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Tunisia Antiquity Built: c. 238 AD UNESCO

Amphitheatre of El Jem

The Amphitheatre of El Jem is a colossal Roman oval arena standing in the modern Tunisian town of El Jem, built on the site of the ancient city of Thysdrus. Constructed around 238 AD, it is the third-largest Roman amphitheatre ever built, after the Colosseum in Rome and the amphitheatre at Capua, and could accommodate approximately 35,000 spectators. In remarkable contrast to Rome's Colosseum, which has been stripped of much of its stone over the centuries, El Jem's amphitheatre survives to nearly its full original height with most of its exterior arches and inner galleries intact, making it better preserved than its more famous Roman counterpart. It was built during the proconsulship (or at the instigation) of Gordian I, who was briefly proclaimed Roman emperor in this very city during the turbulent Year of the Six Emperors in 238 AD, though he died after just 22 days in power. The site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

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Amphitheatre of El Jem

Tunisia

Longitude: 10.7079

Latitude: 35.2963

Historical Significance

The Amphitheatre of El Jem is the most complete testament to Roman North Africa's extraordinary wealth during the imperial period, when the region produced roughly two-thirds of the grain consumed by the Roman Empire and generated vast profits from olive oil exports. Its construction in a mid-sized provincial city — not an imperial capital — demonstrates how deeply Roman civic culture and spectacle had penetrated the provinces of Africa Proconsularis. The structure has survived largely intact not through any special preservation effort but because it was continuously incorporated into the fabric of the local town, at various times serving as a fortress, a refuge, and a quarry for local building materials.

Facts

Fact 1

Third Largest Roman Amphitheatre

With a capacity of approximately 35,000 spectators, El Jem is the third-largest Roman amphitheatre in the world, behind only the Colosseum in Rome (~50,000–80,000) and the Campanian Amphitheatre at Capua (~40,000).

Fact 2

Better Preserved Than the Colosseum

Unlike the Colosseum, which was extensively quarried for building materials during the medieval period, El Jem retains most of its three exterior stories of arcades, giving a far clearer impression of what a complete Roman amphitheatre looked like.

Fact 3

Gordian's Proclamation

In 238 AD, the elderly proconsul Gordian I was proclaimed co-emperor in Thysdrus (El Jem) by local landowners rebelling against Emperor Maximinus Thrax; his reign lasted only 22 days before he died by suicide after his son's defeat in battle.

Fact 4

Used as a Fortress

In the 17th century, Berber rebel leader Kahina used the amphitheatre as a fortress against Arab invaders; Ottoman beys later punched a breach in the outer wall with cannons to dislodge rebels hiding inside.

Fact 5

Underground Galleries

The amphitheatre has an extensive network of underground galleries and chambers beneath the arena floor where animals, gladiators, and equipment were held before being hoisted up through trapdoors into the arena.

Fact 6

Provincial Wealth

Thysdrus became extraordinarily wealthy in the 2nd–3rd centuries AD through olive oil production; the surrounding region of Tunisia remains one of the world's largest olive-producing areas today, continuing a 2,000-year agricultural tradition.

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