Gardens of the Roman Empire

House of Iustiniani and Sabini (Maison de Kaid Youcef)

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

An ancient district of Africa in Roman times, Mauretania lay west of Numidia and covered most of present-day Morocco and western Algeria. By the second century BCE, when Jugurtha of Numidia was rebelling against Rome, Jugurtha's father-in-law Bocchus had most of Mauretania under his control. In 25 BCE Augustus appointed Juba II as ruler of Mauretania. Claudius divided it into two provinces: Mauretania Caesariensis, with Caesarea (modern Cherchel) as capital, and Mauretania Tingitana, with Tingis (modern Tangier) as capital. By the end of the 5th century CE, the province had disappeared.

Location

Location Description

A prestigious city on the southwestern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, Caesarea is located approximately 100 km west of Algiers. Situated on the border of an upland plain dominating the sea and bordered on the west and east by the mountains of the Chenoua and of the Cape Ténès, respectively, the city was one of the ports that the Carthaginians established on the coast of the Maghreb.

The city was originally known as Iol. Just after the fall of Carthage during Julius Caesar's reign, the city was controlled by African dynasties and later became the capital of the amalgamated Massyle kingdoms ruled by Micipsa (son of Massinissa) and Bocchus (king of the Maures and ally to Caesar). In 33 BCE after Bocchus' death, Rome annexed the kingdoms and entrusted them to a client king, Juba II. Juba was the son and successor to Hiempsal II, one of Pompey's allies. He was sent as a hostage to Rome in 25 BCE and later married Cleopatra Selenus, daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Highly learned, Juba was renowned for his achievement in transforming Iol into a Greco-Roman town, renamed Caesarea. Juba II was succeeded by his son, Ptolemy of Mauretania, who was murdered by Caligula in 40 CE. The city then became the capital of the province named after it, Mauretania Caesarea, the eastern part of Mauretania (the western part being a second province, Mauretania Tingitana), administered by a provincial governor.

Under Claudius the city became a Roman colony, Colonia Claudia Caesarea. The old Phoenician port was enlarged and expanded for military use, the most important such port in North Africa after Carthage. The city expanded, with 7 km of walls surrounding an area of about 370 acres. From the end of the second and through the fourth centuries, the city was a flourishing settlement. During the middle of the fifth century, Saint Augustine preached in the principal church. At the end of the fifth century, the city was conquered by Vandals, eventually being annexed by the Byzantine Emperor later during the sixth century.

The city has been continually occupied to the present day, now known as Cherchel. From the Roman period, many archaeological sites have survived, including temples, baths, houses adorned with mosaics and sculptures, a theater, a forum, a judiciary basilica, an amphitheater, a large hippodrome, and a lighthouse constructed on the islet of the city.

Garden

House of Iustiniani and Sabini (Maison de Kaid Youcef)

Keywords

Garden Description

The only house for which it is possible to furnish a complete plan is located to the south of the grand temple, from which it was separated by the decumanus. To the east and west side lie two houses, which have yet to be excavated. It is one of the largest domus discovered in Caesarea, covering over 2330 square meters. Surveys prove that the house dates back to the Augustan era.

This domus, containing both baths and small shops, is arranged around a rectangular peristyle garden of 22 by 24 meters. Four porticoes, supported by six columns on the northern and eastern sides and five on the southern and western sides, surround the open area with a low wall that features three semi-circular basins, each of which faces a reception room.

In the southwestern corner, a small room protrudes into the gallery and opens into both the northern gallery and a rear garden on the south. Along the western gallery, a small door opens up to this second garden that surrounded the large reception room. Opening through a tripartite entry into the peristyle garden, this room was decorated with a mosaic that bore the inscription FL(aui) IUSTIANI ET SABINI (I).

Plans

Fig. 1: Plan of the House of Iustiniani and Sabini

Credit: (Leveau, Ph., 1982, pp.137,fig.21, Stawski E.)

Dates

1st century CE

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Baghli, S. A.，Février, P.-A., "Travaux et recherches en 1966-1967", in Bulletin d'archéologie algérienne, t.2, p.1 and t.3, p.2-4. (worldcat)
Ferdi S., Corpus des mosaïques de Cherchel, Etudes d'Antiquités africaines, Paris, 2005, p.149. (worldcat)
Lassus, J., "L'archéologie algérienne en 1959 et 1960", R. Af., 1961, p.441 and "La mosaïque de Thétis et Pélée", in Bulletin d'archéologie algérienne, t.1, 1962-1965, p.103. (hathitrust)(worldcat)
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", in Antiquités africaines, t.18, 1982, pp.136-38. (worldcat)

House of the Grape Vine Harvesting and House of the Tennis Club (Maison des Vendanges et Maison du Tennis Club)

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

Location

Location Description

Garden

House of the Grape Vine Harvesting and House of the Tennis Club (Maison des Vendanges et Maison du Tennis Club)

Keywords

Garden Description

On the seaside, two houses were partially excavated on the Tennis Club estate. They are next to each other and share a common wall.

