with nilotics scenes and arena scenes with gladiators and leopards.

Also called "new forum", to distinguish it from the "old forum" which structurait the public life of the Roman city before the reign of Septime Severe. Because the new forum is also part of the city's expansion under the latter's reign. By choosing its architecture and the luxury of its marble ornamentation, Septime Sévère wanted it to compete with the Rome Forum. The square of 100 m in 60 was dallée of marble and bordered by a portico with columns of cipolin supporting arches adorned with large medallions and heads of gorgonia and néréides. We must take the time to contemplate the different expressions of their fascinating marble faces. At the bottom of the forum, the collapsed temple was dedicated to the family of Septime Severe.

At the other end of the forum, against the wall adjoining the Sévérienne basilica, small pieces were used as shops and bars; they also served, at the architectural level, to hide the imperfect alignment (not really parallel) of the basilica terraced together with the forum.

The circus (112 apr. J Magna is one of the largest in the Roman world. It is 450 m long, 100 m wide and could accommodate up to 25 000 people. During the races, the tanks were élançaient for 7 laps. They were around a long (spina) wall with fountains in the centre of the track. The winning tank came out of a triumphal door. A mosaic of Villa Silin thus represents the exit of the circus of the winners of a race. The amphitheatre (56 apr. Pouvait could accommodate 15 000 people. We will note the small openings by which the Fauves were left in the arena.