Caracalla Arch (Djémila)
The Caracalla Arch in Djémila , the ancient Cuicul, is a single-gate arch of honor that was erected in 216 in honor of Caracalla , his mother Julia Domna and his father Septimius Severus .
Ferdinand Philippe d'Orléans discovered the bow - a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1982 - on an expedition in 1839 and wanted to transport it to Paris to dedicate it to the “L'Armée d'Afrique à la France” . But the project was abandoned after the death of its discoverer in 1842.
The arch formed the entrance to the city's Severan forum and stood at the end of the road that led from ancient Sitifis to Cuicul. It is 12.50 meters high, 11.60 meters wide and has a 3.90 meter deep arched passage . The front sides of the arch pillars are provided with niches framed by pilasters on the left and right of the passage . The pilasters each correspond to two-storey column positions of the Corinthian order on individual pedestals .
The entablature following the higher lower pillars are cranked with the entablature of the actual arch and carry small aedicules crowned by triangular gables at the level of the arch's attic . The remains of three statue bases that once carried the statues of the members of the Severan family honored by the arch are preserved on the attic.
The dedication inscription reads:
Imp (eratori) Ca [es (ari)] M (arco) Aurelio Severo Antonino Pio Felici Aug (usto) /
Parth [ic] o maximo Britannico max (imo) Germanico max (imo) /
pontif (ici) [m] ax (imo) trib (unicia) pot (estate) XVIIII co (n) s (uli) IIII imp (eratori) III p (atri) p (atriae) proco (n) s (uli) /
et Iuli [ae] Domnae Piae Felici Aug (ustae) matri eius et senatus et pa /
triae et [cas] trorum et divo Severo Aug (usto) Pio patri Imp (eratoris) Caes (aris) M (arci) Aureli Se /
veri Ant [onini] Pii [Felic ] is Aug (usti) arcum triumphalem a solo d (ecreto) d (ecurionum) res p (ublica) fecit
“To the emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Severus Antoninus, the pious, the happy, the Augustus /
the greatest conqueror of Parthia , Britain and Germany /
the pontifex maximus , the 19-time holder of the tribunical power , the four-time consul , the three-time emperor , the father of the fatherland , the proconsul /
and Iulia Domna, the pious, the happy, Augusta, his mother and that of the Senate and / of the
fatherland and the military camps , and the deified Severus Augustus, the pious, the father of the Emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius /
Severus Antoninus, the pious, the happy, Augustus built the triumphal arch on the decision of the Decurions of the state. "
literature
- Paul Fevrier: Notes sur le développement urbain en Afrique du Nord. Les examples comparés de Djemila et de Sétif. In: Cahiers d'archéologie. Volume 14, 1964, p. 9.
- Marcel Le Glay : Cuicul. In: The Little Pauly (KlP). Volume 1, Stuttgart 1964, column 1338.
- Pietro Romanelli : Topografia e archeologia dell'Africa romana. Turin 1970, p. 131.
- Silvio De Maria: Arco onorario e trionfale. In: Enciclopedia dell'Arte Antica, Classica e Orientale . 2. Supplement, Volume 1. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 1994.
- Anne-Mari Leydier-Bareil: Les arcs de triomphe dédiés à Caracalla en Afrique romaine (= Histoire de l'art et archeologie Nancy 2nd vol. 2/3). Université Nancy 2, Nancy 2006, pp. 262–282 ( PDF ).
Web links
Remarks
Coordinates: 36 ° 19 ′ 14.1 ″ N , 5 ° 44 ′ 8 ″ E