Iomnium was a Phoenician, Carthaginian, and Roman port on Algeria's Mediterranean coast at the site of present-day Tigzirt.
Name Iomnium is a latinization of the town's Punic name, which appears to have combined the elements () and (), meaning "Strong Island" or "Peninsula of Strength".P Siggers, Vestiges toponymiques de la presence phenico punique en Sardaigne, p25–35. The same triliteral root can also mean "craftsman", "artisan", &c.
The city was established as a colony on the maritime trade route between Phoenicia and the Strait of Gibraltar. It was part of the Carthaginian Empire and served as a port for the fortress of Rusippisir (now Taksebt) 3 km to the east. It was therefore one of those comptoirs of which Lancel says that they "occur fairly regularly every 30 or 40 km" along the Algerian coastline".S. Lancel, "Algérie"; in La civilisation phénicienne et punique, Brill 1994. pp. 790-791. It was one of the key staging points for cabotage along the northern seaboard of the ancient Maghreb.David L. Stone (2014). Africa in the Roman Empire: Connectivity, the Economy, and Artificial Port Structures. American Journal of Archaeology, 118(4), p. 573. https://doi.org/10.3764/aja.118.4.0565 Titel anhand dieser DOI in Citavi-Projekt übernehmen
Geography Iomnium was located on a peninsula, with the civic buildings located at the end of its cape.
History The town was established as a colony on the trade route between Phoenicia and the Strait of Gibraltar. It formed part of the Carthaginian Empire and served as the harbor for the fortress at Rusippisir (present-day Taksebt) to its east.
It fell under Roman hegemony following the Punic Wars. Under Roman rule, Iomnium had the status of a native city ()Robert A. Kaster, Guardians of Language: The Grammarian and Society in Late Antiquity (University of California Press, 1997). p352 & 466. in the province of Numidia. Excavation has revealed a moderately-sized Roman emporium.Photos of Iomnium . It had a forum, temple, courthouse, and magistrates' office. Its Roman streets were laid out on a grid.Richard Stillwell, The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (Princeton University Press, 2017) p414. A public bath and ornamental mosaic have been found, with inscriptions and statues scattered around.Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister, Stillwell, Richard, MacDonald, William L., McAlister, Marian Holland, Ed., The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites IOMNIUM.
It was conquered with the rest of the area around it during the late 7thcentury.
Identification of its ruins were long delayed by errors in its mention in the Tabula Peutingeriana, which placed it "42 miles" west of Rusippisir instead of the actual distance of about 2 miles.. Iomnium, not Iol, is also probably the Ioulíou () mentioned by the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax, the present text probably representing a scribal error of the original name.
Ruins
The Great Basilica The great basilica of Iomnium, also referred to as the cathedral, as it seems likely that a church of this scale housed the seat of the bishop himself,Gavault P. Étude sur les ruines romaines de Tigzirt. E. Leroux; 1897. stands between the Byzantine and Roman ramparts, but much closer to the latter, from which it is separated by only a few metres. Two other churches we know of in the city were located in the same way. It was common for new religious buildings to be erected in the suburbs, close to the city walls. In these outlying parts of the cities, where land was less in competition with housing, fairly large sites were still available. At Tipasa, the cathedral church was also positioned in this way, but with an additional feature:Gsell, Mélanges de l'École de Rome, XIV (1894), p. 359. due to the imperatives of orientation, it was the main façade that faced the rampart, and not the apse, as was the case at Iomnium.
The Iomnium portal, on the other hand, seems to have opened onto a street or square, as can be seen from the fairly irregular paving stones covering the ground in front of the entrance. The plan of the building takes the form of a vast rectangle 38 metres long and 21 metres wide, with an arched apse projecting by around 2 metres. A building with a curved silhouette, measuring 11 by 22 metres at its widest point, backs onto the left side.
In accordance with the ritual, the longitudinal axis runs east-west. This orientation was easy to determine in Iomnium, where the main roads, as in most coastal towns, generally followed this direction, which also corresponded to the coastal road.
The outer walls are built in a fairly irregular, small-scale bond, with ashlar courses spaced at 2.20 m to 2.70 m apart. The exception is the façade of the central nave and two-thirds of the south wall, which are built of ashlar of various sizes, laid out in a disorganised manner, with small blocks filling the gaps. It is difficult to determine whether this was a redevelopment phase or a specific construction process in this area. The first hypothesis seems the most likely.
The double colonnades separated the nave from the aisles on both sides. Christian basilicas are characterised by four types of colonnade:Corroyer, Architecture romane, fig. 58. those with single columns, the most common; those with square pillars; those combining columns and pillars; and finally, those with double columns, of which there are few known examples in Africa. The Basilica of Iomnium belonged to this last category; however, in the two rows closest to the aisles, pillars sometimes took the place of columns.