In the eastern house, it is impossible to determine if the courtyard with a square pool contained a peristyle garden. However, it did have three porticoes paved with mosaics, one of which figured wild animal hunting.

The western dwelling was organized around a narrow peristyle garden, 8.5 by 16.5 m, in which the open area was only 1.6 m wide. Jean Lassus describes this unusual peristyle garden as a sort of "atrium" with its four-sided slanted roof and a garden as the impluvium. To the east was a reception room, decorated with the well-known Harvesting of the Vines mosaic (Mosaïque des Vendanges).

Plans

Fig. 1: Plan of the House of the Harvesting and the House of the Tennis Club

Credit: (Leveau, Ph., 1982, p.126, fig.12, Daunic, J.)

Dates

4th-5th century CE

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Baghli S.A., Février P.A., "Rcherches et travaux en 1966-1967", in Bulletin d'archéologie algérienne, t.2, 1966-1967, p.1. (worldcat)
Ferdi S., Corpus des mosaïques de Cherchel, Etudes d'Antiquités africaines, Paris, 2005, p.149. (worldcat)
Lassus, J., L'archéologie algérienne en 1958, Lybica, arch. épigr. t.7, 2ème sem. 1959, p.251. (haithitrust)
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", in Antiquités africaines., t.18, 1982, pp.124-128. (worldcat)

Places

House of the Scattered Branches and Flowers (Maison de la Jonchée)

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

Location

Location Description

Garden

House of the Scattered Branches and Flowers (Maison de la Jonchée)

Keywords

Garden Description

Located on the southeastern seaboard of Cherchel, this domus was only partially excavated but is still considered to be one of the largest houses of Caesarea. The ruins discovered between 1963 and 1964 are spread out over more than 60 meters from east to west and 30 meters from north to south. The house had two levels separated by a terrace wall, 15 meters of which have been uncovered.

To the north, a rectangular pool was discovered on the lower level. It measured 10 meters by 7.5 and included a fountain built on a square-shaped base, 2.8 meters wide. The sides had rectangular recesses and also included a water spout in the shape of a pyramid. The tracing of the pipe was still visible. The center of the peristyle may have been planted.

Only part of the southern gallery was excavated. The gallery was 3.15 meters wide and the low wall that separated it from the garden was 0.5 meters thick. The gallery roof was supported by columns, whose bases were 3.2 meters apart (Plan view, Fig. 1).

It is assumed that the peristyle and its garden may have had a view over the sea. One of the rooms sharing this view was decorated with the mosaic of the Jonchée famous for its uniqueness.

Plans

Fig. 1: Plan of the House of the Scattered Branches and Flowers

Credit: (Leveau, Ph., 1982, p.101, fig.1, Guéry, R.)

Images

Fig. 2: Mosaic of the Jonchée (scattered branches) that decorated one of the room of the NO.5 house

Credit: (AOROC UMR 8546 CNRS-ENS-PSL Photothèque Stern)

Dates

4th century CE

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Baghli, S. A., Février, P. A., "Recherches et travaux (1962-1965)", in Bulletin d'archéologie algérienne, t.1, 1962-1965. p.3; BAA, t.3, 1967, p.7, fig.8 et 9. (worldcat)
Ferdi, S., Corpus des mosaïques de Cherchel, Etudes d'Antiquités africaines, Paris, 2005, p. 23-31.(worldcat)
Ferdi, S. et Malek, A. A., 2000, "Les mosaïques de la maison de la Jonchée à Cherchel", in Mosaïque gréco-romaine : actes du VIIe Colloque international pour l'étude de la mosaïque antique VII, Tunis, p. 327-335. (worldcat)
Lassus, J., "L'archéologie algérienne en 1959", in Libyca, arch. épigr., t.8, 2ème sem. 1960, p.30.
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", Antiquités africaines, t.18, 1982， pp.110-12. (hathitrust)
Malek, A.-A. "Mise en scènes paysagères", in Algérie antique, Catalogue d'exposition, 26 avril-17 août 2003, Musée de l'Arles et de la Provence antique, ed. C. Sintès, Y. Rebahi, Avignon 2003, p. 188-194.
Malek, A.-A., "Mosaic and nature : "Cultural allusions to Nature in the Roman Domus", in Gardens of the Roman Empire, Volume II, eds., W. F. Jashemski, K. Gleason, A-A Malek, K. Hartswick, Cambridge University Press., NY, 2018, pp.317-321 (worldcat)

Places

House of the Scattered Branches and Flowers Pleiades: 602104716

House of the Tizerine Cape (Maison du Cap Tizerine)

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

Location

Location Description

Garden

House of the Tizerine Cape (Maison du Cap Tizerine)

Keywords

Garden Description

A large domus, about 2400 square meters, located on the cape of Tizerine, with three separate courtyards, one of which was a garden peristyle (Plan view, Fig. 1). The courtyard to the south, the largest, was partially excavated. Only three porticoes with low walls were visible. There was probably a basin in the open area but only a cruciform cistern was found underneath.

