Tunisia - the ancient and the modern world

[Jez]

Hi everyone!

This is my first attempt at posting photos, so let's hope all goes well :shock:

Just returned from a holiday in Tunisia - a land of extremes. And a great place for some fun in the sun with my travelling kit: D70, 12-24DX and 17-55DX.

The ancient:

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The modern:

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Enjoy!

 

[biggstr6]

Good Job. I like the framing in #2 . Was that with the 12-24 or the 17-55?

 

[MontyDog]

#1064 - You have an error in your SQL syntax;

 

[Jez]

Good Job. I like the framing in #2 . Was that with the 12-24 or the 17-55?

The first was the 12-24, the second was the 17-55 (plus an artistic crop for good measure!).

 

[Leigh]

Nice start for first posts....I too look forward to more from your trip....

 

[biggstr6]

Nice ampitheatre shot too! You'll have to post some more once you get them ready.

 

[Jez]

Nice ampitheatre shot too! You'll have to post some more once you get them ready.

OK - you asked for it!

This first one is for comedy value rather than artistic intent - it's Roman communual toilet building! Check out the convenient holes in the seating ledge and the gutter on the floor..... :shock:

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A couple of the Capitol Temple at Thuburbo Majus:

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And now at the El Jem colluseum:

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Where you can actually go underground to the dungeons where the gladiators/animals/etc were housed before the big event!

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Enjoy!

 

[MariaVoniati]

OUAOOOOOOOOOGreat colors Jez.

thanks for sharing

 

[patrickh]

Thank you Jez for sharing. The whole of North Africa is dotted with Greek and Roman remains - especially Roman. Egypt was the "granary of Rome', implying it was much more fertile back then and attracted a lot of commerce all along that northern coast. Relative lack of tourists has helped preserve many of them, especially in unpopular places like Algeria. Thanks for the flavor.

 

[Jez]

OUAOOOOOOOOOGreat colors Jez.

thanks for sharing

Well I can't really take the credit for that - the climate certainly helped! I process all my RAWs in Capture One and I've just found a new setting that tries to emulate Agfa film. That may have helped as well.... :wink:

 

[Jez]

Thank you Jez for sharing. The whole of North Africa is dotted with Greek and Roman remains - especially Roman. Egypt was the "granary of Rome', implying it was much more fertile back then and attracted a lot of commerce all along that northern coast. Relative lack of tourists has helped preserve many of them, especially in unpopular places like Algeria. Thanks for the flavor.

That was another thing that really hit us - acres and acres of wheat! I had an image in my head of deserts and all this greenery took me a bit by surprise!

 

[Vinod Menon]

Beautiful shots...seems like a very interesting place. THanks for sharing!

 

[HansV]

Hi Jez

This reminds me of Dougga: the remains of a Roman city in Tunisia. My wife and I went there some years ago and we were the only visitors. Amazing if you know how spectacular the place is: you literally walk through a Roman city and you can enter the remains of the houses, walk over the mosaics, etc.
Chemtou was nice too, not too far from Dougga.

Thanks for posting!

Hans

 

[Jez]

Re: Hi Jez

This reminds me of Dougga: the remains of a Roman city in Tunisia. My wife and I went there some years ago and we were the only visitors. Amazing if you know how spectacular the place is: you literally walk through a Roman city and you can enter the remains of the houses, walk over the mosaics, etc.
Chemtou was nice too, not too far from Dougga.

Thanks for posting!

Hans

Well spotted Hans!

The first 3 "ancient" photos are all from Dougga! There were a few coachloads of tourists but it still felt very remote.

Didn't you find it weird walking over all those mosaics? They were very dusty and someone poured some water over them and the colours just lept out at you.

 

[HansV]

Re: Hi Jez

This reminds me of Dougga: the remains of a Roman city in Tunisia. My wife and I went there some years ago and we were the only visitors. Amazing if you know how spectacular the place is: you literally walk through a Roman city and you can enter the remains of the houses, walk over the mosaics, etc.
Chemtou was nice too, not too far from Dougga.

Thanks for posting!

Hans

Well spotted Hans!

The first 3 "ancient" photos are all from Dougga! There were a few coachloads of tourists but it still felt very remote.

Didn't you find it weird walking over all those mosaics? They were very dusty and someone poured some water over them and the colours just lept out at you.

In a certain sense those mosaics were intended as flooring and the Romans walked over them as well. But I agree that it is a petty the Tunisian government doesn't look more after these sites. When we were there we saw donkeys running through the ruins. I wonder what will be left in 10 years. Some protection would do no harm.

Hans

 

[Jez]

Re: Hi Jez

[In a certain sense those mosaics were intended as flooring and the Romans walked over them as well. But I agree that it is a petty the Tunisian government doesn't look more after these sites. When we were there we saw donkeys running through the ruins. I wonder what will be left in 10 years. Some protection would do no harm.

Hans

And there were actually people living on the site until 1950's, when they were paid by the government to find somewhere else to live!

Can't imagine any flooring we lay today bring around in 2000 years.....

 

[HansV]

Re: Hi Jez

And there were actually people living on the site until 1950's, when they were paid by the government to find somewhere else to live!

I saw houses built with remains from the ruins at Dougga. I think the houses were located within the site and they were still inhabited.

Can't imagine any flooring we lay today bring around in 2000 years.....

:lol: I don't think there will be *anything* left of my house within 200 years.

Hans

 

[patrickh]

This is a common problem across North Africa, Sicily, Turkey - everywhere in the Mediterranean outside Italy that the Romans were in long term residence. It comes down to priorities and funding - most of these countries do not recognize a cultural dependence on that era. Tragic and eventually it will be the store of these pictures that will form the bulk of the evidence of their passing. This is something that digital photography has brought that we have not really come to grips with - distribution. Look at these pictures, taken by someone from the UK, in North Africa, looked at and possibly stored by readers throughout the Western world. Amazing when you think abot it.

 

[HansV]

This is a common problem across North Africa, Sicily, Turkey - everywhere in the Mediterranean outside Italy that the Romans were in long term residence. It comes down to priorities and funding - most of these countries do not recognize a cultural dependence on that era.

You are right about that, sadly enough. In Tunisia I talked with several local people about the lack of interest for their national patrimony. Only one man was interested in the discussion (he was a historian).
Maybe they associate the old civilizations with the people who colonized their countries some hundreds of years ago (the Romans did the same to them 2000 years ago). And the existing tension between our culture and theirs doesn't do any good either.

Tragic and eventually it will be the store of these pictures that will form the bulk of the evidence of their passing. This is something that digital photography has brought that we have not really come to grips with - distribution. Look at these pictures, taken by someone from the UK, in North Africa, looked at and possibly stored by readers throughout the Western world. Amazing when you think about it.

Interesting thought. I think the Internet accelerated the interest in digital photography because of the ease of sharing pictures with, literally, the rest of the world. These two technologies go hand in hand and I wonder how future historians will make use of it when they study our current civilization. And, as you pointed out, it could help them to make a link with cultures that don't exist anymore today.

Hans