Exploring the Best-Preserved Roman City

Timgad - a Roman military colony in modern Algeria - is one of the most intact ancient cities. Its ruins exemplify how Roman settlements were laid out, functioned, and developed over time.
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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:00 Principles of urban planning
1:38 Streets and houses
2:19 The forum
4:07 The theater
5:04 Thorum
6:15 Urban expansion
6:47 The Capitolium
7:16 Markets
8:02 Baths
8:41 Churches
9:39 Late antiquity

[@filipsmit5497]

I stumbled on Timgad in 1983 while hiking through Algeria. Then it was an abandoned place, only inhabited by some (beautiful) Roman status (one of Venus!) and a few skinny cows looking for something to eat. Will never forget the excitement of that day

[@garyfrancis6193]

You mean “ statues”. Skinny cows get you excited? Okey Doke.

[@waynejones7825]

Had to have been amazing! All to yourself in a way.

[@monumentaltravel3745]

So cool, those experiences are the best of life.

[@OptimusMaximusNero]

For those interested in Roman structures, the novel "Vespasian: Tribune of Rome", written by Robert Fabbri, has a strikingly beautiful chapter in which the very different areas of the city of Rome are described in vivid detail from the point of view of a teenage Vespasian as he and his Family visits the city for the first time. It is so well written that it literally makes you feel like you are inside the ancient eternal city.

[@megansfo]

I'll look it up. Have yoy read Margaret George's Confessions of Young Nero, which is one of two Nero books? So good, they almost make one sympathize with him. Also, the same author's Memoirs of Cleopatra is fantastic.

[@johnpinkston3818]

Thank you for the recommendation

[@brandonquezada9523]

I read it after reading this recommendation, and it really brings the city to life as it was that I haven’t seen before, thank you

[@micheldaubigne7629]

Thanx for the tip!

[@yigittural9511]

Are these books historically credible?

[@RockHolmes]

Pretty crazy to think Rome started as a small village of wooden cabins. Everything just got replaced by good old reliable marble.

[@undergroundman4646]

I remember from Robert Graves' novel "I, Claudius" that Augustus used to say that he came to a wooden Rome and transformed it in a marble Rome, or something similar. Please, excuse my por englush, it's not my first lenguaje.

[@undergroundman4646]

KZbin doesn't allow me to edit the previos comment, so *poor *language

[@emilianozamora399]

And plaster…

[@theorixlux2605]

I suppose if you go far enough back, any city started as wooden cabins or huts

[@johnladuke6475]

@@theorixlux2605 Not Vegas. It's been a tacky monstrosity of concrete and neon in the middle of the desert from day one.

[@torontoguy1097]

As usual another fascinating video! Our host is one of the only creator who does NOT directly read his script directly from Wikipedia and seems genuinely interested in communicating information in a clear, concise and UNBIASED way. Thank you!!!

[@EndingSimple]

Yeah, this a jewel of youtube channel.

[@kiva667]

Thank you for the video. I visited Timgad in 1975 and had long wondered if it survived Algeria's various troubles. I'm happy to say that it looks pretty much the same as it did 49 years ago.

[@garyfrancis6193]

Pretty much destroyed right down to the ground?

[@Sandesh-sh7ez]

Well, I was just thinking about roman empire. nice timing.

[@irighterotica]

'Et tu', huh?

[@huntertrum3658]

I wish there was a time when I wasn't thinking about the Romans😭😭

[@dj-kq4fz]

Cheez, I think about them constantly for some reason.

[@radiofreeacab]

Imagine identifying with things you didn't accomplish 😂 good luck, mayo supremacists 😂

[@dj-kq4fz]

@@radiofreeacab Image being that obtuse to not recognize jokes about an internet meme from 6 months ago.

[@ClanChannel-pj2vh]

Great video sir, you captured the essence of Roman architectural genius, and the secret to their ability to feel 'at home' anywhere chose to rule. Thank you!

