#el jem

Coliseu Romano

El Jem

Tunísia

Not in Rome.

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Or is it El Djem, I see it both ways, in either case, it was another major Roman city and we are here to see the 3rd-century arena, either the second or third largest in the Roman Empire and one of the better preserved.

While the arena may be the big tourist draw in El Jem, for me it was the local museum. Unlike some of the other museums where the mosaics have been removed from the site and displayed without reference to their origins, here they make a real effort to keep all the mosaics from one house or one room together and show how they were arranged. The array of fine mosaics was amazing. The size of many was astounding.

I am showing some of the largest and best, but mostly details from many as I think it's really hard to see the detail on the screen for the largest.

This next one is just stunning. It would have covered the floor of a large dining room and is filled with birds and animals amongst the grape vines.

Here is the scene in the center.

Details

While scenes from Greek mythology are common and would have demonstrated your learning, animals and even scenes from the arena, such as this one of a war prisoner being killed by a wild cat.

I don't understand the appeal of an image of someone being killed on your dining room floor.

Here is one of the models showing how mosaics were arranged in this house.

Vomitorium of the Amphitheatre of El Jem, Tunisia. Photo by Przemek P, szarada.net.

Anfiteatro El Jem, Túnez

Para mí que soy un apasionado de la historia, hoy es un día especial, ya que he podido conocer al Anfiteatro Romano de El Jem , tercero más grande del Imperio Romano, tras el Coliseo de Roma y el de Capua, superando incluso a las famosas Arenas de Arles y Nimes en Francia. Es Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la Unesco desde 1979 y pertenece a la pequeña ciudad del mismo nombre, adscrita a la…