The Tébessa Basilica is a
Late Roman archeological site located in the eastern
Algeria
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, relig ...
n city of
Theveste
Theveste was a Roman colony situated in the present Tébessa, Algeria.
History
In 146 BC, the Romans conquered the region, where existed an old city called " Tbessa". Theveste was founded by the Romans in 75 AD near an old Berber village locate ...
, which is known today as Tébessa. It is one of the largest remains of Roman basilicas in Northern Africa. It was dedicated to St.
Crispina
Saint Crispina (died 5 December, 304) was a virgin martyr of Africa who suffered during the Diocletian persecution. She was born at Thagara, a town in the Roman province of Numidia, located in Taoura, Algeria. (The Tabula Peutingeriana calls i ...
to honor her martyrdom in 305 CE. This basilica was originally thought to have been created as a secular building for the Roman military; it developed into a religious building as new additions were built in the 4th and 5th century.
History
The
Numidian region where Theveste was found became a key part of Rome's development after the fall of the Byzantine city of
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...
.
Economic policies implemented in the
Constitutional reforms of Julius Caesar
The constitutional reforms of Julius Caesar were a series of laws to the Constitution of the Roman Republic enacted between 49 and 44 BC, during Caesar's dictatorship. Caesar was murdered in 44 BC before the implications of his constitutional acti ...
created taxes on trade goods along Roman roads.
When Roman legionary camp leader
Legio III Augusta
("Third Augustan Legion") was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. Its origin may have been the Republican 3rd Legion which served the general Pompey during his civil war against Gaius Julius Caesar (49–45 BC). It supported the general Oct ...
came to Theveste initially, he brought with him legionary forces and other travelers. His armies constructed roads throughout Northern Africa and established the first outposts for the Roman military in Theveste.
With these incoming Roman military families, Theveste grew and additional buildings were added to the structure that would become the basilica, which might have been used at that point for the collection of taxes on goods like olive oil and grain.
We have less evidence for activity in the city of Theveste after the Romans left sometime before 98 C.E. The roads that connected Carthage to Theveste and to
Thamugade and
Lambaesis
Lambaesis (Lambæsis), Lambaisis or Lambaesa (''Lambèse'' in colonial French), is a Roman archaeological site in Algeria, southeast of Batna and west of Timgad, located next to the modern village of Tazoult. The former bishopric is also a Lat ...
had all been maintained and remained in good condition after other Roman roadways had suffered.
In 295 C.E. a Christian man named Maximillian was martyred at Theveste for refusing to join military service.
An inscription dated to 350 C.E. on the central niche mosaic of the basilica shrine is dedicated to Crispina, whose death took place in 305 C.E. Crispina's martyrdom would inspire pilgrimages to her shrine.
This is the point where the basilica begins to gain its religious connotation.
Due to the basilica's large size it was thought at this point to have served as a
xenodochium
In the early Middle Ages, a xenodochium or (from Ancient Greek , or ''xenodocheion''; place for strangers, inn, guesthouse) was either a hostel or hospital, usually specifically for foreigners or pilgrims, although the term could refer to charita ...
in addition to providing other services such as baptisms and other church services.
Design
The basilica's large size is due to the additions and modifications made by the various Roman and Byzantine leaders in the 4th and 5th century.
The mosaic floors are accented by a pathway of balustrades marking the entrance into the great forecourt of the basilica. Through the nave and aisles there is a large staircase containing 20 steps and measuring about wide. A massive
piscina
A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. For Roman Ca ...
is carved into the wall leading to a large open-air atrium. In the center of the atrium is a four-lobed fountain. At this four-way intersection, three archways remain standing in the hallways leading to the large nave and aisles of the main chapel. A pair of columns support the architrave where a gallery is located. A second altar footing can be found in the main chapel nave. The
baptistery
In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned structure surrounding the baptismal ...
sits just down a staircase from the open-air atrium.
In the baptistery there is a relief carved into the floor beneath where the ceremonial font would have been placed. The scalloped design and nature of the room would also suggest that large marble table tops were used for offerings as well as alters.
Like other Roman Basilicas of the early Medieval era there is evidence of galleries that would have been used to display more mobile artwork.
Additional buildings were added to the basilica complex between the 4th and 7th centuries, including a bathhouse, a garden, ground-floor stables and a
martyrion.
A smaller basilica was added to the complex in the 6th century.
References
Bibliography
* ''Anderson, M. A. (2012). Hospitals, hospices and shelters for the poor in late antiquity (Order No. 3525161).''
* Burns, J. Patout, and Robin M. Jensen. Christianity in Roman Africa : The Development of Its Practices and Beliefs, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2014. ProQuest Ebook Central,
* Eugene Rosenblum. (2017). Passion of St. Crispina. ''Vestnik Pravoslavnogo Svâto-Tihonovskogo Gumanitarnogo Universiteta: Seriâ II. Istoriâ,'' ''77''(77), 113-121.
* Ferguson, John. “Roman Algeria.” ''Greece & Rome'', vol. 13, no. 2, 1966, pp. 169–187. ''JSTOR'', JSTOR,
*Hellstrom, M. (2014). ''Public Construction under Diocletian. A study of State Involvement in Construction in Roman Era Towns in Present Day Tunisia and Eastern Algeria''.
* HITCHNER, R. B. (1982). ''Studies In The History And Archaeology Of Sufetula And Its 'territorium' Down To The Vandal Conquest'' (Order No. 8215014). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (303235863).
*Kazhdan, A., Talbot, Alice-Mary Maffry, Cutler, Anthony, Gregory, Timothy E, & Ševčenko, Nancy Patterson. (1991). ''The Oxford dictionary of Byzantium''. New York: Oxford University Press.
* Kitzinger, Ernst. “A Marble Relief of the Theodosian Period.” Dumbarton Oaks Papers, vol. 14, 1960, pp. 17–42. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1291143.
* Pennell, R. (2005). ''History of rome from the earliest times''. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Pub.
* ''Schaff, D. (1974). BAY ARTICULATION IN EARLY CHRISTIAN ARCHITECTURE., ProQuest Dissertations and Theses.''
* ''Sharp, W. (1895). ROME IN AFRICA. Harper's New Monthly Magazine, 91, 95.''
* Van Sickle, C. (1930). The Public Works of Africa in the Reign of Diocletian. ''Classical Philology,'' ''25''(2), 173-179.
* Watkins, T. (2002). COLONIA MARCIANA TRAIANA THAMUGADI: DYNASTICISM IN NUMIDIA. ''Phoenix,'' ''56''(1/2), 84-108,212.
* Wilhite, David E. (2017-07-14). ''Ancient African Christianity: An Introduction to a Unique Context and Tradition''. Taylor & Francis. {{ISBN, 9781135121426.
* Yasin, A. M. (2002). ''Commemorating the dead - constructing the community: Church space, funerary monuments and saints' cults in late antiquity'' (Order No. 3048435).
Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Algeria