This book details the results of Anna Leone's most recent research on Late Antique North Africa, based on her collection of published documentation at Durham, Oxford and Rome, and on the analysis of archaeological evidence in situ. Various aspects of this new contribution draw from the author's previous monograph Changing Townscapes in North Africa,Footnote ¹ updating and moving the discussion forward in order to focus the attention on the transition (dichotomy vs. overlap) between Paganism and Christianity. The volume comprises six chapters where different sets of data are analysed to answer the questions addressed, plus two appendices: a list of all known inscriptions which mention flamines and sacerdotales in North Africa from the fourth century onwards; and a discussion on the architectural evidence of Basilica I at Sabratha,Footnote ² highlighting the main points of the research undertaken by the author at this site in 2010. The visit to Basilica II, originally planned as part of the fieldwork, had to be cancelled due to the start of the conflict in Libya.

The principal goal of the book is to provide an overview of the urban life of the North African cities in Late Antiquity from an archaeological perspective. As acknowledged by the author (3–4), this analysis has the advantage of presenting a complementary insight into a subject traditionally approached by looking mainly at written sources;Footnote ³ on the other hand, the rather limited amount of archaeological data available represents the main obstacle. This is sadly not surprising for scholars working on North Africa: the excavations carried out in the colonial period (mostly by Italian and French missions) allowed little space for stratigraphic methodologies and for the recording of post-Roman phases, thus creating a gap in the material evidence preserved. Precisely because of this, the greatest merit of the book is the attempt to overcome these difficulties by putting together pieces of information from different contexts. Overall, it is an appreciable further step towards a better understanding of the history and archaeology of North Africa in Late Antiquity, particularly welcome given the small number of archaeological studies that try to present regional and inter-regional syntheses. Among these we should cite the work on Caesarea, extended to a broader North African level, carried out by T.W. Potter (Reference Potter1995); the contribution on Late Antique Mauretania Tingitana by N. Villaverde Vega (Reference Villaverde Vega2001); and the collection of evidence of Christian buildings in Cyrenaica by J.B. Ward-Perkins and R.G. Goodchild (Reference Ward-Perkins, Goodchild and Reynolds2003), edited by J. Reynolds for the Society for Libyan Studies.

Chapter 1 (1–26) sets the ground for the discussion presented in the following chapters, including a ‘digression’ on Augustine's work, and on the spread of Donatist and Circumcellion communities in North Africa. In terms of geographical frame, Leone chooses to narrow the analysis to the territory of Numidia and former Africa Proconsularis (Zeugitana, Byzacena, and Tripolitania). Understandably, this could not be consistent given the disparity of evidence available for the various regions, as well as for some sites rather than others. The time frame encompasses the early fourth to sixth centuries: from Constantine's edict of Milan (AD 313), passing through the establishment of the Vandal kingdom, and ending with the Byzantine reoccupation. Again, these periods could not be given equal weight in the text: for instance, the frustrating scarcity of archaeological data on Vandal North Africa makes it difficult to present a complete picture of this crucial phase.

The investigation opens (24) with questions around temples and monumentality, looking then at the religious practices, and finally addressing issues about the moving and re-use of statues and architectural ornament. Given the different nature of these topics, the reader may have the impression that each chapter can be read as a free-standing block of narrative. However, we must keep in mind that Late Antiquity has not left a homogeneous set of material evidence, mainly due to the destruction caused by past excavations, as Leone reminds us. Therefore, with the aim of providing a comprehensive overview of Late Antique North Africa, the author has needed to put together whatever data are still available today, and this needs to be looked at as a whole.

The destiny of temples and other pagan buildings is described in Chapter 2 (27–82), which presents a clear summary of the situation across the North African cities. Archaeology points out the existence of three models: the early abandonment of these structures, their utter destruction, or the re-use for other purposes. Of these, the second model seems to be the less common (30–33). By the end of the fourth century, many temples were derelict and maintenance work was no longer undertaken due to imperial legislation (although sometimes contradictory) that imposed the cessation of pagan rituals and the closure of the buildings where these activities were practised. Leone advances the hypothesis that these rituals did not disappear suddenly, but might have been moved to a domestic sphere (46–55). Podia, niches, and mosaic decorations are the main archaeological traces that would hint at the presence of rooms dedicated to pagan cults in private buildings: some possible candidates are the House of the Red Columns at Acholla, the Maison des Muses at Althiburos, and the Maison d'Amphitris at Bulla Regia.

With regards to monumental buildings, it was in the interest of the city authorities that their spoliation did not run wild in order to maintain the urban decus. A way of keeping this situation under control was surely represented by the conversion of pagan temples into churches, especially in the fifth and sixth centuries, as examples at Mactaris and Thuburbo Maius would confirm (65–76). However, this was not the most common pattern since the change of liturgical practices also implied a different use of space – indeed the Christian community had to meet inside the building, not outside. For this purpose, civic basilicas and public baths were much more suitable choices (76–80). It is unnecessary to say that the converted Severan basilica at Lepcis Magna, with the ambo made of recycled marbles set in the nave, is the most classic example (this is also the picture used for the book cover). The problem with many of these buildings is that their conversion seems to have taken place at a later stage, mostly in the Byzantine period, thus for the time being leaving open the questions about their fate in the fourth and fifth centuries.