[@yallahyallah4220]

Really happy for you Garrett that you had the opportunity to visit those incredibly well preserved roman cities in person, Carthage next ? :)

[@silverado9104]

An unsung pleasure of Garrett's wonderful KZbin channels: the comments -- Interesting, well-written, and even laugh-out-loud !

[@garyfrancis6193]

“Unsung”? Taylor Swift never wrote a song about his videos? You may be right.

[@silverado9104]

​@@garyfrancis6193 All subjects are unsung until the Swift lady sings

[@zachesherman]

Thank you so much for the video Dr. Ryan. Watching it today, I’m suddenly realizing how closely these houses resemble the Riads in Morocco you can still see today.

[@josephbingham1255]

A fine presentation. I take it this was also for wives and such of the retired soldiers. I met an lady elementary teacher who had visited Rome on holiday and liked to tell every class how great the Romans were. I suppose she though she would be living in a villa with slaves waiting on her - rather than being one.

[@niamohamed9898]

Thank you for your awesome video and the presentation of the beautiful city of timgad I hope you enjoyed your trip and maybe you'll come back to Algeria to discover more about all the Roman sites we have the closest one to timgad is another beautiful city called Djemila about 170km away and it's very well preserved

[@GarfieldRex]

Absolutely incredible, new place in the to go list 👌 thank you!

[@champagne.future5248]

I’m so happy you went on this trip. These kinds of videos have high rewatchability. Looking forward to the rest of your trip content

[@davidwebber814]

I know it's not the point, but @toldinstone always seems to have the most interesting sponsors.

[@johnladuke6475]

He mixes it up, that's for sure. My favourite was the plumber from Queens who paid a history doctor from Chicago to advertise on youtube for the whole world to see.

[@randomvintagefilm273]

This place is amazing. I had never heard of it until recently.

[@lteht6919]

Having Google Maps up while watching thsi was great

[@peterwikvist2433]

Thank you for this information. Loved the combination of photographs and a street map.

[@monumentaltravel3745]

Very well done, thanks for producing and publishing the video. Certainly has got me adjusting my todo list.

[@brick6347]

There's a renaissance city in Poland called Zamość which is laid out very similarly. Surrounded by walls, checkerboard streets, market square in the centre with public buildings and porticos around it (it's World Heritage Site, worth a visit). My question is, Poland obviously wasn't part of Rome, so did this style of building cities just sort of continue in Europe for centuries or was this a specifically renaissance nod to the past?

[@toldinstone]

I would guess that the people who laid out that city had read Vitruvius, or were at least familiar with developments in Renaissance Italy

[@neonity4294]

It isn't a rocket science that grid based cities with an "downtown" are efficient, other civilizations like the chinese or cultures from south america had the same idea. Like the reinvention of pyramids.

[@RileyJSW]

An extremely fascinating and informative video. Great job!

[@edgarsnake2857]

Thanks for another excellent video about a place I was unaware of.

[@RizzstrainingOrder66]

eyo my guy great video as always and congratulations to the 500k really deserved

[@GnomaPhobic]

I really like videos like this. Thank you for traveling to these places and showing them to all of us who can't travel!

[@sgassocsg]

Greatest book on Rome is Masters of Rome by McCullough. Brilliant beyond measure, she was awarded medals by city of Rome. Detailed and thorough she highlights the greatest century of humanity: 100 BC to Christ/ Augustus: Caesar, Marius, mithradates, Herod, Sulla, and Octavian.

[@joeshmoe8345]

Thanks a bunch for sharing this with us Big Dog!

[@dwayneblaser2866]

Looks beautiful there. Would love to visit someday

[@Thorum]

Garrett you're the best!! Thanks for the shout out.

[@kolinako6872]

I just listened to your appearance on forehead fables today at work (I'm late I know). Had a blast, great job lol.

[@lolhs96]

Please go to Volubilis (Walili) Morocco! Old roman, Carthaginian, and older architecture !

[@Kededian]

Wow it must be very impressive to visit this site. Amazing!

[@arrjay2410]

Thoroughly enjoyed this; and found it educational too.

