The Roman city of Thysdrus was built, like almost all Roman settlements in ancient Tunisia, on former Punic settlements. In a less arid climate than today's, Thysdrus prospered as an important center of olive oil production and export. It was the seat of a Christian bishopric, which is included in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees.[1]
By the early 3rd century, when the amphitheatre was built, Thysdrus rivaled Hadrumetum (modern Sousse) as the second city of Roman North Africa after Carthage. However, following the abortive revolt that began there in AD238 and Gordian's suicide in his villa near Carthage, Roman troops loyal to the emperor Maximinus Thrax sacked the city. The town is shown on the 4th-century Peutinger Map.
The Amphitheatre of El Jem could seat 35,000 spectators. Only the Colosseum in Rome (seating about 50,000 spectators) and the ruined theatre of Capua were larger.
The amphitheatre at El Djem was built by the Romans under proconsulGordian, who was acclaimed emperor at Thysdrus around 238 and was mainly used for gladiator shows and small-scale chariot races.
Until the 17th century, it remained more or less whole. From then on its stones were used for building the nearby village of El Djem and transported to the Great Mosque in Kairouan. At a tense moment during struggles with the Ottomans, the Turks used cannons to flush rebels out of the amphitheatre.
Drifting sand is preserving the market city of Thysdrus and the refined suburban villas that once surrounded it. Some floor mosaics have been found and published, one of them featuring the iconography of (Dea) Africa,[2] but field archaeology has scarcely been attempted. Recently with aerial photos, a huge racetrack stadium has been discovered.[citation needed]
The dry climate of Thysdrus has helped to preserve writings on papyrus.
World War IIEdit
During World War II a major military airfield was located near El Djem, used first by the German Luftwaffe. It was attacked on numerous occasions and later used by the United States Army Air ForcesTwelfth Air Force as a transport field. There are few, if any, remains of the airfield today with the land being returned to agricultural uses outside of the city.
^Gifty, Ako-Adounvo. Studies in the Iconography of Blacks in Roman Art. Ph.D. Thesis awarded by McMaster University. p. 82.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to El Jem.
External linksEdit
Romanheritage.com site with photos of El Djem amphitheatre in Tunisia
October 20, 2023
djem, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, november, 2021, learn. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources El Djem news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message El Djem or El Jem Tunisian Arabic الجم il Jamm is a town in Mahdia Governorate Tunisia Its population was 21 576 during the 2014 census It is home to Roman remains including the Amphitheatre of El Jem El Djem الجم ThysdrusEl DjemThe skyline of El DjemEl DjemLocation in TunisiaCoordinates 35 17 48 N 10 42 46 E 35 29667 N 10 71278 E 35 29667 10 71278CountryTunisiaGovernorateMahdia GovernoratePopulation 2014 Total21 576Time zoneUTC1 CET Contents 1 History 2 Sights 2 1 Amphitheatre 2 2 Others 3 World War II 4 Transport 5 Gallery 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistory EditMain article Thysdrus The Roman city of Thysdrus was built like almost all Roman settlements in ancient Tunisia on former Punic settlements In a less arid climate than today s Thysdrus prospered as an important center of olive oil production and export It was the seat of a Christian bishopric which is included in the Catholic Church s list of titular sees 1 By the early 3rd century when the amphitheatre was built Thysdrus rivaled Hadrumetum modern Sousse as the second city of Roman North Africa after Carthage However following the abortive revolt that began there in AD 238 and Gordian s suicide in his villa near Carthage Roman troops loyal to the emperor Maximinus Thrax sacked the city The town is shown on the 4th century Peutinger Map Sights EditAmphitheatre Edit Main article Amphitheatre of El Jem nbsp View of the first two amphitheatres nbsp The Amphitheatre of El JemThe Amphitheatre of El Jem could seat 35 000 spectators Only the Colosseum in Rome seating about 50 000 spectators and the ruined theatre of Capua were larger The amphitheatre at El Djem was built by the Romans under proconsul Gordian who was acclaimed emperor at Thysdrus around 238 and was mainly used for gladiator shows and small scale chariot races Until the 17th century it remained more or less whole From then on its stones were used for building the nearby village of El Djem and transported to the Great Mosque in Kairouan At a tense moment during struggles with the Ottomans the Turks used cannons to flush rebels out of the amphitheatre The ruins of the amphitheatre were declared a World Heritage Site in 1979 It hosts the annual El Djem International Symphony Festival Others Edit Drifting sand is preserving the market city of Thysdrus and the refined suburban villas that once surrounded it Some floor mosaics have been found and published one of them featuring the iconography of Dea Africa 2 but field archaeology has scarcely been attempted Recently with aerial photos a huge racetrack stadium has been discovered citation needed The dry climate of Thysdrus has helped to preserve writings on papyrus World War II EditDuring World War II a major military airfield was located near El Djem used first by the German Luftwaffe It was attacked on numerous occasions and later used by the United States Army Air Forces Twelfth Air Force as a transport field There are few if any remains of the airfield today with the land being returned to agricultural uses outside of the city Transport EditEl Djem is located on the A1 motorway which runs from Tunis to Sfax The metre gauge railway from Tunis to Gabes known as La Ligne de la Cote stops at El Djem Gallery Edit nbsp Aerial view of El Djem and Amphitheatre nbsp Underground alley nbsp An alley under the arena nbsp Porticos nbsp View of the arena nbsp Entrance of the ArenaSee also EditHadrumetum Thapsus Dougga Roman Coloniae in Berber AfricaReferences Edit Annuario Pontificio 2013 Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ISBN 978 88 209 9070 1 pg 992 Gifty Ako Adounvo Studies in the Iconography of Blacks in Roman Art Ph D Thesis awarded by McMaster University p 82 nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to El Jem External links EditAncient Places TV HD Video of El Djem amphitheatre Roman mosaics in Tunisia Romanheritage com site with photos of El Djem amphitheatre in Tunisia Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title El Djem amp oldid 1171622631, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