Chapter 3 (83–119) discusses the continuity of some pagan practices in the Christian era, divided in two parts, where different approaches are adopted. The first part (87–101) moves slightly away from a pure archaeological perspective, since most observations are based on epigraphic material. This set of data includes the 60 inscriptions of flamines and sacerdotales presented in Appendix 1 (245–54). Luckily, in this case, the fifth-century evidence allows some observations on the Vandal period: judging by the continuity of these offices, it appears that the Vandals chose to assimilate and maintain many traditions of the Late Roman Empire.Footnote ⁴ The second part (101–18) investigates the fate of buildings related to the imperial cult, also anticipating the content of the next chapter while discussing the presence of imperial statues in public spaces. The archaeological evidence from Lepcis Magna (temple of Rome and Augustus, Flavian temple, and temple of the Gens Septimia) and Sabratha (Antonine temple) would suggest that these buildings were already in disrepair in the second half of the fourth century, perhaps due to the much-debated effects of the earthquake of AD 365 or to the invasions of the Austuriani. The evidence from temples most likely dedicated to the imperial cult in the other cities of Africa Proconsularis is more difficult to examine, given the slight information available on their later phases, but it seems that a general decline by the fourth century can be confirmed.

The analysis of pagan statuary in the Late Antique urban landscape is presented in Chapter 4 (121–87). Moving away from a traditional stylistic approach, the topic is discussed by looking at the context and conditions in which the statues were found after the buildings' collapse: statues deposited in pits, cisterns or storage rooms mainly for a later re-use; statues whose setting and provenance are uncertain; statues that were probably still in their original place; and statues that show traces of mutilation or were marked with Christian symbols. As to the latter group, after comparing literary and archaeological evidence, Leone states (139–44) that the damnatio memoriae of pagan idols was a not-so-widely diffused practice in Late Antique North Africa, if compared for instance with the provinces of the Eastern Mediterranean. In a period of economic restraint for the North African cities, it seems that re-use of statues was a more common practice.

Part of the discussion is dedicated to statues found inside pits, cisterns, wells or specific rooms of buildings across North Africa (144–59). From this analysis, it emerges that statues were likely stored for refurbishing decaying or even new buildings, together with marbles and architectural decoration. Attention is then focused on three specific case studies (159–78). The first is represented by Carthage, and more specifically by the Antonine baths. When this complex was excavated, numerous fragments of statues and other marbles were discovered in fifth-century layers, thus allowing the hypothesis that the baths were converted into a marble workshop at this stage. More evidence for the storage of statues in the late fourth century comes from the Byrsa hill. The second case study is the temple of Apollo at Bulla Regia, where the presence of statues not all linked with the deity worshipped there would suggest that the building became a sort of museum or warehouse in the early fourth century. The last case study is the temple of Saturn at Dougga. Here a cistern containing several fragments of a colossal statue was excavated, although it is not entirely clear whether this deposition took place during Late Antiquity or whether it should be related to the activities of the Arab settlement (in particular to the establishment of limekilns).

Chapter 5 (189–234) focuses on the re-use of architectural elements in churches. It opens with some general remarks on the approaches towards the study of spolia, on the decorative styles attested in North Africa in Late Antiquity, and on the trade of marbles in this period (190–200).Footnote ⁵ After this introduction, the central part of the chapter (202–18) deals with urban workshops specialised both in re-working marbles and in producing local-style decoration, and with the main characteristics of early Byzantine architecture. As detailed in Tables 5.1 and 5.2 (213–14, 221), most evidence of re-used marble decoration comes from Carthage, Lepcis Magna, Sufetula, and Sabratha. Perhaps the general picture of urban workshops might be distorted by the overlapping of some of these structures with Islamic limekilns, although the author remarks that Late Antique and Islamic marble deposits present different and easily recognisable features. As for Byzantine architecture and decoration, the re-use of many of these materials in Islamic buildings is unfortunately an issue that must be taken into account, since their provenance cannot be determined anymore: just to cite one example, the Great Mosque of Kairouan is undoubtedly a case in point.Footnote ⁶

The second part of the chapter (218–29) is centred on Sabratha as the main case study for analysing the use of spolia in Byzantine buildings, in particular Basilica I and Basilica II in the forum area. As to Basilica II, the combination of recycled marbles and new, imported decoration would confirm that this building benefited from a privileged status, with Justinian himself possibly being the patron who financed the construction. The discussion on Basilica I needs to be read together with the more detailed information on the field research presented in Appendix 2 (255–69). The marble decoration of the later phases, after the conversion of the former judicial basilica, is made of a ‘patchwork’ of materials taken from other buildings: bases, capitals, columns and pilasters. It is reasonable to believe that the recycling of architectural elements and the seeming absence of imported Byzantine decoration would suggest that a reduced budget for the construction process was available in this case. As a conclusion, apart from a brief parenthesis in the Justinianic period, the evidence for recycling especially in Tripolitania would indicate that this was the first choice adopted in the cities of this region, rather than the more costly importation of new materials (232–33).Footnote ⁷

Finally, Chapter 6 (235–43) presents some concluding observations. Based on the evidence discussed in the previous chapters, Leone states that religion did not cause any evident clashes in the North African cities. The closure of temples, with their spoliation being regulated by the legislation of local authorities, suggests that fanatic destructions were only minor episodes. At the same time, the re-use and re-display of statues in different buildings appears to be linked with economic necessities and with the shrinking of trade and importations. Similar considerations apply to the re-use of architectural decoration. Therefore, to answer the main question raised at the beginning of the book, the general outline of urban life in Late Antique North Africa would indicate that Paganism and Christianity coexisted for some time, until the first died out slowly and progressively.

A final remark concerns the audience to which this book is addressed. In the preface, Leone specifies that it is meant principally for scholars working on Late Antiquity – a sort of select and ‘elitist’ group, as it may be inferred. Nevertheless, the plain style and straightforward argumentations presented in many sections (Chapters 2 and 5 are emblematic in this aspect), make the book accessible also to a wider audience, in particular to students who are approaching the study of Late Antique North Africa for the first time. However, the price set by the publisher for this hardcover edition is far too high and will limit its market to specialised libraries and institutions only. It is to be hoped that a paperback edition will be released soon, so that more readers can afford it.