Timgad

Timgad, also known as Thamugadi, is a well-preserved Roman colonial town in present-day Algeria. It lies in the Aurès mountains near Batna in northeastern Algeria. The city was founded around 100 CE by Emperor Trajan as Colonia Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi for veteran soldiers and settlers. Its plan illustrates a textbook example of Roman urbanism: a regular grid with a central north–south cardo and an east–west decumanus, creating a compact core framed by public buildings and narrow insulae.

The Forum district contains several public monuments, including a basilica, temples, and a monumental arch—often identified as the Arch of Trajan—at the city’s main entrance to the forum. The Library of Thamugadi is a notable feature, with a substantial two-story façade facing a rectangular piazza. Other remaining structures include a theater, baths, and a variety of domestic houses arranged around peristyle courtyards, offering insights into daily life in a Roman colonial town.

Excavation and study began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with ongoing archaeological work revealing inscriptions and architectural details that illuminate provincial Roman administration and society. The desert environment has contributed to the preservation of many stone elements, allowing clearer interpretation of layout and function.

In 1982, Timgad was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding example of Roman urban planning and its state of preservation. Today the ruins are a major tourist site and an important source for scholars studying Roman colonization in North Africa. Access is via Batna and surrounding roads, with visitors able to walk along the decumanus and cardo, and to view the arch, library, theater, and civic buildings.