Part 47

Skirting the fringes of the hills last named the train now runs close to the Seybouse, and beyond the castle-hill of _Hippo Regius_ (p. 311), on the left, crosses the _Oued Boudjimah_.

135½ M. =Bona.=—STATIONS. 1. _Gare de la Comp. Bône-Guelma_ (Pl. A, 4), the chief station, for Constantine and for Souk-Ahras and Tunis (RR. 49, 51).—2. _Gare de la Comp. du Mokta el-Hadid_ (Pl. A, B, 4), for the St. Charles line (p. 303).—3. _Gare de la Calle_ (Pl. B, 4), for the light railway to La Calle (p. 131).

ARRIVAL BY SEA (comp. RR. 20, 22). The steamers of the Gén. Transatlantique (agent, De Pleurre), of the Transports Maritimes (agent, Teddé), and of the Navigation Mixte (agent, Fadda) are all berthed at the Quai Nord (Pl. B, C, 3), in the Petite Darse. Cabs, see below.

HOTELS (comp. p. 174). _Hôtel d’Orient_ (Pl. a; B, 2), Cours Jérôme*-Bertagna, with frequented restaurant, well spoken of; _Hôt. Cramet_ (Pl. b; B, 3), Rue Prosper-Dubourg; _Hôt. Continental_ (Pl. c; B, 2), Passage des Thermopyles (entrance next the Hôt. d’Orient), with good restaurant, déj. 2, D. 2½ fr., plain; _Hôt. Moderne_, Rue des Volontaires, new.

CAFÉS. _Café St. Martin_, Cours Jérôme-Bertagna; _Brasserie du Petit Gambrinus_, Rue du Quatre Septembre.

POST & TELEGRAPH OFFICE (Pl. B, 3), Place de la Poste.

BANKS. _Banque de l’Algérie_, _Comp. Algérienne_, _Crédit Lyonnais_, and _Crédit Foncier d’Algérie et Tunisie_, all in the Cours Jérôme-Bertagna.—BOOKSELLERS. _Faure_ (_Legendre_), cor. of Rue St. Augustin and Rue du Quatre Septembre; _Borel & Langlade_, Cours Jérôme-Bertagna.

BATHS. _Euvremer_, Rue Damrémont; _Bains Maures_ (comp. p. 175), Rue Bélisaire.—SEA BATHS. _Grenouillère_ (p. 310), in the Avant-Port; _Plage Chapuis_ and others at St. Cloud-les-Plages (p. 311).—THEATRE (Pl. 4; B, 2), Cours Jérôme-Bertagna.—RACES, 24th April.

CABS (stand, Cours Jérôme-Bertagna). Drive 1 (and back 1½) fr.; first hr. 2, each addit. hr. 1½ fr; half-day 8, whole day 15 fr.—OMNIBUS from the Cours Jérôme-Bertagna to the Plage Chapuis, etc.

CONSULS. British Vice-Consul, _H. A. Scratchley_, Rue du Rempart 3.—U.S. Consular Agency, Rue Thiers.

ONE DAY. Forenoon, _Harbour_, _Cours Jérôme-Bertagna_, _Hippo Regius_ (pp. 310, 311); afternoon, _Cap de Garde_ or _Bugeaud_ (p. 311).

_Bona_, French _Bône_, Arabic _Enneba_ (pop. 42,900, incl. 28,300 Europeans, mostly French, 11,200 Mohammedans, and 1700 Jews), on the W. side of the _Gulf of Bona_ (p. 128), a fortified town, is the chief seaport of Algeria after Oran and Algiers and the most important outlet for the produce of the département of Constantine, such as phosphates (p. 315), iron (comp. pp. 310, 314), zinc, cork, cattle, and cereals. Besides its fine harbour, the town offers no sights; but it deserves a visit especially in winter, for the sake of its pretty situation at the foot of _Jebel Edough_ (3307 ft.; p. 169), not far from the picturesque _Cap de Garde_.

