Tunisia: El Jem

Well and truly worth visiting is El Jem for its famed amphitheatre and mosaic museum.

The amphitheatre is decidedly impressive. Built by the Romans between AD 230 and 238, it is modelled on Rome’s Colosseum.

UNESCO listed with a crowd capacity of 35,000, El Jem’s amphitheatre served as a gladiator centre and indeed some scenes from the film ‘Gladiator’ were shot here.

It was also the scene of Gordias’s suicide in AD 238 after he declared himself emperor at El Jem and an irate Emperor Maximus quelled his rebellion.

The construction is interesting. Stone was carried from 30kms away and underground aqueducts carried water from 15kms away. The amphitheatre is free standing; there’s no foundation. Inside are 3 tiered levels of seating; much still intact. Remarkable building skills.

El Jem is often referred to as the third largest Roman theatre after Rome and the ruined theatre of Capua. Or maybe the fourth largest, if you count Pozzuoli.

By the 17th century, stones from the arena were used for building the nearby village of El Djem and also transported to the Great Mosque in Kairouan.

El Jem’s other claim to fame is its Archaeology Museum, a spectacular tribute to mosaics sourced from nearby luxurious Roman villas. Supposedly the mosaics here rate higher than those at the Bardo Museum. Certainly, the exhibition leaves you speechless given the mosaics are so large, so intricate, so numerous.

Once gracing villa floors in an outward sign of affluence, the mosaics have been carefully lifted and placed on the walls and floors of the museum. They are in excellent condition thanks to being covered and protected by sand for hundreds of years.

We stayed at the Julius Hotel which is in walking distance to the amphitheatre and museum.

And there you have it: all roads should lead to El Jem.