2015 Israel & Morocco Trip No.21 Volubilis Ruins

Visit Date: May 8, 2015

On the last day of our trip to Morocco, we first visited the magnificent Roman ruins in northern Morocco.

A heartwarming journey to the ruins

いよいよこの旅行の最終日がやってきました。この日は、はじめにメクネスの北およそ30kmにある「ヴォルビリス遺跡」を鑑賞、そして、モロッコの首都ラバトへ向かいここで1泊します。

We checked out of the riad in Fez where we stayed for two nights and were very well taken care of. I paid for the accommodation through Airbnb, but I paid for the service charge, city tax and the dinner I had on the first day of arrival when I left.

Then we took the opposite route from the one we came to, to the Guissa Gate on the north side of Fez el Bali. At the parking lot just ahead, I met my car again after two days. I had already paid the parking fee, but I don’t know how this is managed at all. I was worried that I might be asked to pay again when I left, but it seemed that no one came near the car, so I could just leave.

Then we packed our bags and completed setting up the Google Maps navigation system to our destination, Volubilis. Now it’s time to leave.

We got caught up in the morning congestion until we got to the outskirts of Fez, but once we passed through the outskirts, the rest of the way was a relaxing country road. We could have taken the highway to Meknes and then headed north, but we had time to spare, so we chose to enjoy the scenery while driving slowly along the open road route indicated by Google Navigation.

田舎の一般道は相変わらずの中途半端な舗装。舗装されているのは道の真ん中だけのところがほとんど。

So, when there is no oncoming car, I run in the middle of the road. When it comes, I avoid it of course. Naturally, the wheel on one side of the road is on the unpaved surface and the shaking becomes violent, but I have gotten used to this.

ちなみにライバルは対向車だけではありません。ヤギや牛もいますので、油断禁物です（笑）。

I was accustomed to this kind of scene when I toured the most beautiful villages in France.

Arrival at Volubilis Ruins

After about 1 hour and 30 minutes of such a heartwarming drive, we arrived at the ruins of Volubilis, standing in the vast grassland. I think the time was before 11 o’clock.

Parking is available at the ruins. It is located right in front of the ruins. There was a person in charge, so it seems to be paid. It is a standard type in Morocco that you can pay on the way back.

It seemed to be crowded with many tourists already. However, compared with the sightseeing spot in Japan and the city, people are sparse and sightseeing seems to be easy.

The only World Heritage Site among the Roman ruins in Morocco

Now, this Volubilis site is registered as a world cultural heritage. It’s the only World Heritage Site among the Roman ruins in Morocco. It was around the 1st century A.D. that the Romans built a city here, and it can be said that it was the time when the 3rd Poeni War was finished and the hegemony of this area was well established. During the Empire, this area was the western limit of the Empire, and Volubilis was an important city for its defense.

And it is famous for its very good state of preservation compared to other Roman ruins in the world.

This is the entrance gate.

You can buy an admission ticket at the booth right next to the gate, and then go inside.

The magnificent ruins of the Forum and the Arc de Triomphe

The area where the ruins stand is on top of a small hill. To get to this hill from the parking lot and ticket booth, you will pass through a small valley once. From the entrance to the ruins area, it takes about 2 minutes to walk.

それにしても立派な建築物が多い。ここは[highlight]「フォーラムとバジリカ礼拝堂跡[/highlight]。当時は集会や裁判を行う際に使用された場所。街の中心、政治の中心であったところです。その後、ローマが衰退してキリスト教徒が進出してくると、ここは礼拝堂として使われるようになったそうです。

The arches of the building are very beautiful.

In addition, there was a stork’s nest on the pillar of this forum. It’s very big when you see it close. In Morocco, you can see storks in many places.

そのフォーラムを過ぎると、北側にさらに印象深い建築物が見えてきます。[highlight]「カラカラ帝の凱旋門」[/highlight]です。

Emperor Caracalla is one of the most famous emperors of the Roman Empire. Especially for tourists, he is a familiar emperor, isn’t he? Emperor Caracalla was a tyrant who left a lasting mark on Roman history, but he was also famous for his achievement of issuing the Edict of Antonius and granting Roman citizenship to all the people of the Roman provinces. This edict is said to have effectively led to the abolition of racial discrimination in the Roman Empire, so it has a great significance in history. I think I probably learned about it when I studied world history, but I had forgotten all about it. (Source: WIkipedia, added based on « Morocco » from Globe-Trotter.

These are the major buildings in the ruins.

The rest of the site is a series of residential areas.

This is the remains of the city’s main street. It seems to be what used to be called « Deckmasne Maximus Street. » They have a good water infrastructure and still have a sewer system, but it’s still in good use.

Like a beautiful mosaic museum

さて、ヴォルビリス遺跡には、上で紹介したフォーラムや凱旋門以外に、もう一つ大きな見どころがあります。それは、各住居跡に残されている[highlight]石で出来たモザイク画跡[/highlight]です。しかもその数がとても多く大変充実しています。まるで美術館観光をしているかのようでした。通常ローマの遺跡から出土されたモザイクは、考古学博物館に保存されるケースが多い中、これだけの量を見れるのは大変珍しい方なのではないでしょうか。なお、主要な出土品は、首都ラバトの博物館に保管されているとのことです。

Below are the films in no particular order that I watched them.

「ヴィーナスの家のモザイク」

「ディオニュソスと四季の家のモザイク」

「オルフェウスの家のモザイク」

「デザルターの家のモザイク」

「騎士の家のモザイク」

「ヘラクレスの家のモザイク」

「その他のモザイク」

この時代のモザイクは非常に美しいもの、見応えあるものばかりだと思います。ちなみにこれまで見た中で一番良かったのは、やはりポンペイの「マケドニア王アレキサンダーとペルシャ王国ダレイアスとの戦いのモザイク」ですね。出土はポンペイですが、実物はナポリの国立考古学博物館にあります。歴史好きには必見だと思いますね。

(As it happened)

The ruins of Volubilis are well worth seeing. I enjoyed it very much. The viewing time was about 1 hour and 30 minutes net, and we were just sightseeing around noon, so it was very hot to see the ruins.

After viewing the site, we returned to the parking lot, paid about 20DH (I forgot exactly) to the parking attendant, and left the site.

さあ、目指すは最後の宿泊地「モロッコの首都ラバト」。（続く、次回で最終回か？）