Desert
Oasis: The Sahara Desert extends into southern
Tunisia and covers about 40 percent of the country’s
land area. Camels are still used as a means of transportation
in some parts of the desert, such as at this oasis
near Duz. |
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Great Mosque: The
Great Mosque, foreground, is enclosed within the walls
of the old quarter of Sousse, a Tunisian town. The
town sits on the Gulf of Hammamet, making it a convenient
commercial port.
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Tunis Panorama:
Tunis, the captial and largest city of Tunisia, is divided
into two sections: an older Muslim quarter, characterized
by narrow, winding streets, and a newer, European section,
with straight, wide streets. The European quarter,
pictured here, was built while Tunisia was under French
rule, from 1881 to 1956. |
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Mosque of Side Sahab: This
ornately tiled antechamber is in the Mosque of Sidi
Sahab (also known as the Mosque of the Barber) in Al
Qayrawan,
Tunisia. The mosque contains the mausoleum of Sidi
Sahab, who was a close acquaintance of the Prophet
Muhammad,
the founder of Islam. Sidi Sahab was nicknamed “the
Prophet’s barber” because he always carried
with him three hairs from Muhammad’s beard. |
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El Ghriba Synagogue: Located
on Jarbah (Djerba) Island in Tunisia’s Gulf of
Qabis, the synagogue of El Ghriba is a popular destination
for tourists and Jewish pilgrims. There has been a
synagogue on this site for more than 2600 years, although
this
structure dates from only the early 20th century.
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Ruins of Carthage:
Founded by the Phoenicians in the 800s bc, Carthage became
the center of an empire that controlled most of the
North African coast, parts of what is now Spain, and
several important Mediterranean islands. Ruins of the
ancient city lie near Tunis, Tunisia.
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Roman Ruin:
An impressive Roman monument, a 3rd-century ad amphitheater,
lies in northeastern Tunisia. From the 2nd century
bc to 5th century ad most of the region was part
of the Roman province called Africa.
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Carthage: The
excavations, started since 1857, were developed by the
White Fathers, under French protectorate, but it should
have been waited until 1974 so that a safeguard campaign
limits constructions. Since 1993, the site is listed
and registered at the Humanity Heritage.
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Mausoleum:
The Mausoleum of Bourguiba in Monastir. Birthplace of
former president Bourguiba, Monastir obviously profited
from a privileged statute. The avenues are exaggeratedly
broad there, the recently mowed lawns, and the monuments
restored a little too well.
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Ribat of Monastir: The
proud towers of the fortress shelter the real strengthened
Ribat. The first Ribat was built on the order of the
Caliph of Baghdad into 796 to protect the country from
any Christian attack. Austere and majestic, it accomodated
the monk-soldiers. Unceasingly increased, the Ribat
of Monastir was the only one to accomodate women, teachers
or students.
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Sidi
Oqba: Sidi Oqba mosque.
The room of prayer opens on an immense court, made
to gather the pilgrims, entirely paved with white
marble and surrounded by double porticos. The court
is dominated by the minaret, which faces the entrance
of the room of the prayer, is supported by columns
and by Roman and Byzantine capitals.
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Fortified
Granary: The Berber people of Tunisia built
fortified granaries to protect their crops from raiding
nomads. The individual storage units, called ghorfas,
were built out of stone and earth and usually stacked
on top of another. Some of these structures can be
as high as eight stories. Organized around a central
courtyard, the backsides of the ghorfas form the
outer wall of the fort. The need to protect grain
in this manner has disappeared, and some of these
buildings have been converted into dwellings.
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