Cirta
Constantine · Qusanṭīnah · Kirta
Numidian to Ottoman (3rd c. BCE–present; Roman peak 1st–4th c. CE)·Numidian / Carthaginian / Roman / Byzantine / Islamic·🇩🇿 Constantine Province, Algeria
About
About Cirta
Cirta (modern Constantine, Qusanṭīnah) is the Tunisian Tell's most dramatic city, perched on a limestone mesa girded by the 300-m-deep Rhumel gorge with four bridges. Numidian capital of Syphax and Massinissa (203 BCE), later capital of Numidia Cirtensis and the Tetrarchic Confederation of Four Colonies. Roman bridge (El Kantara), Antonian baths, and Tiddis satellite; museum holds Massinissa's tomb stele. Jugurthine War siege site. Spectacular gorge hydrology via Roman cisterns and aqueduct.
Why it mattersGreatest Numidian city; Four Colonies confederation capital; gorge urbanism unique in Mediterranean.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Location of Massinissa palace
- 02Jugurtha siege circumvallation trace
Theories
- 01Confederation as Diocletianic administrative experiment (Lepelley)
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Numidian capital 203 BCE; Roman colonia Sittian 46 BCE; provincial capital 313 CE
- Period
- Numidian to Ottoman (3rd c. BCE–present; Roman peak 1st–4th c. CE)
- Culture
- Numidian / Carthaginian / Roman / Byzantine / Islamic
- Builders
- Massylian kings / Roman colonia Iulia Iuvenalis
- Purpose
- Massylian confederation capital and gorge fortress; trade node Tell–Sahara
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
203 BCE
Massinissa makes Cirta capital
112–105 BCE
Jugurthine War siege
46 BCE
Sittian colonia
313 CE
Capital of Numidia Cirtensis
On the ground
Structures & features
36.3675° N · 6.6119° E · 640 m · 2 mapped features
Rhumel Gorge and Bridges
geomorphology300-m gorge encircling Cirta plateau
36.3680° N · 6.6120° EAntonian Baths of Cirta
baths40×30 m Roman baths near museum
36.3660° N · 6.6110° E