[@lame-related]

I love your content Sir 💯

[@SpiritWolf1966]

I enjoy all of toldinstone videos

[@rodionromanovich449]

Come for the soothing voice, stay for the facts. Thanks for an awesome channel!

[@Talz1803]

I loved this video and I would like to see more ancient urban planning videos.

[@MrZork33]

I hope you enjoyed your stay in my home country!

[@tbird267]

Amazing to experience a site like that with no tourists. I hope you tried out that latrine for the true Roman experience, minus the sponge on a stick.

[@wyattrox03]

Jeez I wish I could have come on this trip, times wouldnt line up as I was traveling in Italy but hopefully one of the future trips!

[@Buckshot9796]

The ability of Rome to project itself across so much time and space is amazing. Funny how a small, obscure village in Italy or a cold, out of the way island in Northern Europe could grow into world empires

[@stargazer4683]

Amazing!

[@crescentworks6855]

What do you know about the excavation of Timgad? I would love to hear more about that as part of your site tours (also good luck at Dougga, I was there 20 years ago and loved it!)

[@kacperwoch4368]

Could you make w video explaining the origin of Roman architectual uniformity? For such a vast empire spanning three continents and incorporating hundreds of cultures the urban planning is remarkably identical across all major cities in all corners of the empire. Even by modern standards this rigid adherance to a set of rules is insane. What was the purpose of it? Was it simply a reflection of totalitarian top-down structure of the state? Or is there more to it?

[@johnladuke6475]

I'm not the doc and this isn't a video, but I'd guess that at least part of the answer is military surveyors. The Legions built things everywhere they went with efficient military uniformity. I don't know if that explains the styles of particular buildings or not. But as in the case of the town in this video, it certainly explains the urban planning similarities and also uniformity in major projects like aquaducts and roads.

[@kacperwoch4368]

@@johnladuke6475 I guess this explains the layout but there is still a question about the style - how did Roman architecture become so universal that every artisan was making the exact same corinthian columns. We do see different materials and different local building techniques (opus afticanum) but these were covered with plaster and tried to imitate the common style. I also find it interesting that even in Britain they still built their houses as if it were a Mediterranian climate. It wasn't the military building the villas and theaters so how comes?

[@Jamie_kemp]

Credit to you - I didn’t click with the last thumbnail and I did for this one. You got me this time Stone…

[@CHAS1422]

Another guy I follow Garth Harney was recently in Timgad. Great video. What happened to the population in late antiquity? Did they lose all sources of revenue and abandon the city?

[@djm58sk]

What was the source of the town’s water supply? And the basis of its local economy?

[@antonxuiz]

I think I see a river in the first photo. Maybe they took water with an aqueduct. Maybe they used wells. Maybe there was a river that is now dried out, like the Nile in Damietta and many more.

[@scizor_kid2937]

Though the 5 road stone highway (which no longer exists) they transported huge water tankers (that resemble modern day semi tanker trucks) that where pulled by 10 horses every day from the river and to the city

[@RussellB]

yes while I can't speak for water I am indeed an expert at the local economy of this particular military colony. At the rectangular courtyard with porticoes for merchants stalls they bought and sold magic the gathering cards with tremendous profit margins

[@MrJoeFuego]

Please make compilations of your videos!!!

[@Foxpuffy]

Kinda surprised because he managed to get a visa to Algeria knowing that it is the hardest visa to get, anyways amazing video

[@rhoddryice5412]

Im an experienced Roman city planner. I spent far to much time playing Caesar in the 90’s.

[@Jcecil17]

Wow, diadem’s do get down to building.

[@Jcecil17]

cameraman is told

[@paulbredt5607]

On the floor in front of most public bathrooms is a small water channel. I find it very interesting that at Timgad, there are slits in the floor instead. Do you know what those were for?

[@timeflysintheshop]

So do you think the paving stones of the main road were laid at an angle to make a smoother ride for the solid wheel wagons and such?

[@lesliea7394]

It would be wonderful if we could be transported back in time to both see and experience the "living" city.

[@JokeFranic]

what would the veterans do for living? Be given a piece of land to farm?

