Arch of Trajan
Over the forum.
Skander zarrad — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Majbri wael — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Boualleg Med Ali — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Kais photographies — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Noomen9 — CC BY-SA 4.0
Makthar is a town and archaeological site in Siliana Governorate, northwest Tunisia, about 137 km southwest of Tunis and 58 km southeast of Le Kef in a straight line. The present town has about 13,500 people. It was founded by the Berber Numidians as a defensive post against Carthaginian expansion, and many Carthaginians took refuge here after the Romans destroyed Carthage in 146 BC. Under Julius Caesar it became a free city, and in AD 146 a Roman colony named Mactaris, the source of its Arabic name. The golden stone ruins spread over a wide plateau, centred on the massive Arch of Trajan overlooking the old forum, surrounded by the remains of the Roman market, baths, houses, the amphitheatre and a small pyramid-shaped mausoleum. Wheat fields and open hills surround the site. Visitors enter by the arch, walk the old streets among the ruins and stand beneath the Arch of Trajan. The site is wide and exposed, so bring water and a hat; it makes a good stop on the road between Tunis and Le Kef.
Over the forum.
Ruins.
Small.
Makthar, Siliana Governorate, Tunisia
Water and a hat.
One to two hours.