SABRATHA Sabratha (Sabratah)
Sabratha is one of the most beautiful Roman Archaeological sites in the Mediterranean and one of Libya UNESCO world heritage sites. The truth is, Sabratha is a stunning site that is a must-see, preferably before you visit Leptis Magna. Its highlights including the theatre that was one of the most beautiful in ancient Rome, the fact that the site takes far better advantage of its seafront location than Leptis Magna and the extant remains of Phoenician occupation that have been buried beneath the work of later civilisa- tions elsewhere.
To catch a sense of the glories of Sabratha before you visit, Tripoli’s National Museum has an excellent model of the ancient city in its Roman heyday.
History
The origins of Sabratha’s name have been lost to time, although it may have been a derivation of a Libyan-Berber Amazigh word meaning ‘grain market’. There was a periodic settlement here in the 5th century BC, but it wasn’t until Punic settlers arrived in the 4th century BC from the neighbouring stronghold of Carthage that a permanent settlement was established. For this seafaring people, Sabratha’s safe harbour was paramount and the Punic city consisted of narrow, winding streets with most houses facing the northwest to take full advantage of the seaborne winds. The arrival of Greek (Hellenistic) settlers in the 2nd century BC began to dilute the Punic character of the city as Greek architectural flourishes began to appear. One thing didn’t change: Sabratha was renowned as a wealthy city and important regional centre covering at least four hectares.
A violent earthquake destroyed much of the city in the 1st century AD and during the subsequent rebuilding phase the city’s architects turned towards Rome, which at the time was the preeminent power in Tripolitania, for inspiration. The result was the noticeably Roman character that remains so evident today. A number of Sabratha’s most important buildings – the forum, the Temple of Liber Pater , the Judicial Ba- silica and the Temple of Isis, were built during this period.
By the end of the 1st century AD, the last vestiges of Punic influence were being threat- ened by the inexorable weight of Romani- sation. Like the other cities of the Tripolis, Sabratha’s heyday was during the reigns of the four Roman emperors Antoninus Pius (r AD 138–61), Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (AD 161–80), Lucius Aelius Aurelius Com- modus (AD 180–92) and Septimius Severus (AD 193–211). Although never competing for significance or grandeur with Leptis Magna, Sabratha grew in size and status, and received the coveted title of colony (colonia) in the 2nd century AD. The city’s wealth depended on the maritime trade of animals and ivory from Africa, although the city kept a wary eye on its hinterland and on the ever- present threat of raids by Saharan tribes. Under Marcus Aurelius and Commodus, the extravagant, monumental heart of Sabratha extended ever-further south at the expense of formerly Punic structures; under Com- modus, the theatre was built
Sabratha’s residents probably thought the glory days would last forever, but the terminal decline of Rome’s economy in the 3rd century began Sabratha’s decline and the earthquake in 365 dealt Sabratha’s soft, sandstone buildings a blow from which they would never recover. With the tide of Christianity sweeping the region, none of the ancient temples was rebuilt and a smaller city, a shadow of its former self, grew over the ruins.
In 533 Sabratha fell under the sway of the Byzantine general Belisarius who oversaw the rebuilding of the city walls to en- close only the western port and central area, thereby leaving the Roman parts of the city further to the east exposed and abandoned. The city survived for at least a century after the Islamic arrival in the 7th century AD, but was thereafter abandoned and left to the sands and Mediterranean winds. Sabratha was rediscovered by Italian archaeologists in the early 20th century.
Must see attractions
- ROMAN MUSEUM
- PUNIC MUSEUM
- ANTONINE TEMPLE
- JUDICIAL BASILICA
- FORUM
- CAPITOLEUM
- CURIA
- TEMPLE OF LIBER PATER
- BASILICA OF JUSTINIAN
- THEATRE
- TEMPLE OF ISIS
- PERISTYLE HOUSE
- AMPHITHEATRE