a. Viâ Castiglione.
STEAM TRAMWAY (p. 219) from the station in the Quartier Bab el-Oued
(Pl. B, 1 ; in connection with the electric tramway from Rue Waisse,
Pl. C, 4) to (28½ M.) _Castiglione_; four trains daily in 2¾–3½ hrs.
(fares 3 fr. 15, 2 fr. 30 c.).—DILIGENCE from Castiglione three times
daily to (5 M.) _Bérard_ and twice daily viâ (43½ M.) _Tipaza_ to (60½
M.) _Cherchell_. In order to visit the _Tombeau de la Chrétienne_ we
have to take a private vehicle (costing, from Castiglione to Tipaza,
with a stay of 2–3 hours at the Ferme Seuillet or the Ferme du
Rocher-Plat, about 12–15 fr.).
Interesting ROUND OF THREE DAYS: 1st. By early train to Castiglione;
drive (taking provisions) to Ferme Seuillet (walk to Tombeau de la
Chrétienne) and to Tipaza (see pp. 238, 239); there visit the E. hill,
sending carr. on to the hotel.—2nd. Visit lighthouse and W. hill of
Tipaza early; drive to Cherchell about noon (see pp. 242, 243).—3rd.
Drive about noon to Marengo (see pp. 244, 243; lunch); take afternoon
train to Blida, and evening train thence to Algiers.—Attractive but
more costly, FOUR DAYS’ ROUND: 1st. By early train to Blida; by midday
or evening train to Bou-Medfa; by omnibus to Hammam Rhira (p.
212).—2nd. By carr. from hotel to (16 M.) Marengo, and thence by
steam-tramway (see pp. 243, 244) or by carr. to Cherchell.—3rd. Drive
about noon to Tipaza (see pp. 243, 242).—4th. Tombeau de la
Chrétienne; towards evening by steam-tramway from Castiglione back to
Algiers.—Tours by MOTOR CAR, comp. p. 173.
From Algiers to (3¾ M.) _Deux-Moulins_ (_St. Eugène_), see pp. 235, 236.
Here begins the finest part of the coast-road, which will repay walkers
as far as Cape Caxine or Guyotville. The spurs of _Mont Bouzaréah_ (p.
235), furrowed by many little ravines, come close down to the sea. The
coast, undermined at places by the surf, presents a picturesque series
of small headlands, bold cliffs, and rocky islets.
The most striking spot is the (5 M.) *=Pointe Pescade= (Restaurant), a
headland crowned with the mouldering walls of a Turkish fort (1671),
overlooking the blue sea and the coast as far as Cape Matifou and
beyond.
By road and railway we next come to the (5½ M.) _Bains Romains_
(Hôt.-Restaur.) and the _Hôt. de la Fontaine Romaine_, both sea-bathing
places in summer, to (7 M.) _Villas_, lying below the _Forêt de Baïnem_
(p. 235), and to (8 M.) _Cape Caxine_, on the gneiss rocks of which
rises a _Lighthouse_ (210 ft.; visible 24 M. round).
Beyond the precipitous _Grand Rocher_ lies (9½ M.) _St. Cloud-sur-Mer_,
a sea-bathing place. The coast now grows flatter.
10 M. =Guyotville= (82 ft.; Hôt. des Touristes, humble), a village of
3500 inhab., with a colony of Italian peasants, who cultivate early
vegetables and grapes on the sandy soil, protected from the sea-winds by
plantations of Spanish reeds (Arundo donax) and in spring by narrow
fields of rye. On the plateau to the S. of the village, in the territory
of the tribe of _Beni-Messous_, a number of dolmens (see pp. 324, 229)
still exist.
From Guyotville to the _Forêt de Baïnem_, see p. 235.
Near the low headland of _Râs Acrata_ the road reaches the broad *_Bay
of Castiglione_, much exposed to N.W. gales, which extends in a slight
curve to _Jebel Chenoua_ (p. 242), a hill we sighted soon after leaving
Guyotville. We have a view also of the pretty adjoining bay of
Sidi-Ferruch. To the right, near (12½ M.) _Les Dunes_, part of the
sand-hills is cultivated.
