The Roman site of Utica lies on a broad alluvial plain of the river Medjerda. it’s the only permanent year-round river in all of Tunisia. The river supplies much of the north of the country with irrigation water but also has for centuries been silting up the once-great ports of the north.
In more recent years, Utica has been a small site about 10km from the coast, but at its height, it once sat on the sea. Such is the way of changing sea levels and siltation! Utica was the first Phoenician trading post on the Tunisian coastline, predating Carthage. It was on the loosing side of a few battles with Carthage including its revolt against the central authority of Carthage in 240BC. Later, in 146 BC, Utica supported the Romans in the last Phoenician war. Later, it supported Pompey against Julius Caesar in the Roman civil war.
The site of Utica today is fairly obscure, with the majority of the town yet to be excavated.