Bona lies on the small _Anse du Cassarin_, about 1¼ M. to the N.E. of _Hippo_, which was one of the chief Phœnician colonies on the coast of N. Africa. Under Masinissa (p. 321) Hippo was the capital of Numidia, and under the Roman empire, when it was called _Hippo Regius_, it was the richest port on the N. coast next to Carthage and rivalled Cæsarea (p. 244). Here in 393 met a council of over three hundred bishops, who for the first time recognized the present canon of the New Testament. On that occasion St. Augustine (born in 354 at Thagaste, p. 313), attended as a presbyter and co-bishop. Chief among the four ‘Latin fathers’ and a keen opponent of the Donatists (p. 322), St. Augustine, after his conversion at Milan by St. Ambrose (387), settled at Hippo, where he was bishop from 395 to 430, and died there during the siege of the town by the Vandals. After its destruction by Genseric and the downfall of the Vandals, whose king Gelimer (p. 322) sought his last asylum on Mt. Edough, Hippo arose from its ruins once more under the Byzantines, but it succumbed to the assaults of the Arabs in 697 and was thenceforth entirely abandoned.

The present town of _Bona_, founded later by the Arabs on the slope of the Kasba hill, was seized by the Genoese in the 15th cent. for the sake of its valuable coral-fishery. After the conquest of Tunis (p. 332), it was occupied for a short time by the Spaniards in 1535, and afterwards temporarily by the Compagnie d’Afrique from Marseilles. In 1837, soon after the entry of the French (1832), the old Kasba, built under Charles V., was blown up, and since then the native quarter has been modernized in French fashion.

The *=Harbour=, which has been so improved of late years as to rival that of Algiers, consists of three basins. The _Petite Darse_ (Pl. B, C, 3), 27 acres in area, the old inner harbour, lies near the railway-stations and the mouth of the _Seybouse_; the _Grande Darse_ (Pl. C, D, 3, 2; formerly the outer harbour), 170 acres in area, is a new basin between the _Môle Cigogne_ (Pl. C, 3) and the small creek of _Grenouillère_ (sea-baths); the _Avant-Port_ is a new outer basin of nearly 100 acres adjoining the _Pointe du Lion_. The outer entrance to the harbour, 270 yds. wide, between the _Jetée du Lion_, 1200 yds. long, and the _Jetée Sud_ (Pl. C, D, 4, 3), 1800 yds. long, is difficult of access during N. or N.E. gales. The inner entrances, through the _Jetée Babayaud_ and at the _Môle Cigogne_ (see above), are only 77 yds. wide. The Quai Nord (Pl. B, C, 3) in the Petite Darse is for the large French passenger-steamers, the Quai Ouest (Pl. B, 3) for phosphate, and the Quai Sud (Pl. B, C, 4) for the iron-ore from the mine near Aïn-Daliah (p. 303). Adjoining the last quay and bordering the new reclaimed lands (82 acres) is the new _Quai aux Phosphates_ (Pl. C, D, 3, 4), to be used for the phosphate depots and for the Ouenza iron ores (comp. p. 314).

The broad COURS JÉRÔME-BERTAGNA (Pl. B, 2, 3; formerly _Cours National_), the main street of the town, with the pretty grounds of the ‘Square’, skirts the W. side of the native quarter.

To the W., in the European quarter, are the covered _Marché_ (Pl. B, 2), the interesting _Fondouk_ (Pl. 1, A 2; native market), and, in the Boul. des Jujubiers, the _Marché aux Grains_ (Pl. A, 3).

Outside the W. gates, Porte des Karézas (Pl. A, 3) and Porte Randon (Pl. A, 1), are the _Marché aux Bestiaux_ (Pl. A, 2; Thurs.) and the grounds of the SQUARE RANDON (Pl. A, 2).

The NATIVE QUARTER, where also the Jews reside, is intersected by the Rue St. Augustin (Pl. B, C, 2).

From the Boul. Victor-Hugo (Pl. B, C, 2), on the N. side of this quarter, we may mount in 10 min. to the =Colline de la Kasba=, or _Colline des Santons_ (358 ft.), crowned by the _Kasba_ (Pl. C, D, 1; no admittance). The pine-clad slope is skirted by the pretty _Boul. des Caroubiers_ (Pl. C, D, 2, 1).

A beautiful walk may be taken from the Porte des Caroubiers (Pl. D, 1) on the busy *=Chemin de la Corniche=, round the E. side of the _Batterie du Lion_, always skirting the shore and passing many villas with luxuriant gardens. It leads to the N.W. to the suburb of (2½ M.) _St Cloud-les-Plages_, on the _Baie des Caroubiers_, with its sea-baths (p. 309). In clear weather a pleasant drive may be taken past the little _Baie des Corailleurs_ and the old _Fort Génois_ to (7 M.) the _Cap de Garde_. At the _Semaphore_ (519 ft.), above the lighthouse, we enjoy a delightful view of the bay.

