Libya 2009 - Part 4

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Buying a picnic again.  This time on the way to Leptis Magna The Circus of Leptis Magna - looking towards the starting line The seating on the seaward side is built on a substructure.  Very little now remains of it, as the sea is getting very near The entrances on the seaward side are buried in the sand This one is a bit clearer
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The seating on the landward side is cut into the hillside.  The Amphitheatre of Leptis Magna lies behind this This shows the centre line or spina of the Circus.  The seating near the sea has more or less disappeared This shows the starting line of the Circus, which at 450 metres long is one of the largest outside Rome The grand entrance from the Circus into the Amphitheatre The grand entrance from the Circus to the Amphitheatre
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Looking back towards the Circus Looking back towards the Circus The Amphitheatre is hollowed out of the hillside in what was once a limestone quarry for the city It was built in the 1st Century AD and would have seated approximately 16,000 people The Amphitheatre is situated same distance from the centre of Leptis Magna, well outside the city boundaries
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The arena has not been excavated yet, so there may be much more to discover The western entrance of the Amphitheatre The Three Graces - Wendy, Katrina and Margaret The eastern quay of the harbour - the land to the left of these buildings would have been under water in Roman times Katrina sitting on the harbour wall with her legs dangling in the water!
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The eastern quay had a fine colonnade with warehouses and shops Looking across the mouth of the harbour to where the lighthouse of Leptis Magna once stood The base of the lighthouse - this is all that remains of a building that is estimated to have been about 35 metres high.  A fire would
have burned at the top to warn ships of the dangers Back on the eastern quay are the remains of a watchtower and a small doric temple Another view of the colonnade on the eastern quay looking inland
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This is an artist's impression of what the harbour of Leptis Magna would have looked like Back on the coach to go to visit the museum of Leptis Magna A huge cut-out of Colonel Qaddafi dominates the entrance hall of the museum This is one of the measuring devices used in the market of Leptis.  Grain would been poured into the measuring holes and then
released from beneath into containers. This is the original measuring tablet from the Macellum, showing the comparative measurements of a Roman arm at the top,
a Roman foot in the middle and a Greek arm at the bottom
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Villa Sileen - this villa dates from the late Roman/early Byzantine period.  It was excavated in the 1970s and little has been done to
look after it since then The garden and triclinium, or summer dining room, of Villa Sileen, which faces onto the Mediterranean It has a wonderful setting on the Mediterranean coast not far from Leptis Magna This is an outside courtyard.  The domes cover the extensive bath house of the villa, which must have belonged to a wealthy family The villa is neglected and is deteriorating due to lack of maintenance
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The mosaics are very fine.  This is a detail from a raised area in the garden Detail from raised area in the garden A beautiful mosaic floor in one of the colonnaded walks This is on the landward side of the villa, with another stunning mosaic floor The decoration on the walls has faded, but is still just visible
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This is part of the pavement on the seaward side of the villa A small gladatorial figure... and a crocodile! An ibis attacks the small figure A wall painting of two hunters in one of the inside rooms
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This small room has white panels with delicate decoration Its survival over 1500 or so years is amazing This room is part of the bath complex.  The walls are covered in marble to half the height of the room
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This mosaic is in an alcove with a pipe outlet, suggesting that it may have been a shower area Leptis Magna - the Arch of Septimus Severus, which was built in AD203 to commemorate the emperor's visit to his native city It stands on the Decumanus Maximus, a major road which ran along the North African coast all the way from Carthage to Alexandria The Arch of Septimus Severus The arch was not used for wheeled traffic, which was diverted around it
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Looking westwards along the Decumanus Maximus towards the Arch of Antoninus Pius
Hadrian's Baths - opened in AD137, this imperial bath complex was on a large scale and lavishly appointed The natatio or swimming pool at the entrance to the baths is approximately 30 metres long The entrance to the Frigidarium is cleverly angled, possibly to eliminated draughts The Frigidarium had 8 massive cipollino columns. In the 1700s the French took several columns
for the building of Versailles.  3 of these columns were never shipped and are still on the shore