13 M. _La Trappe_ and (14½ M.) _Staouéli_ (Hôt. Malakoff, quite good)
are stations for _Staouéli-Trappe_ (p. 234).
From Staouéli and from the (15½ M.) _Station Sidi-Ferruch_ roads lead to
the N.W. (one 2¼, the other 2 M.) to the small sea-bathing village of
=Sidi-Ferruch= (49 ft.; Hôt. de la Plage, plain), at the end of a sandy
tongue of land formed by the surf and by the deposits of the Oued
Mazafran (p. 238). It attracts also jackal-hunters and anglers from
Algiers in winter. An inscription at the entrance to the _Fort_ recalls
the landing of French troops here in 1830 (comp. p. 234). A little to
the N.W. are the scanty remains of an _Early Christian Church_, with
baptistery, etc.
As we proceed, the Atlas of Blida (p. 169) is visible for a time. 18 M.
_Zéralda_ (62 ft.; Hôt. de Zéralda), an agricultural village, lies in a
broad coast-plain, the lowest of four old beach-terraces which mount to
the N.E. in gigantic steps to Staouéli-Trappe.
The road now leads between low sand-hills, with pines and underwood, to
the _Oued Mazafran_ (called in its upper course Oued Chiffa, p. 213),
through whose valley, deeply furrowing the Sahel, we have another
glimpse of the Atlas of Blida.
22 M. _Mazafran_, on the left bank of the stream, is the junction of a
branch-line to (6¼ M.) the little town of _Koléa_ (460 ft.; Hôt. de
France; Hôt. du Commerce), founded by Andalusian Moors in 1550, finely
situated on the S. slope of the Sahel, and noted for its fruit-culture.
The Jardin des Zouaves deserves a visit.
The next stations are for the use of villages situated above the line,
on the N. margin of the Sahel plateau. 23½ M. _Douaouda-les-Bains_, 25½
M. _Fouka-Marine_, two small sea-bathing places. In the distance, on the
crest of the Sahel, appears the Tombeau de la Chrétienne, resembling a
haystack.
28½ M. =Castiglione= (128 ft.; Hôt. du Tapis-Vert, good; Hôt. de Paris;
Hôt. de l’Oasis, humble) is a large village of 2000 inhab., on the
vine-clad slope of the Sahel. Below are the unpretending sea-baths,
where lodgings may be procured.
The HIGH ROAD TO (43½ M.) TIPAZA, affording at first a beautiful view of
the coast, of Jebel Chenoua, and the hills of the Dahra (p. 209) beyond
Marengo, leads viâ the fishing-villages of (30 M.) _Chiffalo_ (founded
by Sicilian fishermen from Cefalù) and (31 M.) _Bou-Haroun_, whose
inhabitants are engaged in the anchovy and sardine fishery, to (33½ M.)
_Bérard_ (66 ft.; Café-Hôt. Bérard, poor), a banana-growing village.
36 M. _Ferme Seuillet_ (102 ft.), a large farm, is the starting-point
for the _Tombeau de la Chrétienne_. The rough road to the tomb (2½ M.)
ascends in windings (partly avoided, after 10 min., by a short-cut to
the left), at first through underwood, and then to the S.W. through
vineyards.
The so-called *=Tombeau de la Chrétienne= (856 ft.; Arabic _Kbûr
er-Rûmia_), the largest tomb in the Atlas regions and one of the most
conspicuous of sailors’ landmarks on the whole coast of Algeria, stands
on one of the highest points of the S.W. range of the Sahel. It was
probably erected by Juba II. (p. 244), in imitation of the Medracen (p.
274), as a tomb for his family. The building consists of a low square
pedestal, of about 70 yds. each way, and a circular substructure
relieved by sixty Ionic half-columns and four blind portals, crowned
with a pyramid rising in steps, of which 33 still exist. The present
name is derived from the cruciform mouldings of the door-panels. The
monument, originally 130 ft. in height, but now 108 ft. only, has
suffered severely from the vandalism of native treasure-hunters, who
bored two tunnels into it, and from bombardment by two deys of Algiers,
bent on the same quest. Further damage was done by earthquakes in 1825
and 1867, and the masonry also has been loosened by the removal of its
leaden cramps. The building is surrounded by dense underwood and is
partly overgrown by it on the N. side. Key and candles at the keeper’s
hut on the N.E. side (fee 50 c.).
