Roman mosaics
Orpheus, Hercules, Diana.
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A Berber-Roman city on a fertile plain at the foot of Mount Zerhoun, about thirty kilometres north of Meknes, which grew from the third century BC, may have been the capital of the Kingdom of Mauretania under King Juba II, and flourished under Rome from the first century AD until it covered about forty-two hectares within a wall two and a half kilometres long. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The city's wealth came from growing olives and pressing their oil, and visitors see the remains of old olive presses alongside the great public buildings: the basilica, the Capitoline temple with its standing columns, the triumphal arch raised in honour of Emperor Caracalla in 217 AD, and the paved main street lined with houses. Volubilis is best loved for the mosaics of its grand houses, still in place, with scenes from myth such as Orpheus playing to the animals, the Labours of Hercules and Diana bathing, among the finest Roman mosaics in North Africa. Rome lost the city around 285, and Moulay Idris I settled here in 789 before founding the Idrisid state. A foreign visitor's ticket costs one hundred dirhams according to the Ministry of Culture's ticketing site, half for children aged seven to thirteen, open from nine to five. The site is exposed with no shade, so bring a hat and water; the best times are early morning or before sunset, and it pairs with nearby Moulay Idriss Zerhoun.
Orpheus, Hercules, Diana.
From 217 AD.
The city's old wealth.
Near Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, about thirty kilometres north of Meknes
It is not essential, but a licensed guide at the entrance helps explain the houses and mosaics; the Rabat Museum of History and Civilizations shows the finest Volubilis bronzes.