Leptis Magna was enlarged and embellished by Septimius Severus, who was born there and later became emperor. It was one of the most beautiful cities of the Roman Empire, with its imposing public monuments, harbour, market-place, storehouses, shops and residential districts.

Brief synthesis The ancient city of Leptis Magna was founded as a temporary trading port by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BCE and expanded under the Roman Empire. It was significantly embellished by the Severan emperors in the 3rd century CE, transforming it into one of the most splendid cities of Roman North Africa. The surviving and excavated remains of the city reflect a unique artistic realisation in the domain of urban planning and in its application of monumental display. The city demonstrates a high level of engineering skill achieved in the creation of its infrastructure with the antique port of the city, situated at the mouth of Wadi Lebda. The port with its artificial basin, barrage and canal designed to regulate the course of the Wadi Lebda, is one of the outstanding works of Roman technology. The city of Leptis Magna provides a vivid and full picture of life in a Roman provincial city during the early and middle periods of the Roman Empire, with some buildings deviating considerably in their organization or shape from those seen at other Roman sites. Not only have remains of prestigious monuments such as arches, gates, the Severan forum, temples, baths, theatre, fortifications and amphitheatre survived, but also evidence for the essential of everyday life such as the market, with its votive arch and colonnade of shops, as well as warehouse and ateliers that attest to commercial and industrial activity. In the 17th and 18th centuries CE, the ruins of Leptis Magna were rediscovered by travellers and came to play a major role in the elaboration of the Neo-classical aesthetic. Criterion (i): Leptis Magna is a unique artistic realisation in the domain of urban planning and in its application of monumental display. The urban fabric of the city represents a synthesis of progressive developments and enlargements which came to a height in the Severan period, incorporating major monumental elements of that period worthy of an imperial capital. The Severan…