The ENTRANCE is under the blind portal on the E. side, where the
original vestibule has almost disappeared. A short passage leads to
the antechamber; in the wall on the right, near two rude reliefs (lion
and lioness), is a passage, once closed by stone slabs, with a flight
of seven steps. Beyond this is a winding gallery, about 165 yds. long,
probably destined for funeral processions, with small wall-niches for
lamps. The gallery leads to the two inner chambers, an ante-room, and
the larger chamber, with three wall-niches, in the centre of the
monument, probably the tomb of the kings, but now quite empty.
The ASCENT of the monument, from the S. side, rather a toilsome climb,
conveys a still more striking idea of its grandeur than the long
groping in the inside. The *Panorama from the top embraces the coast,
from Sidi-Ferruch to Jebel Chenoua; the hills of the Dahra, with Jebel
Zaccar Chergui (p. 212) to the S.W.; the broad Mitidja plain to the
S.; and the Atlas of Blida with the ravine of the Chiffa.
We return to the Ferme Seuillet by the same route, or descend to the
N.W. by the steep road to (37½ M.) the _Ferme du Rocher-Plat_ (85 ft.).
The highroad next passes the (42 M.) _Ferme Demonchy_, intersects a
beautiful eucalyptus-grove, and passes the E. hill of Tipaza (p. 242).
In approaching Tipaza we obtain a charming view of its little bay and
the lighthouse.
43½ M. =Tipaza.=—HOTEL. _Hôtel du Rivage_, prettily situated at the S.
base of the lighthouse hill, with a small garden, R. 2½, B. ½, déj. or
D. 2½–3, pens. 7 fr.
_Tipaza_, a small seaport of 2000 inhab., mostly Mohammedans, founded in
1854, stands on the ruins of _Tipasa_, a place with a Berber name, but
originally an ancient Phœnician settlement, and from the time of Emp.
Claudius (about 40 A. D.) a Roman colony. Thanks to its advantageous
site near the Nador valley, the main outlet in Roman times of the
densely-populated W. Mitidja, Tipasa became in the 2nd cent. one of the
most prosperous seaports of Mauretania. The most glorious period in its
history was at the close of the 4th cent. when Tipasa, famed for its
staunch adherence to the Catholic faith, repelled the attacks of Firmus,
the Berber prince (p. 244); but after a century of prosperity most of
the inhabitants fled to Spain in 484 in order to escape from the
persecutions of Hunerich, king of the Vandals. Since its occupation by
the Arabs the old town, already much impoverished, has disappeared from
the page of history.
The site of Tipaza, secluded and peaceful, is strikingly picturesque.
The adjoining coast is richly varied, and close by rise the great
limestone rocks of Mt. Chenoua. At the same time there are remains of
numerous Roman and early-Christian buildings around, all in complete
ruin, and partly overgrown with luxuriant vegetation.
Ancient Tipasa, originally occupying only the central castle-hill, which
now bears the lighthouse (see below), gradually extended over the
coast-plain to the S. of the bay, and also along the slopes of the W.
and E. hills. The late-Roman _Town Walls_, 2410 yds. in length, are
still traceable at places. The busy trade of the port led, probably at
an early period, to the construction of a broad _Landing Place_ with
substantial quays, the space for which was obtained by the levelling of
the rocky terrace on the coast. The Roman _Outer Harbour_, behind the
rock-islets near the E. hill, probably served as a place of refuge in
stormy weather only. Since the middle ages the coast-line has been much
modified by the encroachments of the sea.
We begin our walk on the N. side of the village, at the present
_Harbour_, which occupies the site of the now submerged Roman
landing-place. The huge rock (possibly used as a mausoleum), undermined
by the sea, which rises in the middle of the harbour, was left untouched
by the Roman engineers. During the construction of the new harbour the
remains of a Roman _Cistern_ and underground _Conduits_ were unearthed.
From the harbour we walk to the N., round a small bay, to the LIGHTHOUSE
HILL (112 ft.), gorgeous with flowers in spring, where a few vestiges of
Roman streets, cisterns, and a temple are traceable (see above). At the
_Lighthouse_ (phare) we obtain a delightful view. Near it, on the N.
margin of the hill, a precipice has been formed by a landslip.