From the _Faubourg Ste. Anne_ (Pl. A, 1) a hill-road with fine views, but almost shadeless as far as the (5 M.) _Col des Chacals_ (1578 ft.), ascends in windings to (9 M.) =Bugeaud= (2809 ft.; Hôt. Fuster, Hôt. Kittler, Hôt. Cronstadt, etc.), a favourite summer resort, beautifully situated among woods of cork-oaks. In clear weather the *Panorama from (1½ hr.) _Kef Seba_ (3307 ft.), the summit of Mt. Edough, embraces the whole coast from the bay of Stora (p. 128) to the Kroumirie (p. 326).

The dusty Route de Constantine (Pl. A, 4) leads through the S. town-gate to a (12 min.) _Bridge_ the foundations of which are Roman, spanning the _Oued Boudjimah_ (p. 309). Between this brook and the _Seybouse_, whose mouth once lay farther to the S.E. and was used as a harbour, extended the site of =Hippo Regius= (p. 309). The road straight on, beyond the bridge, leads to the (ca. 5 min.) _Fortin_, which together with the castle-hill (see below) formed the nucleus of the Roman town. Here once lay the Roman villa quarter. Excavations in the former _Jardin Chevillot_ (adm. 50 c.), now belonging to the town, have brought to light several Roman columns and mosaics (Apollo and the Muses, Triumph of Amphitrite, etc.), the foundations of a small early-Christian basilica, and notably a fragment of wall, about 22 yds. long, composed of enormous blocks of granite, 10–13 ft. long, 39 in. thick, and 27 in. high. This last is probably the oldest and most interesting specimen of Phœnician building in Barbary. In the adjoining property of _Mme. Dufour_ part of the foundations of a Roman villa and superb mosaics have been laid bare. Among the latter are a very lifelike representation of a hunt, fishing-scenes, houses of a town, etc. (admission kindly granted). Of the _Ancient Theatre_ a few steps only now exist.

To the right, just beyond the Boudjimah bridge (see above), diverges the Chemin de Beleliéta, whence after 9 min. a fine road leads to the right to the old CASTLE HILL (181 ft.). On its slope lie the _Roman Cisterns_ of Hippo, resembling in plan those of Bordj el-Djedid (p. 350), but modernized in 1893 for the waterworks of Bona (small fee for admittance). As Lalla Bouna, a famous saint, is supposed to have been buried here, the spot attracts Mohammedan pilgrims on Fridays, when they may be seen picturesquely grouped round the bronze _Statue of St. Augustine_ (1843).

The castle-hill is crowned with the handsome _Basilica of St. Augustine_, founded by Card. Lavigerie (p. 346), and built by Abbé Pougnet in 1885–1900 in a semi-Oriental style, on the model of the cathedral of Carthage (p. 347).

The INTERIOR is unfinished. Over the high-altar is preserved a highly-revered relic of St. Augustine, whose bones were carried in 496, during the Vandal period, by fugitive Catholic bishops to Sardinia, whence they were removed to Pavia by the Longobard king Liutprand in 722. In front of the church we have a fine view of the coast, with its dunes, as far as Cape Rosa (p. 131).

From Bona to _St. Charles_ (_Constantine_), see p. 303; to _Souk-Ahras_, see R. 49; to _Tunis_, see R. 51.

49. From Constantine or Bona viâ Duvivier to Souk-Ahras (_Tebessa_, _Tunis_).

FROM CONSTANTINE TO SOUK-AHRAS, 134 M., railway in 7–9¼ hrs. (24 fr. 30, 17 fr. 35 c., 13 fr.). Change at Duvivier. Railway Restaurants at Le Khroub, Duvivier, and Souk-Ahras.

FROM BONA TO SOUK-AHRAS, 66½ M., railway in 3¼–5¼ hrs. (11 fr. 95, 8 fr. 55, 6 fr. 40 c.).

_Constantine_, and thence to (101 M.) _Duvivier_, see p. 297 and R. 48.—From _Bona_ to (34½ M.) _Duvivier_, see pp. 309, 308.

