The Cisterns of La Malga or Cisterns of La Mâalga are a group of
cisterns, which are among the most visible features of the archaeological site 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 ...
near
Tunis
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
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Tunisia
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, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
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. They are some of the best preserved
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
cisterns.
The cisterns, with a capacity of , received water from a branch of the
Zaghouan Aqueduct (exactly which branch remains uncertain). They were designed to provide the water supply for Carthage, the most important city of
Africa Proconsulare during the
High Empire, and especially to supply the
Baths of Antoninus
The Baths of Antoninus or Baths of Carthage, located in Carthage, Tunisia, are the largest set of Roman thermae built on the African continent and one of three largest built in the Roman Empire. They are the largest outside mainland Italy. The ba ...
.
As part of the site of Carthage, the cisterns are classified as a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
. On 17 February 2012, the Tunisian government proposed that the whole Zaghouan-Carthage Roman hydraulic complex, of which they are a part, should be classed as a world heritage site.
History
The large, relatively well-preserved cisterns are located on the north side of the ancient Roman city. They were not the only largest cisterns of Carthage, but existed alongside others: the "basins of Hamilcar" and those located on the hill of Bordj Djedid.
From the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, the cisterns were used as makeshift houses, stables, barns or cellars by the local populations; a practice which continued until the twentieth century. For a long time this prevented archaeological investigation of the complex.
[Abdelmajid Ennabli et Hédi Slim, ''Carthage. Le site archéologique'', éd. Cérès, Tunis, 1993, p. 32]
According to
Al Idrisi
Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani as-Sabti, or simply al-Idrisi ( ar, أبو عبد الله محمد الإدريسي القرطبي الحسني السبتي; la, Dreses; 1100 – 1165), was a Muslim geographer, cartogra ...
, there were at least 24 cisterns in a single line, each with a length of 130
pace and a width of 26 pace - though
Henri Saladin considered this width too high. According to
Christian Tuxen Falbe, there were fifteen cisterns which were in width and four ruined cisterns a little to the west and each of these nineteen cisterns had a length of .
There is an active project to conserve and restore the site, and to develop a museum space devoted to it.
Description
The group of cisterns forms a rectangular space measuring x (). Each cistern is composed of a vaulted space, long, wide and high (excluding the vault), with a total capacity of . There are fifteen individual cisterns, which are separated from one another and arranged in parallel.
Each vault has about ten circular openings. A cistern which distributed water to the others is aligned perpendicular to the others. A subsidiary aqueduct derived from the
Zaghouan Aqueduct ran alongside the distribution cistern and supplied it with water through openings on its edge.
The presence of numerous circular openings on top of the each cistern's vault appear to be openings for water to escape through when the cisterns were too full or for collecting rain water. However, it is probable that the cisterns were actually surmounted by another level of tanks - in the same manner as
Gallo-Roman
Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...
two-story reservoirs.
The large cisterns were relied upon by the vast
bath complex of Antoninus. The water flowed down from the cisterns to the baths through underground pipes.
[Azedine Beschaouch, ''La légende de Carthage'', coll. Découvertes Gallimard (n° 172), éd. Gallimard, Paris, 1993, p. 102]
In the immediate neighbourhood of the cisterns are other important sites: the , the villa of Scorpianus and some mausoleums, one of which has been re-constructed in a special room of the
Bardo National Museum.
See also
*
List of Roman cisterns
The list of Roman cisterns offers an overview over Ancient Roman cisterns. Freshwater reservoir were commonly set up at the termini of aqueducts and their branch lines, supplying urban households, agricultural estates, imperial palaces, therma ...
References
External links
Jacques Vérité, « Le site de La Malga à Carthage », ''Bulletin du CEDAC'', n°10, 1989, pp. 41-47''Carthage romaine : 146 avant Jésus-Christ-698 après Jésus-Christ'' Auguste Audollent, éd. Fontemoing, Paris, 1901, p. 295
{{Portal, Water, Ancient Rome, History, Africa
La Malga
Carthage