The road connecting the highroad with the harbour and the lighthouse
hill leads past the Hôtel du Rivage and through the *=Thermæ=, a grand
bath-house of the 2nd or 3rd cent., rivalling the W. baths of Cherchell
(p. 246). Among the ruins, still 30 ft. high in places, extending into
the Jardin Trémaux, the frigidarium on the E. side is still quite
recognizable.
Near the hotel, to the left, we enter the =Jardin Trémaux= (adm. kindly
granted), the garden of a private estate, adorned with antique and
early-Christian relics. On the E. side, near the baths, we observe,
protected by a roof, a fine late-Roman sarcophagus, bearing nuptial and
sacrificial scenes. Near it is an old Christian sarcophagus, with
Christ, the Good Shepherd (beardless); on the sides are lions tearing a
gazelle to pieces.
In the middle of the grounds, to the left of the road, are a few relics
of a Roman _Amphitheatre_ (3rd cent.?), which even during the French
period has served as a quarry.
The road, farther on, passes the =Nymphæum= (on the left), a sumptuous
late-Roman fountain (3rd or 4th cent.), 26 yds. in breadth, backed with
a semicircular wall. In front of it is a platform 6½ ft. high, once
bedecked with Corinthian columns and with statues, over which the water
descended into a narrow trough or basin.
Immediately behind the fountain is a well-preserved vault, once the
_Reservoir_ for the water brought to Tipasa by an underground conduit,
5½ M. long, from the valley of the Nador. A few paces away are the
noteworthy ruins of a Roman _Mausoleum_ (1st cent.?).
The _Roman Theatre_, at the exit of the gardens, to the right of the
park-road, yielded the materials for building the hospital of Marengo.
Several tiers of seats are still traceable.
From the _W. Gate_, of whose round towers alone a few relics remain, we
follow the vestiges of the town-walls to the N. W. to the (5 min.) WEST
HILL (about 100 ft.), the _Râs el-Knissa_ (‘church promontory’) of the
natives.
A few paces to the right of the town-walls, just above the undermined
margin of the coast-terrace, some fragments of a wall and two arcades of
an aisle mark the site of the =Bishop’s Church= of Tipasa. Erected in
the 4th cent., the church was a basilica, 57 yds. by 49 yds., with nave
and triple aisles; the nave, 14½ yds. in breadth, was afterwards
trisected by the addition of two rows of columns; little remains of the
semicircular choir-recess.
Of the square _Baptistery_, on the N. side of the church, there remain
the round font, with three steps, and fragments of the external walls.
An adjoining chamber has a fine mosaic pavement; several other rooms
show traces of a heating apparatus.
On the left, to the W. of the town-walls, lay the early-Christian
_Western Cemetery_, with countless rock-tombs, sarcophagi, and monuments
sadly desecrated by herds of cattle. About a hundred paces to the N. of
the church, in the rocks rising above the sea, are several _Grottes
Funéraires_. Near them is a large round _Mausoleum_, once adorned
externally with sixteen half-columns, containing fourteen wall-niches
(arcosolia) for coffins and the slab of a table for love-feasts
(agapai).
About 2 min. to the S. W. is the _Burial Church of Bishop Alexander_,
built at the end of the 4th cent., a small basilica with nave and
aisles, of irregular shape, of which the foundations only remain. On the
E. side is a rectangular altar-niche with nine sarcophagi, containing,
as the eulogistic inscription in the nave declares, the remains of ‘the
nine righteous men’ (probably the nine predecessors of Alexander). The
right aisle contains many sarcophagi and a semicircular table for
love-feasts. At the W. end of the nave are a mosaic with fish in seven
rows and an inscription in memory of the founder, who was probably
buried in the W. apse, added later, and accessible by a narrow portal
only.
We now return to the harbour, and ascend thence, close to the sea, past
the remains of a small _Roman Burial Ground_, to the (10 min.) EAST HILL
(115 ft.), outside the town-walls where thousands of graves indicate the
great extent of the early-Christian _Eastern Cemetery_.