We cross the _Seybouse_ and follow the narrow dale of the _Oued Melah_ to the S.E., with its fine growth of underwood. 107½ (or 40½) M. _Medjez-Sfa_ (476 ft.); the village (758 ft.) lies to the right, on the Souk-Ahras road. We then mount to (113 or 46 M.) _Aïn-Tahamimine_ (about 1100 ft.), with its eucalyptus groves.

The finest part of the line lies between this point and Laverdure. We cross the ravine of the _Oued Cherf_ by a viaduct. 116 (or 49) M. _Aïn-Affra_ (1739 ft.). We ascend the hill-side to the N.E., partly through plantations of young cork-trees and underwood, and then on the crest of the hill turn sharply back to the S.W. Below lies the line just traversed. At several points we obtain a splendid view of the distant hills of the _Beni Salah_ (p. 308). Among the cork-trees appear the first evergreen oaks.

124 (or 57) M. _Laverdure_ (2369 ft.). The village (2526 ft.; Hôt. Arena; Hôt. Raschiero), 1 M. to the W., on the Souk-Ahras road, with its woods and beautiful views, attracts summer visitors.

To the left appears _Jebel Mahabouba_ (4144 ft.), often snow-clad in winter. Passing through woods of cork and evergreen oak, fringes of the _Forêt de Fedj el-Makta_, we come to the _Col de Fedj el-Makta_ (tunnel), the watershed between the Seybouse and the Medjerda (p. 325).

127 (or 60) M. _Aïn-Sennour_ (2552 ft.). The forest-zone is succeeded by a region of meadows, fields, and vineyards. To the left we sight the bare mountains to the N. of Souk-Ahras.

134 (or 66½) M. =Souk-Ahras.=—_Railway Restaurant._—HOTELS. _Hôtel d’Orient_, in the market-place, with good restaurant, R., déj., D., 2½ fr. each, pens. 7½ omn. 1 fr., quite good; _Hôt. de l’Univers_, similar charges; _Hôt. de France_.—_Café de Marseille_, in the market-place.

_Souk-Ahras_ (2297 ft.; pop. 9000) lies very prettily in a lofty, undulating plain enclosed by distant hills. It is a rapidly rising place, with quite a European aspect, and is one of the pleasantest provincial towns in Algeria. It dates only from 1852, when it was founded as a convenient centre for roads radiating to Constantine, Bona, and La Calle, and as a mart for the phosphates of Tebessa (p. 315). It stands on the site of _Thagaste_, the birthplace of St. Augustine (p. 310), who mentions it with affection in his Confessions. At the foot of the old castle-hill, an excellent point of view, are placed a few antiquities from Khamissa (see below). Cattle-breeding and vine-culture are the chief industries in the environs.

The EXCURSION TO KHAMISSA, about 23 M. from Souk-Ahras, is best made by motor-car as far as Ksar Tifech and thence on mule-back. We follow the Sedrata highroad to the S.W., soon crossing the _Medjerda_ (p. 325). About halfway we enter the _Plaine de Tifech_, watered by the Oued Tifech and once fertile and populous. We then reach the _Ksar Tifech_ (3150 ft.), on the slope of _Jebel Tifech_ (3609 ft.), with the ruins of a Byzantine fortress, the most considerable relic of the Numidian _Tipasa_. Thence we ride to the N.W., in the direction of the ancient Roman road, to *=Khamissa= or _Khemissa_ (3084 ft.; no inn), the interesting site of the Roman _Thubursicum Numidarum_, one of the oldest and most important towns in Inner Numidia. It lies on a hill high above the valley of the Medjerda, which rises a little to the N.W. on the _Râs el-Alia_ (4321 ft.). Among the ruins may be noted the _S.E. Gate_, a triumphal arch with a single passage, on the Tipasa road; near it, the underground _Columbarium_ (hypogæum); the _Thermae_; and also, in the Platea Vetus, the chief square in the E. quarter of the town, an unfinished _Roman Temple_ besides other buildings. On the crest of the hill we come upon the foundations of a _Byzantine Basilica_ and a small _Byzantine Fortress_ (‘Ksar el-Kebîr’). On the N. hill-side is the _Roman Theatre_, with its fairly preserved stage-building (comp. p. 293). The _Forum_, on the W. margin of the hill, and a _Triumphal Arch_ with three passages were afterwards incorporated with a second _Byzantine Fortress_. All around are extensive _Burial Grounds_, some of them with rock-tombs.

From Souk-Ahras to _Tebessa_, see R. 50; to _Tunis_, see R. 51.

