National Heritage Institute Announces Release of AFRICA XXVIII
The National Heritage Institute (INP) has announced the publication of the 28th issue of the scientific journal "AFRICA XXVIII" for the year 2025, a periodical dedicated to prehistoric, ancient, and Islamic studies and research.
Special Issue: Zama Regia
For the first time since the creation of the Africa journal in 1966, a special issue is entirely dedicated to the famous site of Zama Regia, showcasing a selection of scientific articles. The publication presents a summary of the results of excavations begun at Zama Regia, in the governorate of Siliana, over 30 years ago.
Archaeological Exhibition
Zama Regia is at the heart of the archaeological exhibition "La Magna Mater de Zama à Rome" organized from June 5 to November 5, 2025, at the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum in Rome, and will later be hosted at the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, starting from December.
Editorial Team
This 28th issue is edited under the direction of Tarek Baccouche, General Director of the National Heritage Institute. The scientific committee is composed of Mounir Fantar as Editor-in-Chief and member of the reading committee, which includes Fathi Béjaoui, Moheddine Chaouali, and Samira Sehili. The coordination is ensured by Mouna Hermassi, while the design and infographics are the work of Anis Chkondali.
Introduction
"For many, especially in collective memory, we have often only retained the dramatic events of the Second Punic War in 202 BC," reads the introduction signed by Fathi Béjaoui, who directed the first excavations on the site of Zama from 1996 to 2007. The researcher adds: "Investigations on the ground have been almost absent, unlike other Tunisian archaeological sites, such as its neighbor Mactaris. The city, cited by several ancient sources (Sallust, Livy, Vitruvius, Strabo, or Dion Cassius...), was Romanized quite early and was, in reality, a major urban center of ancient Africa, where the permanence of occupation until the Middle Ages is well attested in written sources, which is confirmed by archaeology."
Summary of the Special Issue
Fathi Béjaoui presents an exhaustive summary of this special issue, "Zama Regia, an important city of Numidian origin, flourishing until the end of Antiquity, fallen into oblivion for centuries, briefly mentioned by European explorers of the 19th century."
History of Research
He looks back on the beginnings of a nucleus of scientific research on this historic site, started in the early 1990s, which allowed the Punic city to "rise from its ashes thanks to the implementation of an ambitious program of excavations and enhancement initiated by the INP under the direction of Ahmed Ferjaoui, then scientific manager of the site, surrounded by a young multidisciplinary team."
Discoveries
Béjaoui cites discoveries as spectacular as they are capital, which have advanced our knowledge of the religious, social, economic, and artistic history of Zama. Multiple archaeological findings related to various aspects of the city's life (economic, hydraulic, defensive, funerary, and especially all that relates to beliefs) are at the heart of the contributions of this special issue "Zama Regia" of the Africa journal.
About the Africa Journal
The Africa journal brings together all scientific contributions of articles and reports of archaeological excavations and exploration in Arabic, French, English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and German. In addition to scientific research, it is also interested in the publication of inventory, preservation, evaluation, and museum exhibition works.
Structure of the Journal
Africa is a journal composed of three series: the first is dedicated to prehistoric, ancient, and Islamic studies and research (Africa); the second to studies and research related to the Phoenician-Punic world and Libyan antiquities (REPPAL); and the third is dedicated to ethnographic studies (Catp).
Online Access
Readers can discover the entirety of the articles published in this 2025 edition of the Africa journal online via the following link: https://bit.ly/47D2yO2
Archaeological Exhibition in Rome
The site of Zama Regia is the witness to the famous Battle of Zama, the last episode of the Second Punic War, in 202 BC. The choice of Zama Regia as the main theme of the journal coincides with the holding of the archaeological exhibition "La Magna Mater de Zama à Rome" at the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum (Parco archeologico del Colosseo) from June 5 to November 5, 2025.
The Magna Mater Exhibition
The title "Magna Mater" (Great Mother or Mother Goddess) refers to the goddess Cybele in Roman mythology, whose cult was widespread in Rome and the Roman Empire. The result of thirty years of Tunisian-Italian excavations, from 1996 to 2016, the exhibition, composed of thirty artifacts from archaeological objects discovered on the site of Zama Regia, is organized in partnership between the INP and the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum. After Rome, this five-month itinerant exhibition will be hosted at the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, starting from December.
Restoration of Artifacts
Transferred to Italy since last March, the artifacts have been restored in the laboratories of the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum with the participation of an INP team. These artifacts date from different eras, before and after JC, including temples and places of worship in ancient Zama, known for its Roman, medieval, and pre-Roman, Numidian, and Punic history.
