The archaeologist Amel Bouder, currently a fellow of the Berliner Antike-Kolleg, specialises in her work on the iconography of pictorial representations in ancient and late antique North Africa. She has worked on the Basilica of S. Salsa in Tipasa and the funerary stelae of Timgad, among others. Her dissertation, which was supervised by S. Drici (University of Algiers II), V. Gaggadis-Robin and T. Amraoui (Aix Marseille University, CNRS-CCJ), is focused on the description, iconographic analysis and comparison of the stelae from the Roman cities of Caesarea/Cherchell, Sitifis/Sétif and Thamugadi/Timgad.

Abstract

Ancient Theveste is located in south-east Algeria, 242 km from the Tunisian border. It is situated on a mountain at the top of a large plain, surrounded by water springs and fertile land. Due to its position and wealth, the city was the host of several civilisations: Punic, Numidian, Roman, Vandal and Byzantine. It contains a number of monuments and archaeological artefacts that are testimony to all these civilisations. However, certain objects, such as sculptures and bas-reliefs, reflect events of violence and conflict, both religious and political. Religious, between pagans and Christians; political: between Roman dominance and the Vandals. In this paper, I will briefly present the historical and geographical context of the town, then focus on the analysis of objects and the archaeological context in order to understand the different reasons for conflicts and the transformation of the religious and urban landscape as a result of these conflicts. I will also present similar cases attested in other ancient cities, in order to understand this process of violence and these conflicts in a larger perspective.