The northwestern courtyard was decorated with a large pool, which had a water spout in the shape of a pyramid. Inside the pool were recesses, of which six were semi-circular and the others were square-headed. A planter may have surrounded this elaborate pool.

The northeastern courtyard was most likely a peristyle-garden. There, a basin probably used for watering the little garden was excavated. It dates from second to third century.

Plans

Fig. 1: Plan of the House of the Tizerine Cape

Credit: (from From Lassus 1960, plan Stawski E.)

Dates

2nd-3rd century CE

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Ballu, A., Rapport...en 1921, Alger 1922, p. 9. Rapport... en 1922, Alger 1923, p.7. Rapport... en 1923, Alger 1923, p.8. Raport ... en 1923, Alger 1924, p.8-9. (worldcat)
Ferdi, S., Corpus des mosaïques de Cherchel, Etudes d'Antiquités africaines, Paris, 2005, p. 77. (worldcat)
Lassus, J., "L'archéologie algérienne en 1959", in Lybica, arch., épigr., t.8, 2ème sem. 1960, pp.27-50. (hathitrust)
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", in Antiquités africaines., t.18, pp.118-21. (worldcat)
Waille, v, "Fouilles de Cherchel (1902-1903)", in Revue Africaine, t.47, 1903, p.102. (worldcat)

Places

House of the Two Pools (Maison aux Deux Bassins)

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

Location

Location Description

Garden

House of the Two Pools (Maison aux Deux Bassins)

Keywords

Garden Description

There is very little information about this house, only two semi circular pools facing each other have survived. The fountain pool of Ulysses and the Mermaids and the pool of Neptune probably decorated a peristyle with a possible garden. The pools are now preserved in the museum.

Images

Fig. 1: One is fountain pool of the Ulysses and the Mermaids, the other is fountain of the Neptune

Credit: (Ferdi, S., 2005, Djilali K.)

Dates

4th century

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Cumont, F., "La mosaïque de Cherchel figurant Ulysse et les sirènes", in Comptes rendus de l'Académie des Inscriptions et des Belles-Lettres, 1941, p. 103-109. (worldcat)
Ferdi, S., Mosaïques romano-Africaines: Culture et nature à Cherchel, Blida : Éd. du Tell, 2005。
Ferdi S., Corpus des mosaïques de Cherchel, Etudes d'Antiquités africaines, Paris, 2005, p.149. (worldcat)
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", in Antiquités africaines, t.18, p.142. (worldcat)
Stern, H., "Fontaine de Neptune au musée de Cherchel (Algérie)", in Antiquités africaines, t.15; 1980, p.285-302. (worldcat)
Malek, A.-A., "Le jardin au fil de l'eau : mises en scène paysagères dans les domus de Maghreb antique" , in L'eau dans les villes du Maghreb et leur territoire à l'époque romaine, eds, V. Brouquier-Redd et F. Hurlet, Bordeaux, Ausonius, 2018, pp. 240-241.

Places

House of the Two Pools Pleiades: 125904444

Inscription from the former Aptel Estate

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Province

Province Description

Location

Location Description

Garden

Inscription from the former Aptel Estate

Keywords

Garden Description

An inscription CIL VIII 21081 mentioning a pool covered by a wine trellis supported by two columns was found in the Aptel estate:

"vitea quot longis sunt tecta excepta columnis / ac docili libra terentem quot flexus in arcum est ; marmore quot Parea vivunt / spirantia signa aequoris et vario quot profluit unda meatu…"

"As many (pools) are sheltered by a vine caught up by tall columns, as also [there] is a bend into an arch smoothing with manageable scale; as statues breathing of Parian marble live and as the swell of the water flows forth with varied course..."

Dates

Excavation Dates

Bibliography

Leveau, Ph., Caesarea de Maurétanie, une ville romaine et ses campagnes, Rome, 1984, p. 56. (worldcat)
Leveau, Ph., "Les maisons nobles de Caesarea de Maurétanie", in Antiquités africaines, 18, 1982, p. 117, no. 7. (worldcat)