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LEPTIS MAGNA (Full day
including Lunch)
You depart from the port and proceed through the scenic Libyan
countryside towards Leptis Magna, a magnificent site that was the
birthplace of one of Rome's Emperors.
Your tour of this imposing site commences at the Arch of Septimus
Severus, erected
in 203 to commemorate the visit of the emperor of the same name. You
proceed towards Hadrian's Baths and the Palestra, constructed on the
basis of the baths in Rome and encompassed by a colonnaded portico of
ornate Corinthian style columns.
Following this, you will delight in the Forum, bound by a two-storey
colonnade and boasting capitals that were embellished by the head of
Medusa. The Market Place was initially constructed during the Augustan
age, however it underwent alterations during the Severan era and you
will view the striking remains of this rectangular courtyard surrounded
by an octagonal portico.
All these buildings were primarily constructed out of hard limestone and
large quantities of multi-coloured marble were imported from Italy,
Greece and Asia Minor.
You then proceed to the most magnificent structure of this site, the
Roman Theatre, one of the oldest theatres of the Roman world located at
a short distance from the main site. During the Imperial era, musicians
and dancers performedhere, and Greek tragedies were acted out on few
occasions.
After this historically rich tour, you are invited to a traditional
Libyan lunch in large tents provided especially for the tour.
Your tour draws to a close with a visit of the amphitheatre of Leptis
Magna, constructed in 56 A.D.,
boasting unrivalled acoustics and accommodating up to 16,000 spectators
in former times.
In the late afternoon, you return to the ship.
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