Archaeologists have unearthed the Roman Empire's second-largest olive oil processing complex in the Kasserine region of Tunisia, near the Algerian border. Co-directed by Ca' Foscari University of Venice, the excavation at the 33-hectare site called Henchir el Begar revealed a monumental torcularium with twelve beam presses, a second eight-press facility, oil mills, cisterns, and a water collection basin. The team also found artifacts including a copper-and-brass bracelet, a limestone projectile, and architectural elements dating from the modern to Byzantine periods. A Latin inscription confirms senatorial approval for a bimonthly market on the land in 138 AD, indicating the site was a hub for social, political, and religious life.
This discovery matters because it provides unprecedented insight into the agricultural, economic, and daily life systems of Roman North Africa from the 3rd to 6th centuries AD. Olive oil was vital to the Roman economy, and Tunisia was the main supplier to Rome, with the average Roman consuming more than five gallons per year for cooking, personal care, medicine, and lighting. The findings illuminate large-scale production, marketing, and transportation networks, and show how the region's climate made it especially suitable for olive cultivation. The research also underscores the enduring importance of olive oil, which has been produced in the eastern Mediterranean since around 6000 BCE.