Landmark Africa
Volubilis
Volubilis is an old town in ruins in Morocco. Long ago, people here grew olives and made olive oil. You can still see its stone arches!
Volubilis is the ruin of an ancient town at the foot of the Zerhoun hills in Morocco. People lived here for about a thousand years, and in Roman times it was a town at the edge of the Roman Empire, rich from olive oil. Its arches, streets and houses are still standing.
Volubilis, a 42-hectare fortified town at the foot of Jebel Zerhoun in Morocco, was settled by at least the 3rd century BCE and grew into a Roman municipium at the frontier of the empire. UNESCO calls it one of the richest sites of its period in North Africa, for its ruins and its inscriptions; it was occupied for some ten centuries, into the Islamic period, and inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997.
Photo: Chrisi1964, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover Volubilis
Volubilis is in Morocco, in North Africa. It is a town that people left long ago.
Now it is ruins: broken walls, tall arches and stone streets on a hillside.
Volubilis stands at the foot of the Zerhoun hills in Morocco. Its ruins cover 42 hectares and are surrounded by a Roman wall built in 168 and 169 CE.
UNESCO calls it one of the richest sites of its time in North Africa. Archaeologists have found mosaics, marble and bronze statues, and hundreds of carved inscriptions here.
UNESCO describes the essentially Roman remains of a fortified municipium on a commanding site at the foot of Jebel Zerhoun, covering 42 hectares within the rampart of 168–169 CE. It shows urban development and Romanization at the frontiers of the Roman Empire, and the meeting of Roman and local cultures.
Because it was isolated and not lived in for nearly a thousand years, UNESCO says, the site keeps a high level of authenticity. It is one of the richest sites of its period in North Africa, both for its ruins and for its wealth of inscriptions.
- Where
- at the foot of Jebel Zerhoun, Morocco
- Area
- 42 hectares
- Town wall built
- 168–169 CE
- World Heritage
- inscribed 1997
Ten centuries of people
People came here a long time ago because the land was good for growing olives and other fruit trees.
Later, it grew into a Roman town.
The fertile land around Volubilis, good for growing olives, drew settlers here by at least the 200s BCE. In the reigns of the kings Juba II and Ptolemy, from 25 BCE to 40 CE, the town grew in the Roman style and may have been their capital.
It then became part of the Roman Empire. In 285 CE the Romans suddenly left this part of North Africa, but people kept living in Volubilis. Centuries later, for a short time, it was the capital of a Muslim dynasty, the Idrisids.
ICOMOS reports that fertile soils, suited to farming and fruit trees, especially olives, attracted settlers at least as early as the 3rd century BCE. The town developed along Roman lines under Juba II and Ptolemy (25 BCE to 40 CE), when it may have been the capital, and later became a city of the Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana.
At the start of Diocletian's reign, in 285, the Romans abruptly abandoned southern Tingitana, for reasons that remain unclear. UNESCO adds that the town later became, for a brief period, the capital of the Idrisid dynasty. In all, it was occupied for some ten centuries.
Arches, a basilica and an olive-oil town
The town had a square called a forum and a large hall with rows of columns.
Some houses had stone machines for squeezing oil out of olives!
In the early 200s CE, the Roman emperors gave Volubilis a grand new town center. It had a basilica, a big hall used as a law court, with rows of columns inside, and a triumphal arch over the main street, built to thank the emperor Caracalla for lifting a tax.
Olive oil was the town's main product. Several houses still have their olive presses and mills, where olives were crushed and squeezed.
ICOMOS records that the Severan emperors gave the town a new monumental center, including a capitol and a basilica, made possible by Caracalla's remission of taxes, which was commemorated by a triumphal arch dedicated to him. The basilica, a law court, is a large structure divided by four rows of columns into five aisles, with an apse at each end; the capitol beside it was built under Macrinus in 217.
The main street, the decumanus maximus, is lined with luxurious town houses with fine mosaics. Olive oil was the region's main product, and several houses keep well-preserved olive presses and mills. The town wall had eight gates.
Rediscovering Volubilis
After people left, the town slowly fell into ruins. A big earthquake knocked down more of it.
Later, people dug carefully and found the old streets, houses and arches again.
The first written description of the ruins was made by an Englishman, John Windus, in 1721. Not long after, in 1755, an earthquake badly damaged them.
Archaeologists first dug here from 1887 to 1892, and digging began again in 1915 and went on until 1941. Some ruins were rebuilt: the triumphal arch in 1930 to 1934, and the basilica in 1965 to 1967.
ICOMOS notes that the Englishman John Windus wrote the first description of Volubilis in 1721, shortly before the ruins were ravaged by the 1755 earthquake. The first excavations, in 1887–1892, were directed by de la Martinière; clearance and excavation resumed in 1915 under L. Chatelain and continued until 1941.
