The massive archway that dominates the entry to Leptis Magna... It's just plain AWESOME...!!!
From the parking area, where there are a few curio stalls and a small cafeteria, I could see beyond the fence, the massive arch at the entrance to this amazing ancient city… The LDR 6.00 entrance fee (R36.00) is well worth the price to stand among the ruins of what was once the third largest city in the Roman Empire of Africa. The first major city being Carthage (modern day Tunis) and the second being Alexandria in Egypt.
This gives you an idea of the size of some of the ruined temples and other buildings...
It became part of the Roman Empire in 146 B.C. and successive Emperors built it into one of the major trading posts of its time.
In 193 A.D. a native son of the city, Septimius Severus, became emperor of Rome, and just like modern day leaders, lavished huge amounts of money on his home town, building a massive Forum, and a new harbour where ships could offload their cargo.
In the 3rd Century, after a period of economic decline in the Empire, the city fell into disrepair and was eventually all but abandoned…
Over the next few centuries, it was captured by The Vandals and then sacked by the local Berber Tribes, fed up with foreign domination…
It was recaptured by the Roman Emperor Belisarius in 534 A.D., and made the provincial capital of Tripolitania, as this part of Africa was dubbed by the Romans.
The city however was never restored to its former glory, and then in 650 A.D., the Arabs came calling… They destroyed what was left of the city and what you see today is the remains of their conquest of Leptis Magna…
The Arch of Tinerius...
Marble and Alabaster was brought from far afield to build this city...
The Theatre, with the dazzling blue of the Mediterranean in the background...
Trying out the public Latrines... Can't say I would have coped with this in ancient times...!!
Leptis Magna is a World Heritage Site, but more needs to be done to preserve and restore it...
This site covers an area of almost 9 kms, and it would take the better part of a full day to walk down the cobbled roads that link all the major temples, public baths and latrines, theatres, forums and other ruins that cover the area…
Masoud and I took in a few of the main areas, strolling in the midday heat, sweating and panting with the effort of climbing stairs and clambering over fallen columns and large limestone blocks… Massive flagstones line the ancient streets, where horse-drawn carts made their way to and from the port and the various stops along the way…
The wheels of the carts had worn ruts into the stone and I stood in the shade of a large marble column, trying to picture the hustle and bustle of this place as it was in ancient times…
After an hour and a half, Masoud and I looked at each other and silently agreed that we had seen what we had come to see, and needed to get out of the sun and take a breather… We sat in the shade of the Cypress trees at the small outdoor restaurant, looking back over the area and chatting about the history that was made here…
Standing at the top of the seated area of the Theatre...
Apart from a few locals, we had the site to ourselves, and had wandered around marveling at the scope of the place… Apparently, an enormous part of the complex is yet to be uncovered, and runs under the town of Khums, where building permits in certain areas have been retracted, to allow future archeologists time to excavate…
This is happening on a very small scale, and the Libyan authorities do not seem to take their archeological heritage too seriously… A great pity this, as Leptis Magna is regarded by many to be one of the most impressive sites of the Roman Period…
I hope some of these photos will better describe the experience of visiting this awe-inspiring site…
Columns lining the stage of the Theatre...
Masoud takles a break during our walk through the ruins...
©GBWT 2010
Thanks for these magnificant photographs of the temples and ruins. Theatre pic amazing. Glad you had such a great guide to help you with everything….and so trusting…..that’s rare! Pity you spent such little time in Libya.