50. From Souk-Ahras to Tebessa.

79½ M. NARROW GAUGE RAILWAY, in 5½–6½ hrs. (14 fr. 35, 10 fr. 25, 7 fr. 70 c.; 1st cl. return 20 fr. 20 c.). Railway Restaurant at Clairefontaine only. Morsott is preferable to Tebessa for night-quarters.

_Souk-Ahras_, see above. We cross the Tunis line (R. 51) by a viaduct, and descend to the S. into the valley of the _Medjerda_ (p. 325), latterly through underwood and Aleppo pines. 5 M. _Les Tuileries_.

We next ascend the narrow and picturesque side-valley of the _Oued Chouk_, through pine and cork-oak woods. Beyond (9 M.) _Oued-Chouk_ (1975 ft.) we skirt the upper course of the stream, now called _Oued el-Hammam_, in a barren hill-country, and at places through limestone gorges, bordered with Aleppo pines.

17½ M. _Dréa_ (2634 ft.), an alfa (esparto grass) station.

From Dréa we may visit the native village of _Mdaourouch_ (3058 ft.), 3 M. to the S.E., on the N.W. slope of _Jebel Bou Sessou_ (3566 ft.). This was the ancient =Madaura= or _Madauros_, the birthplace (about 125 A. D.) of the Roman author _L. Apuleius_. It was once the seat of a famous school of oratory, at which St. Augustine (p. 310) was educated. On its site, where there are relics of a Roman _Mausoleum_ and the foundations of an early-Christian _Basilica_, rises the conspicuous _Byzantine Castle_, dating from the time of Solomon (p. 315), a building curiously irregular in plan, partly enclosed by later (Berber?) fortifications. Large _Thermae_ also have been recently excavated.

Beyond Dréa we traverse fields and poor pastures to the S.W.

22½ M. _Mdaourouch_ (2809 ft.; no inn), the highest point on the line, the watershed between the Medjerda and the Mellègue (see below). In the vicinity is the village of _Montesquieu_.

A field-road leads to the E. from the station to (4½ M.) the village of _Mdaourouch_ (see above).

_Khamissa_ (p. 313) may be visited from Montesquieu (see above) or Mdaourouch if we are fortunate enough to find mules there. We follow the Sedrata highroad to the W. to (9 M.) the caravanserai (Bordj; 2756 ft.) in the Plaine de Tifech (p. 313), whence we turn to the N. to (13 M.) _Ksar Tifech_ (p. 313) and thence go on to (16 M.) _Khamissa_.

Beyond Mdaourouch there are long stretches of bleak steppe-like country. The train descends to (30 M.) _Oued-Damous_ (1982 ft.), in the valley of that name. It then skirts the _Oued Kebarit_ and rounds the E. slope of _Jebel Kréréga_ (3251 ft.), a tableland with scanty woods of pine and arbor vitæ. Far away to the left rises _Jebel Ouenza_ (4229 ft.), with the largest iron-mines in Algeria, owned by the ‘Société d’Etudes de l’Ouenza’. (Mineral-line to Bona or to Nebeur projected; comp. p. 325.)

We now ascend the valley of the _Oued Mellègue_. To the right appear the bare _Kef Bou Djabeur_ (2504 ft.) and _Kef Raghma_ (2700 ft.), similar in type to the hills fringing the Sahara.

38 M. =Clairefontaine= (2146 ft.; Buffet, D. 3 fr., very fair), an important alfa station, with artesian wells. Sunday market.

Passing between _Jebel Mestoula_ (3488 ft.) on the right and _Jebel el-Dzeroua_ (3432 ft.) on the left, we enter, to the S.E., the valley of the _Oued Chabrou_. To the S., above the steppe, which is overgrown with alfa and enlivened by browsing camels, rise the ranges of _Jebel Metloug_ (4111 ft.) and _Jebel Mzouzia_ (4514 ft.).

60 M. =Morsott= (2559 ft.; Hôt. de Lyon or Sivignon, good cuisine), below _Jebel Hout es-Srir_ (3445 ft.), a thriving European settlement, with its Monday market and alfa trade, is the starting-point of the mineral-line to (9½ M.) _Jebel Bou Kadra_ (4734 ft.) and the iron-mines of the Mokta el-Hadid Company (p. 303).

