All about Archeology of Algeria. This is another Text 2 Audio transformation using Flite. Below is the transcript for the recording: Algeria is rich in prehistoric memorials of human occupation, especially in megalithic remains, of which nearly every known kind has been found in the country. Numerous flints of palaeolithic type have been discovered, notably at Tlemcen and Kolea. Near Djelfa, in the Great Atlas, and at Mechra-Sfa , a peninsula in the valley of the river Mina not far from Tiaret, are vast numbers of megalithic monuments. Notable among the prehistoric cultures of the area is the Capsian culture, whose shell-mounds are found throughout the north. In the Qabr-er-Rumia-- "grave of the Roman lady," "Roman" being used by the Arabs to designate strangers of Christian origin—the Madghacen, and the Jedars, Algeria possesses a remarkable series of sepulchral monuments. The Qabr-er-Rumia-- best known by its French name, Tombeau de la Chrétienne, tradition making it the burial-place of Florinda, la Cava Rumía, the beautiful and unfortunate daughter of Count Julian-- is near Kolea, and is known to be the tomb of the Mauretanian king Juba II and of his wife Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Mark Antony and Cleopatra, queen of Egypt. It is built on a hill above the sea. A circular stone building surmounted by a pyramid rests on a lower platform, square. Originally the monument was about in height, but it has been wantonly damaged. Its height is now : the cylindrical portion , the pyramid The base, in diameter, is ornamented with 60 engaged Ionic columns. The capitals of the columns have disappeared, but their design is preserved among the drawings of James Bruce, the African traveller. In the centre of the tomb are two vaulted chambers, reached by a spiral passage or gallery , about the same height, and . The sepulchral chambers are separated by a short passage, and are cut off from the gallery by stone doors made of a single slab which can be moved up and down by levers, like a portcullis. The larger of the two chambers is long by broad and high. The other chamber is somewhat smaller. The tomb was early violated, probably in search of treasure. In 1555 Salah Rais, pasha of Algiers, set men to work to pull it down, but the records say that the attempt was given up because big black wasps came from under the stones and stung them to death. At the end of the 18th century Baba Mahommed tried in vain to batter down the tomb with artillery. In 1866 it was explored by order of the emperor Napoleon III, the work being carried out by Adrien Berbrugger and Oscar Maccarthy. Madghacen is a monument similar to the Qabr-er-Rumia, but older. It was built about 150 B.C. as the burial-place of the Numidian kings, and is situated southwest of Constantine. The form is that of a truncated cone, placed on a cylindrical base, in diameter. It is high. The columns encircling the cylindrical portion are stunted and much broader at the base than the top; the capitals are Doric. Many of the columns, 60 in number,

• published: 27 Sep 2013
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