[@scottabc72]

Yes and that was the main motivation for most to join the army. It also was a major driver for expansion of the empire because once they had this huge standing army they had to have new lands to give the retired soldiers.

[@IanZainea1990]

8:12 urban sprawl!! 😮 Hahaha

[@USSResolute]

How would you recommend that we get there? I have had this on my radar for about a month to go visit. Was it safe to visit Algeria?

[@nokizzy4504]

How big were their circular Saws?

[@yigittural9511]

Can someone explain why the upper parts of the buildings are totally missing? I understand the reuse of material or producing quick-lime by heating it up to extreme temperatures but is there such an explanation where they used decaying material for the upper parts like adobe or wood?

[@MigLMariano]

Great Sponsor - I got my wedding ring from Thorum.

[@athrunatreides]

I was thinking of using this video to make my way in Caesar III

[@jcb5782]

That “organic essence” of Roman city planning is a very interesting topic in urban history. That, and the fact that the Romans felt quite at ease building outside the walls. The Romans(in the broadest sense, of course) can be seen as the first peoples who saw the city and the country as one whole. Only Romans could be that arrogant, of course…This is best shown in the process of centuriation(or surveying basically), whereby surveyors planned not just the town in question, but the surrounding countryside for miles. They were very aware of the concept of empire, seeing land and sea as theirs just as much as any town or city. There is an interesting duality in Roman psyche where they think of the city as a perfect order growing around a ‘mundus’ and surrounded by the sacred ‘pomerium,’ but at the same time obscuring that perfection by incorporating the natural world into its urban geography. This is very unlike the Greeks, for example, who seemed to stick to their rigid grids no matter the circumstances. Piraeus is a perfect example. For them and many other prior cultures, the city was the world of man and the country that of myth and legend. For the Romans it was just an extension of the city. This concept, which was quite profound, was crucial for the eventual development from an empire built essentialy out of contracted city states, to a centralised state with common citizenship or the notion of borders, as we indeed see developing in late-Roman and Byzantine history. Of course it is a concept that endures to this day. Anyway, awesome video as always man!

[@fabiansw8]

Plz drop Thorium

[@sliceofheaven3026]

It is pretty impressive to me how Romans kinda had almost a standard layout for towns. They had blocks of houses and streets of the same width running beside most of those blocks of houses alongside with raised stone blocks for pedestrians to walk over the street withouth stepping in anything that the horses might drop for example. It took probably until the 20th century until people started planning towns more methodically in the way that Romans planned them. Maybe Romans werent that great artists in a way but they for sure did a lot for cityplanning and for engineering in general.

[@biggbeefer]

It always makes me sad to hear the phrase "it was later dismantled for building material used for other buildings." This is the fate of so many incredible structures from the ancient world. I sometimes wish our medieval ancestors had the same care for archeology that we do today

[@FreeManFreeThought]

Equally you could say that what they did was better, today many old buildings are turned into rubble & trucked to a landfill rather than anything being reused.

[@tristanthamm505]

They had practical concerns. If a building was not actively in use it would be just a pile of unused resources.

[@MarcoPollo77]

Cool

[@CigarAttache]

When are you hosting your next tour? 🤔

[@toldinstone]

I'm going to Turkey in October! There are still spaces open...

[@RockHolmes]

Speaking of ancient churches, it is quite funny that in the first legals Christian temples there were no pews and Christians had to attend mass standing all the time. Just because Constantine gave them freedom of worship does not mean that they had the right to practice it comfortably. 😅

[@kenjitakashima1041]

"If I can receive the Lord's inspiration standing up so can you dammit"

[@survivalkidro4582]

In orthodox churches you also stand up during mass, only old people sit on the chairs along the walls

[@johnladuke6475]

"And if you're really really good and love Jesus enough, you'll get to go to Heaven, where you may have a seat." But I guess that doesn't make any less sense than the rest of it.

[@lesliea7394]

Since it was based on the basilica design, not a religious building, it makes sense that there was no seating.

[@SpottedSharks]

Now batting: #12, the shortstop, Tim Gad. Tim Gad now batting.