The main façade of the church was characterised by ashlar construction for the nave, with walls one metre thick, while the side sections, corresponding to the aisles, were thinner, measuring just 0.60 m. The framework of these sections consisted of stone pillars or chains, surrounded by rubble stonework, which had been partially demolished without the workmen noticing. No doors opened onto the aisles; instead, a triple bay gave access to the nave, framed by four large pillars preserved at varying heights. These doors, which had no rebate, were held shut by crossbars. The pillars of the façade, initially of equal dimensions, were modified to reduce the size of the side doors. The bases of the pillars were made of ashlar, with semi-circular arches above. Some architectural elements, such as T-shaped blocks, were present to reinforce the structure. The bases of the arches rested on overhanging courses, forming cornices or corbels, which took up the entire thickness of the side walls.
Inside, the remains bear witness to the architectural layout of the church. On the left, the colonnade has been largely destroyed, leaving only vague traces. On the right, although partially preserved, it lies on the floor. The columns, ranging in height from 2.95 m to 3.05 m, rested on a dice of earth, with no base of their own. The first bay is partially blocked by a wall separate from the façade pillars, perhaps to reinforce the arcade. Sloping columns rest on debris, while a square pillar replaces a column. The structural changes are evidence of the adaptation of ancient materials to new constructions. Successive bays show toppled columns, revealing the architectural layout. Double columns separate the nave from the apse, while two isolated columns mark the entrance to the apse. The raised apse housed an altar and columns that probably supported a ciborium. Details such as vertical grooves indicate the location of movable barriers. Column bases bear elaborate sculptures, while Christian motifs adorn the door jambs. The adjoining sacristies have internal and external doors, providing a separate entrance for the clergy. Fragments of mosaic reveal the floor levels and staircases that have disappeared. A rubble wall in front of the façade suggests a vestibule, but its exact role remains uncertain.
Miscellaneous buildings The building marked A on the attached plan, a vast quadrangle adjacent to the temple, has some remarkable architectural features. Columns have been discovered, some partially buried. Two columns stood upright, with their bases at a depth of 2.50 metres. A significant discovery is an inscription found inside, mentioning the towns of Rûsuccuru and Iomnium, suggesting a civic or religious use, perhaps linked to trade or worship.
Building B (see plan), a large rectangle around 45 metres long, runs parallel to the street leading to the temple. Although it has not been excavated, its architecture and location suggest various interpretations as to its function and importance within the urban complex.
The building marked C on the plan features a large monument near the end of the headland, with a façade approximately 35 metres long. This monumental structure features imposing walls and well-preserved pilasters. The discovery of another building on the western flank of the cape, consisting of terraces rising up to the level of the town, suggests sophisticated urban organisation and intelligent use of the natural relief.
Building D, a square approximately 17 metres long, is located to the east in line with the temple. Despite modifications made during the Berber period, distinctive architectural features have been preserved, including an inscription carved in relief on one of the blocks uncovered, providing valuable information about the building's function and history.
As for Building E, located at the eastern corner of the Byzantine rampart, some remarkable discoveries have been made. In addition to the discovery of two massive columns measuring 3.35 metres in height, atypical architectural features were observed, notably the absence of mouldings on the bases of the columns. This feature, combined with the presence of cylindrical rather than frustoconical columns, raises interesting questions about the origin and architectural evolution of this building.
Building F revealed two rows of parallel pillars when Mr Lécole, the owner, cleared the site. This discovery revealed a large basilica-shaped room measuring around 25 metres in length, with a distance of 6.35 metres between the two rows. Inside one of the bays, a square well measuring 0.70 m by 0.85 m, with a sill and batter, bears witness to the presence of a solid coping. The presumed entrance to the room, aligned on the south axis, is marked by a threshold measuring 1.70 m by 0.60 m, set between two columns with an attic base and an Ionic capital.
It is likely that a column similar to those in buildings E and E bis, but even larger, stands a few metres to the south, close to the street. This remarkable monolith, at least 4 metres high, had a circumference of 1.80 metres, corresponding to a diameter of 0.59 metres. Its cylindrical structure, with no reduction towards the top, shows that it was rudimentary in size.
Other basilicas The description of the basilica that has now disappeared, located in the southern part of the town against the Roman wall, reveals foundations buried under the road and lots 30, 31 and 32. A quick sketch was made as the stonemasons took possession of the site. It was a rectangle measuring 25 by 13 metres, divided into three naves by two rows of square pillars, seven or eight in each row. At the end was a deep apse measuring 4.50 by 7 metres.
The crypt basilica, located fifty metres to the south of the main basilica, had a remarkable feature with its two storeys, including a basement. The lower level, explored five years ago, had three slightly lowered barrel vaults, each 3.30 m by 7.20 m, connected by arches. The basement had been transformed into a pothole after being flooded, while the upper floor, backfilled to a depth of around one metre, revealed no visible plan but retained a basilica shape.