Here, partly seen from the train, are relics of the Roman _Vasampus_: a _Gateway_ of solid masonry, perhaps that of a temple-court; _Thermae_, with unusually small chambers; and two _Mausolea_. There are also remains of the foundations of an early-Christian _Basilica_, curiously planned, 40½ by 16¾ yds. (three portals to the nave, apse with four side-recesses, baptistery behind the choir-recess).

69½ M. _Youks les Bains-Boulhaf le Dyr_, station for the baths of _Youks-les-Bains_ (p. 318), 7 M. to the S.W., and junction of the mineral-line to the phosphate-beds of _Jebel Dyr_ (4977 ft.). On the right rises the ‘_Chapeau de Gendarme_’ (4393 ft.; Arabic _Jebel bel-Khifeh_), whose characteristic form we do not see until near Tebessa. A line of rails to the left leads to the phosphate-deposits of _Aïn-Kissa_.

In the foreground appear the hills of Tebessa, to the S. _Jebel Tenoukla_ and _Jebel Osmor_ (p. 318), and S.W. the _Jebel Doukkan_ range (5528 ft.). Tents of the nomads are often seen on the steppe. We cross the _Oued el-Kébir_, as the Oued Chabrou is called here.

79½ M. =Tebessa.=—The STATION lies to the W. of the town, outside the Porte de Constantine, 8 min. from the Place d’Armes. Omn. twice daily.

HÔTELS. _Hôtel d’Orient & de la Métropole_, Rue Caracalla, 2 min. from the Arch of Caracalla, R. 3–3½, B. ¾, déj. 2, D. 3, pens. 8–9½, omn. 1 fr.; _Hôt. du Cours_, Place d’Armes, unpretending, but very fair.

A hasty visit to the sights, in the following order, takes 2–3 hrs.—For the description of Tebessa comp. also _Cagnat’s_ book mentioned at p. 289.

_Tebessa_ (2717 ft.; pop. 5700, mostly Mohammedans), a poor town, now unimportant except as the centre of the E. Algerian phosphate trade, was the ancient _Theveste_, one of the most prosperous towns in Inner Numidia from the Punic period (about B.C. 250–200) onwards. It was the first headquarters of the Third Legion (p. 286); in 123 A. D. it was connected with Carthage by a Roman military road; and after its destruction by the Berbers it was re-founded in 535 by Solomon, the general of Justinian (p. 541). Its ruins of the late-Roman and Vandal periods are among the finest in Barbary, but as they lie off the beaten track they are almost forgotten.

The town is still enclosed by the =Byzantine Walls= built by Solomon, forming a rectangle of 350 by 306 yds., with fourteen towers, two gates, and a sally-port on the S. side. The old upper gallery and the battlements were removed in 1852 when the walls were restored.

The modern W. Gate, the Porte de Constantine, leads first to the pleasant PLACE D’ARMES, the centre of traffic. Two minutes’ walk to the E. of this is the so-called _Porte de Solomon_, the most interesting part of the fortifications, with a round-arched passage and two square towers 56 ft. high. Outside of it the natives hold market on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

The N. Gate, where the walls project a little on both sides, is formed by the *=Arch of Caracalla=, dating from 214 A. D., once in the middle of the far more populous Roman town, but now at the end of the main street coming from the Place d’Armes.

This arch, resembling the Janus Quadrifrons at Rome, is the most imposing Roman monument of the kind in Algeria, rivalling those of Tripoli (p. 408) and Leptis Magna (p. 412). It forms a square of about 12 yds. each way, with four round-arched passages, 27 ft. high and 15 ft. wide. Each pillar is adorned on its two outer sides with two Corinthian pilasters and two projecting Corinthian columns, all on a common base. Of the sculptures on the keystones of the archways, under the lavishly decorated architrave, there are preserved, on the E. side, a medallion in high relief of Minerva and a Medusa, and on the W. side a Fortuna (goddess of the town) and an eagle holding a bundle of thunderbolts. On three sides, in the middle of the attica, which is 4 ft. high, there are Latin inscriptions referring to Caracalla and his parents, Septimius Severus and Julia Domna. On the N. side, when the arch was restored, there was added an inscription in honour of Solomon. On the S. side is still preserved an ædicula, one of the four destined for statues adjoining the central dome. On the inner side of two of the pillars are long inscriptions from the testament of C. Cornelius Egrilianus, the builder of the triumphal arch.