Here, beyond a few peasants’ huts, we reach the best-preserved ruin at
Tipasa, the *=Basilica of St. Salsa=, the patron saint of the town. This
church, built in the first half of the 4th cent, over the heathen
sarcophagus of Fabia Salsa, was a square burial-chapel, about 16 yds.
each way, with nave and aisles, but in the 5th or 6th cent. was
prolonged westwards into a basilica 33½ yds. long, with a vestibule and
with galleries over the aisles. At the same time the remains of the
saint were transferred to a Roman sarcophagus, which was placed on a
high pedestal in the old nave, now the choir of the enlarged church. The
rows of clumsy columns in the nave are a later addition. The walls
between the choir-pillars belong to a restoration of the 7th or 8th
century. Among the ruins of the walls, still 10–12 ft. high at places,
lie Ionic capitals and other fragments in picturesque confusion. Near
the façade are preserved relics of the old stairs to the galleries.
The small _Chapel_ and the square _Hall_ (later a burial-place) on the
S. side of the church date perhaps from the 4th century.
An *EXCURSION TO CAPE CHENOUA will be found attractive. We first
follow the Cherchell road for 1 M.; we then turn, beyond the _Ferme
Trémaux_ (p. 244), to the right and cross the Nador valley to the
small sea-baths of _Chenoua-Plage_, at the E. base of Mt. Chenoua. A
narrow road leads thence, up and down hill, along the beautiful _Baie
du Chenoua_ to the _Anse des Grottes_, which owes its name to the
numerous caves in the limestone rocks (_Grottes du Nador_). On the
narrow coast-terrace between (7½ M.) _Cape Chenoua_ and the _Râs
el-Amouch_ is the secluded settlement of a French contractor, who with
a staff of Spanish hands carries on a cement-factory and quarries the
red marble of the cape, which was already known to the Romans.
The ascent of *=Jebel Chenoua= is interesting, both for the sake of
the view from the top and for the glimpse it affords of its peculiar,
purely Berber inhabitants. From the hilly coast-road just mentioned
the route ascends to _Tenzirt_ and (2–2¼ hrs.) a _Pass_ (about 2300
ft.) between the two chief heights of the Chenoua. Thence in 40 min.
more we reach the E. peak (2976 ft.), crowned with the kubba of _Lalla
Tefouredj_ (Berber _Lalla Tzaforalz_). The path descending from the
pass to _Desaix_ (see below) will be found convenient.
The ROAD FROM TIPAZA to (17 M.) CHERCHELL (diligence, see p. 236)
branches off to the W. from the Marengo road at (2 M.) _Gué du Nador_
(p. 243), crosses the stream, and leads past (3 M.) _Desaix_ (p. 244),
through a bleak tract at the foot of Mt. Chenoua.
5½ M. _Castellum du Nador_, a late-Roman fortified country-seat (3rd or
4th cent.), was originally a quadrangular walled enclosure of 55 by 47
yds.; immediately to the left of the road there now remain the ruins of
two round corner-towers and of a handsome gateway flanked with two
square towers.
The road leads on to the watershed, from which one has a view of the
Atlas of Blida behind and the Dahra mountain spurs (p. 208) in front.
Thence it dips into the valley of the _Oued el-Hachem_.
9½ M. _Marabout Sidi-Ameur_ (164 ft.), on the left bank of the stream,
at the junction of the Marengo road (p. 244).
About ¾ M. farther on we observe, on the left, the *=Cherchell
Aqueduct=, coming from the village of Marceau, the largest Roman work of
the kind in Algeria, which, rising in three tiers to a height of over
100 ft., here bridges a side-valley.
Passing several hill-farms, owned by French families, the road next
turns to the N.W. into the valley of the _Oued Bellah_. Beyond the (14
M.) _Café de l’Oasis_ we pass under the aqueduct, of which twenty
pillars and five arches, built of great blocks of limestone, are still
standing here at the foot of the beautiful pine-wood.
Beyond the aqueduct begins the finest part of the road. At first it
skirts a pine-clad slope and then, leaving _Cap Blanc_ to the N. E.,
leads to the W., up and down hill, along the coast. Lastly it passes the
fissured _Cape Zizerin_ and two saints’ tombs.