Coastal Settlement in Cyrenaica

Abstract

The location of the majority of major sites in Cyrenaica is well established. This has obscured the fact that our knowledge of the detailed topography of the area is in reality highly fragmentary, and can only be increased by detailed work in the field. The purpose of this article is to review the archaeological evidence from the area between Benghazi and Derna as it has been collected by the authors in recent years, and to give an account of its more important implications. On this basis one may examine the complex interrelation of local climate and geography that has controlled the development of settlement between the northern edge of the Cyrenaican plateau and the sea.The administrative unit known to the Romans as Cyrenaica lies on the coast of North Africa between longitude 19° east and 24° east. Its southern limits were never defined, but any route to the south was effectively blocked by the Calanshu sand sea and the wastelands of the Jebel Zelten.

The Harbour at Ptolemais: Hellenistic City of the Libyan Pentapolis

“…Where the beach joins the headland below the lighthouse there are tumbled stones and a linear feature that has been marked on previous plans (Jones and Little, : 72, fig. ), and is apparent on aerial photographs.…”

“…151–160) (Beloe, : 419–423), by Greeks in the 6th century BC (Boardman, : 149–156; James, : 2), Cyrenaica became a Roman province in 70 BC, and shortly afterwards became a joint province with Crete. Ptolemais appears in most of the ancient itineraries (Kraeling, : 33ff, Jones and Little, : 71–73). It was initially known as the ‘Harbour at Barca’ for the city of Barca on the Djebel Akhdar behind, which sat on a fertile plain but had needed an outlet via the sea.…”

Some Notes on Islamic Tolmeita

“…) The location of Adjiya' remains a mystery. Apart from Tolmeita there are several viable harbours along the Cyrenaican coast which were in use in the classical period (Jones and Little 1971). Of these the closest to Barqa is Tocra where some evidence of Islamic occupation levels has been uncovered (Jones 1983, 114-121;Jones 1984, 111).…”

Town Houses at Ptolemais, Cyrenaica: A Summary Report of Survey and Excavation Work in 1971, 1978–1979

“…At the time of writing it has not proved possible to carry out detailed chronological study of the material recovered in the excavations and, in consequence, all the conclusions presented here must be treated as provisional (though it is still hoped to be able to arrange to complete this aspect of the work). Even in their present, qualified, form it is thought that the results constitute a useful addition to the corpus of material on Ptolemais (Kraeling 1962 remains the standard account; see also, inter alia, Arthur and Bazama 1975;Beechey and Beechey 1828;Caputo 1954;Jones and Little 1971;Pesce 1950;Smith and Porcher 1864;Stucchi 1975).…”