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The Frigidarium was a vast vaulted room with a marble floor and a roof of blue and turquoise mosaics This is the south facing Caldarium or hot room of the baths.  These windows were probably glazed in some way, though how
is not really understood One of the hot plunge pools of the Caldarium.  Hot water would have risen through the arched areas in the pool from the heated
tanks beyond the walls One of the sweat rooms off the Caldarium, showing the hypocaust under the floor and box flues and marble cladding on the walls The public latrines of the baths
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This shows a mistake made by the workmen who marked out the spacing for the seating, but got it wrong! Looking back at what remains of the Hadrianic Baths The Nymphaeum - built during the reign of Septimus Severus, this fountain is on a vast scale It has cippolino columns at ground level, topped by red granite above. The Nymphaeum has collapsed, but is still very splendid
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This is the Severan Forum looking towards the Basilica.  The building on the left is the Temple of the Imperial Cult Once surrounded by colonnaded porticos on two levels, much of the stonework is piled up in the courtyard ... or was carried away to France in the 1700s These arches would have been on top of pillars in the colonnade. A Gorgon's head topped each column Gorgon's head
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The colonnade leading into the Basilica A shop, or possibly a bar, under the colonnade leading into the Basilica The Basilica - these rectangular pillars are ornate and deeply carved The apse of the Basilica - a group of Libyan scouts gather to have their photo taken... ...which we duly did!
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The northern apse of the Basilica Looking down the nave to the apse at the southern end The Labours of Hercules decorate this pillar The Labours of Hercules Dionysius features on this one
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The carving is deeply undercut Part of the architrave of the Basilica -  on this piece is carved Max Britannica.  Great Britain was one of the countries in the Roman
Empire and so was listed on the architrave around the Basilica along with all the rest of the countries The Basilica was converted into a church in the 6th Century. This is the Baptistry The Baptistry This road runs beside the Basilica towards the Colonnaded Street
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The Old Forum near the seashore with the Byzantine Gate in the background Little is left standing of the Old Forum A game board carved into the pavement of the Old Forum Looking toward the modern city of Al-Khoms.  The ancient city of Leptis Magna is tumbling into the sea These are the three cipollino pillars from Hadrian's Baths which were never shipped to France as planned
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The Macellum with its two octagonal halls.  Originally built in 9BC, it was rebuilt during the reign of Septimus Severus One hall was used for selling fruit and vegetables and the other for selling fabrics Rosie chats to a group of Libyan girls who were having a day out at Leptis This is the hall where fabric was sold It has an inner area with an octagonal portico surrounding it
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The fabric hall of the Macellum A view across the Macellum showing the partially reconstructed halls in the courtyard This is a replica of the measuring tablet which is now in the museum Another measuring device in the Macellum.... ....and another
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The purpose of this one is not clear... ...nor is this! It is suggested that the grooves were caused by ropes used for pulling heavy loads The group debates this at length and is not convinced! One of the many un-excavated streets which makes Leptis Magna so exciting
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The Theatre of Leptis Magna in its magnificent setting Built in 1-2 AD, this theatre is the second largest in North Africa, after Sabratha, but pre-dates the latter The lower part of the cavea is built into the natural hillside, the upper part is built on a substructure A colonnaded walk originally protected the upper seats from the sun, but little is left of this now Jamal and his ladies
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View from the top of the theatre, looking towards the Nymphaeum.  There is much still to be excavated Looking northwards towards the Macellum, the Old Forum and the harbour area The Cardo Maximus leading to the Byzantine Gate and the Old Forum Another exciting side street awaiting discovery Leptis Magna tumbling into the sea
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Leptis Magna tumbling into the sea One of the many buildings near the shore which are partially buried in the sand Katrina sitting on the harbour wall.  This time in the centre of the harbour area Standing right in the middle of the harbour with the western quay in the background These ladies offered us spontaneous hospitality in the form of a small pizza each.  What a wonderful time we had in Libya
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Our last evening in Tripoli. The meal was a long time arriving! A small thank you to Gill for such a wonderful trip.  Where are we going next?  Iran?      
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