The triumphal arch was restored in 1930–1934, the capitol in 1962, the basilica in 1965–1967 and the so-called Tangier Gate in 1967. ICOMOS judged some of these reconstructions radical, at the limit of accepted practice.
- Main product
- olive oil
- Town gates
- 8
- First excavations
- 1887–1892
A row of stone arches
In this photo, a long row of tall stone arches stands under a blue sky with fluffy clouds. Can you count the arches?
This photo of Volubilis was taken in 1990, on a sunny day. A long row of stone arches stands on a base of wide steps, with a thick stone wall on the right. Through the arches you can see green hills far away.
Look at the pillars: some have bands of small, flat bricks between the larger stones.
The photograph (1990, by Chrisi1964) shows a long ruined arcade of tall arches on piers, standing on a stepped base, beside a massive wall of large squared blocks; several piers have courses of thin bricks, and distant hills show through the openings.
The arcade is not identified by the photographer. UNESCO describes the site's two layouts: a grid plan on the flatter north-eastern slope, with the main public buildings, and terraces on the hillier south and west.
Amazing facts
-
Some houses in Volubilis had their own machines for making olive oil!
Olive oil was the main product here, and several houses still have their own olive presses and mills.
Olive oil was the region's main product; several houses keep well-preserved olive presses and mills.
-
The town built an arch to say thank you to an emperor who lifted a tax!
The triumphal arch at Volubilis celebrates the emperor Caracalla's decision to lift a tax.
Caracalla's remission of taxes, which paid for a new monumental center, was commemorated by a triumphal arch dedicated to him.
-
Archaeologists have found hundreds of old carved writings at Volubilis!
Volubilis has produced mosaics, marble and bronze statues, and hundreds of inscriptions.
The site has produced mosaics, marble and bronze statuary and hundreds of inscriptions, making it one of North Africa's richest sites of its period.
Words to know
- ruins
- what is left of buildings that have fallen down or been damaged over time
- basilica
- in Roman times, a large hall with rows of columns, used as a law court and meeting place
- triumphal arch
- a big arch built to honor a ruler or celebrate an event
- olive press
- a machine that squeezes crushed olives to get their oil
- inscription
- words carved into stone or metal
- excavation
- careful digging by archaeologists to uncover things from the past
Discovery challenge
-
What did people make from olives at Volubilis?
What was the main product of the region around Volubilis?
Well-preserved presses and mills in several houses show which product was the region's main one?
- Olive oil
- Chocolate
- Cheese
Show the answer
Olive oil
Olive oil!
Olive oil.
Olive oil.
-
In which country is Volubilis?
In which country are the ruins of Volubilis?
Volubilis lies at the foot of Jebel Zerhoun in which country?
- Morocco
- Italy
- India
Show the answer
Morocco
Morocco!
Morocco.
Morocco.
-
Which empire made Volubilis a big town?
Volubilis was a town at the edge of which empire?
UNESCO says Volubilis shows urban development at the frontiers of which empire?
- The Roman Empire
- The Inca Empire
- The Mongol Empire
Show the answer
The Roman Empire
The Roman Empire!
The Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire.
-
What shook the ruins of Volubilis in 1755?
What badly damaged the ruins of Volubilis in 1755?
Which event of 1755 ravaged the ruins shortly after John Windus described them?
- An earthquake
- A flood
- A volcano
Show the answer
An earthquake
An earthquake!
An earthquake.
The 1755 earthquake.
-
Who was the arch built to thank?
The triumphal arch was built to thank which emperor for lifting a tax?
Whose remission of taxes was commemorated by the triumphal arch on the decumanus maximus?
- Caracalla
- Napoleon
- Charlemagne
Show the answer
Caracalla
The emperor Caracalla!
Caracalla.
Caracalla's.
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Describe what remains of a Roman frontier town: walls, gates, a basilica, an arch and houses.
- Explain how olive oil made a town rich, and what an olive press does.
- Explain how archaeologists uncover and sometimes rebuild ruins.
Recommended ages: 4 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- People lived at Volubilis for about ten centuries. What might change in a town over that much time?
- Some of Volubilis's ruins were rebuilt by archaeologists. Should ruins be rebuilt, or left as they are? Why?
- Why do you think the town built a big arch to thank an emperor for lifting a tax?
Try at home or in class
- With a grown-up, squeeze a few olives or look at olive oil in a glass: talk about how people pressed oil long ago.
- Build a row of arches from cardboard tubes and paper strips, and see how many arches you can line up.
Key vocabulary: ruins, basilica, triumphal arch, olive press, inscription, excavation
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Archaeological Site of Volubilis (World Heritage List) , UNESCO World Heritage Centre
- Volubilis (Morocco), No 836 and 836bis (Advisory Body Evaluation) , ICOMOS
- File:Volubilis 1990.jpg , Wikimedia Commons
- UNESCO World Heritage List , UNESCO World Heritage Centre (Linked as a reference; site facts come from Wikidata)
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.