Phycus Naustathmus (Zawiyat Hamama)
Phycus · Naustathmus · Zawiyat Hamama · Zawiyat al Hamama
Archaic Greek to Byzantine (6th c. BCE–7th c. CE)·Greek (Cyrenean) / Roman·🇱🇾 Marj District, Cyrenaica, Ras al Hamamah promontory west of Apollonia, Zawiyat Hamama bay, Libya
About
About Phycus Naustathmus (Zawiyat Hamama)
Ship-shed harbour (naustathmos) of Cyrene on exposed Phycus promontory, this cove shows rock-cut slipways (4, each 30×5 m) for triremes, breakwater quay (80 m, ashlar headers), warehouses (quadriporticus 60×40 m), and signal tower (8×8 m) sighting Crete ships. Synesius letter on Phycus storm. Headland quarry supplied Cyrene columns.
Why it mattersCyrenean naustathmos shipshed archaeology rare on African coast with quarry dual use.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Slip dating — 4th vs 3rd c. BCE
- 02Quarry vs harbour sequence
Theories
- 01Blackman shipsheds corpus
- 02Synesius Phycus letter
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Archaic Greek harbour 6th c. BCE; slips 4th c. BCE; Roman breakwater 1st c. CE
- Period
- Archaic Greek to Byzantine (6th c. BCE–7th c. CE)
- Culture
- Greek (Cyrenean) / Roman
- Builders
- Cyrenean Greek
- Purpose
- Cyrene's northern naustathmos and quarry port on Mediterranean
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
600 BCE
Cyrenean harbour
4th c. BCE
4 rock-cut slipways
1st c. CE
Breakwater quay and warehouses
On the ground
Structures & features
32.9050° N · 21.8500° E · 10 m · 2 mapped features
Rock-Cut Slipways
shipshed4 trireme slipways 30×5 m cut in promontory with keel slots
32.9055° N · 21.8510° EBreakwater Quay and Tower
breakwater80 m ashlar breakwater and 8×8 m signal tower on headland
32.9045° N · 21.8490° E