(Leptis Magna)

Leptis Magna was founded by the Phoenicians (Canaanites) at the mouth of Wadi Libda in about 1000 B.C. and it was known by this name to distinguish it from Leptis in Tunisia. Considered one of the oldest Phoenician settlements in North Africa, it prospered through a lively trade in gold, ivory and wild animals.

Libda lies 3 km east of the city of Al-Khums. In preIslamic times it was the capital of the three Libyan cities known as Tripoli: Leptis Magna, Sabratha and Tripoli (Oea). For six centuries, the city of Leptis Magna was used as an anchorage by Canaanite ships from Tyre and Sidon during their voyages in the Mediterranean.

After the Canaanites came the Romans, who built monuments and various public buildings, including a market area, theatres, temples, baths, a race track, a wrestling arena, triumphal arches and decorated mosaic floors. In the Byzantine era, an outer wall and some churches were built. Most of the ruins that can be visited today show a Roman architectural design. The peak of Leptis Mgna's arechitectural splendour can be placed at about the 2nd century A.D. when Septimius Severus was elected Emperor and raised his native city to the dignity it deserved.

During the Rome - Ugarta war, Leptis Magna remained loyal to Rome, a choice which was to link it to the Empire, and lead to its slow and inevitable decline. Collections from the various civilizations that existed around the city of Leptis Magna are portrayed in the museum that forms part of the archaeological site.