The only building which has been preserved from the ancient urban fabric of Tripoli, Oea in antiquity, is the Triumphal Arch. By considering Arab sources, we may shed new light on its evolution, the place it had been in the past and the way it was considered during those times. If we compare two excerpts from Arab-Muslim historiography, written by local travellers, with Western testimonies, we see that the monument was reinterpreted in the light of the new culture which was established in the region and of the local history of the city.
This article studies the way in which certain Arab authors presented ancient African remains, using three examples (the arch of Marcus Aurelius in Tripoli, the Zaghouan-Carthage aqueduct and the amphitheatre of El-Djem). These testimonies, in addition to being very original within the region, give valuable information, both historically and culturally, including the history of attitudes, on the different periods preceding the arrival of Islam in the region.
Résumé en français
L’intégration de la région africaine au sein de l’Empire musulman fut l’occasion pour de nombreux historiens, géographes et autres érudits de s’intéresser à ces contrées, d’écrire une histoire de sa conquête et, par la suite, de dresser un tableau plus large qui englobait les aspects sociaux ou économiques de la région. Dans le présent travail, nous avons réalisé une enquête sur le Patrice Grégoire à travers les témoignages des récits arabes. Cette recherche est fondée sur un recensement de ces mentions et une analyse de leur contenu. L’objectif majeur est de comprendre l’apport de cette catégorie de textes à un épisode particulier de la conquête arabe de l’Afrique du Nord.
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