[@faizanrana2998]

AAAAHAHAA he loved cricket

[@faizanrana2998]

What a hit! 6 runs!!

[@1Rab]

Perhaps the greatest legacy of the Roman Empire is the abundant artificial quarries

[@pigdroppings]

At 6:48...who is the auther wearing...Dior, Versace, Calvin Klein ????????

[@andalusianstockmarket6284]

no ads ?

[@mbarnlund]

Would love to see a 3D rendering taking a stab at what this could have looked like “back then!”

[@timborghinitube5457]

Are there any names for the wealthy donors who constructed the market?

[@FrankyBabes]

That Thorum sponsorship surprised me. And they don't just do rings!

[@toldinstone]

I'm becoming genuinely attached to my "Meteorsaur" ring

[@Lochamp]

Who would be the decurions in a roman veteran colony? Senior members of the army?

[@BriarRouge]

We’re you the only person there? So lucky!

[@jusadude7162]

Haha! Timgad was the first retirement community

[@Ungabunga_man]

Next the Roman city Dilligaf!

[@JohnyG29]

What did the Romans call the place? Timgad doesn't sound very "roman".

[@faizanrana2998]

Toujge my butt

[@AnExcellentChef]

The full name was Colonia Marciana Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi. Colonia meant it's a Roman colony, a community of citizens planted on conquered land. The three following names were there to commemorate different members of the imperial house and Thamugadi comes from a Berber word for local topography. With a mouthful like that it's no surprise the name has shortened since.

[@YaMumsSpecialFriend]

Timgadium?🥹

[@jakehammon8631]

It’s crazy to think after all that time existing, being built by the Romans, the Roman’s would take it down. In their mind I would go to say they thought they would have time to rebuild.

[@OPEK.]

It wouldve been actually so funny if this video was only 10 seconds long and he just says “with there hands” and then pauses for a few seconds and it ends

[@yippee8570]

I read that it's not safe for Westerners to travel to Algeria. What's your take on that?

[@reeyees50]

Better than today

[@s.mcchristy9704]

Why would veterans of the Roman Army want to go across the sea to live in a desert? What would they do there? It's abandoned now probably because there is no water...

[@RussellB]

Okay boys lets learn how the Romans built cities! Hell yes!

[@jevosch]

Is thera a video on the safety of ancient baths? Bacterias and other micro organisma must be a real issue?

[@Pyjamarama11]

We lost relatives during the Vandal invasion of Timgad This video may be a little bit too soon

[@johnzimmermann2953]

There are those who call it...Timgad?

[@chuckskilit9808]

You can’t convince me that this isn’t the same dude from Beige Frequency

[@julianszlawski8658]

Who else is here to listen to information about the Romans?

[@giorgio5826]

At least 504 k people who are subscribed

[@bobfrog4836]

I accidentally clicked a link I thought was a Rick Astley video.

[@user-uo7fw5bo1o]

I thought Pompeii and Herculaneum were the best preserved Roman cities.

[@hibernative]

4:00 Wait, so as a guy, you sit and pee into the small slot in the seat that goes down from the seat and into the floor? That seems messy. Has to be something else, right?

[@pixelprincess9]

early gang

[@richardtaylor6341]

I bet the same people buying those watches with Red Woods in them are also driving Teslas.... Pat yourself on the back

[@truecerium4924]

Did the former rank of a legionnaire carry over to his social status in a new colony? I.e. had a former centurion more say in public matters than a simple soldier? Also: how were women attracted or incentivized to join a colony at the outskirts of the Empire?

[@paulkoza8652]

Well, this does not explain everything. This is the mystery of the dissolution of the Roman Empire in its far away cities.

[@peanut422hb]

Just go to Washington D.C 😉😘

[@OptimusMaximusNero]

Romans after conquering a tribe: "Do you see that unoccupied land?" Barbarians: "Yes" Romans: "We are going to build an aqueduct there" Barbarians: 😢

[@aldrinmilespartosa1578]

Noice

[@Zach-mj8ir]

Be a sick COD map.