The Roman Empire in North Africa: Volubilis

The Roman Empire
            In the heart of this Muslim nation, where a minaret rises in the smallest of hamlets, and the call to prayer is heard every few hours; the magnificent ruins of the Roman Empire hark back to a different time.  In the midst of green rolling hills, we can see the ancient columns, the arches, the mosaics, and the Latin inscriptions when this part of the globe was occupied by a different people. They came from Europe and began building their grand structures.  They found olive trees and made oil, still used extensively in this region. They built Roman baths, the concept has lasted to this day in the use of hammams all over Morocco.


The mosaic floors of many homes are still intact.  Makes me wonder if the Islamic art of tile making and zellige artistry was influenced by the Romans! While the Romans depicted gods, seasons, animals and patterns; Islamic tile art concentrates on geometric patterns.  Islam forbids the depiction of people and animals, so artists have created the most intricate patterns with shape, size and colors.
Dionysus and the four seasons floor mosaic in Volubilis
Tile patterns in the museum of the Hassan II mosque in Casablanca
        Volubilis is believed to have been the Roman capital of Mauritania in 3rd century BC. Rich in  history, art, urban development and a synthesis of cultures; it is now a UNESCO World heritage site.  It is truly amazing to take a walk down the street and imagine the chariots whizzing by! Fast foward your imagination, and there comes Islam from Arabia.  Moulay Idris becomes the founder of the Idrisid dynasty and makes Volubilis his capital for a while.  Keep fast forwarding as the capital melds one culture after another- Libyco-Berber and Mauritanian, Roman, Christian and Arabo-Islamic. Finally, it falls into ruins, but continues to maintain it's majesty and glory!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cairo

Image
Sabah El Khair from the City of a Thousand Minarets!  I am in Al Qahira , a noisy, bustling, historic city along the banks of the timeless Nahr Al Nil . Hanaa Soudan, my Egyptian sister, has helped me find just the right apartment, located in the very heart of it all. I can gaze down busy streets, elegant buildings, cars winding their way around, people hurrying to work, or merely standing under a shady tree to chat and smoke.  A gas station is right below with a great view of cars being serviced. It serves as an important landmark for me as I weave my way through Kasr El Nil, Bab El Louk, Mohamed Mazloom Streets .  A car dealership and a restaurant take turns to share the space. While new cars line up in the daytime, the restaurant claims the street in the evenings with Cairenes relaxing together with food, drinks and shisha .  Even a TV is wheeled outside for additional entertainment! Egyptian Arabic is the lingua franca, and I realize my first assignment as a
Read more

Spooky Night at the Museum

Image
How did you celebrate Halloween in your part of the world? With monsters, ghouls, and mummies?  Did you say mummies?  For me, in Cairo, there was only place to be on Halloween - with mummies of dead kings and queens at The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities at Tahrir Square (which actually is a traffic circle). Enter this museum after dark, and you may feel a little spooked out anyway, Halloween or not.  Statues of every conceivable shape and size, with dust of a thousand years, gaze into space.  I walked around with a knowledgeable tour guide as she informed me of the different dynasties (32) and pharaohs (about 500) who ruled Egypt.  The Pharaonic dynasties continued till Alexander the great began his rule in 332 BC. Ancient Egyptians enjoyed life, and most certainly enjoyed death! The museum has piles and piles of mummies! Some in the coffins, some out of the coffins.  Some covered with masks, others coyly revealing an unwrapped foot or an ancient visage.  The c
Read more

Measuring the waters of Nahr El Nil

Image
The Nilometer         Descend down the steps of the Nilometer, and you're penetrating  layers of  history. As the name suggests, the Nilometer was used to measure the floodwaters of the river.  Now, no longer in use, it is the oldest monument in Cairo that survives in its original form. Carefully, gingerly, I place my feet on the worn stone of this architectural marvel. I reach the base, and gaze into the flood gates, now empty and dry, no longer functional.  But just a few years ago, they determined seasonal changes, water levels, harvest predictions and tax amounts.  That's almost everything that affected the lives of ancient Egyptians - water, food, money and the weather.  The Architect - notice the compass in his hand The marvelous graduated Corinthian column       Designed by Abu’l ‘Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Kathir al-Farqhani, a native of Farghana, West Turkestan, the Nilometer is an elegant combination of art and science.  As in any
Read more