Archaeologists have uncovered the nearly complete floor plan of a 2,400-year-old Numidian house in Tunisia, offering new insight into how homes were arranged within an ancient fortified settlement. The building was found at Sidi Saïd, near Bargou in the Siliana region, during excavations conducted from Sept. 16 to Oct. 6, according to a report released by the Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC).
The house, in the northeastern part of the site, contains several rooms and dates to the fourth century B.C., possibly earlier. Researchers found evidence that its structure changed over time. It stood against the settlement’s outer defensive wall, parts of which had been documented in another area during excavations in 2025.
Its nearly complete layout gives archaeologists a clearer view of how living spaces were connected to the settlement’s defenses. The broader site was inhabited from the second half of the fifth century B.C. until the end of the third century B.C.
Beyond the Numidian house in Tunisia, finds reveal daily life
In another section of Sidi Saïd, excavations revealed hearths and new details about the materials and methods used to build homes. The area lies beside ground investigated in 2017 and 2018. Archaeologists also recovered numerous well-preserved objects, including locally made pottery and Carthaginian wares. Some items were nearly complete.
🏺 Una casa númida de fa més de 2.300 anys!
La segona campanya arqueològica a Sidi Saïd (Tunísia), fruit de la col·laboració entre l’ICAC i l’Institut Nacional del Patrimoni de Tunísia, ha permès documentar per primera vegada una casa númida amb la planta pràcticament completa. pic.twitter.com/MuaNuNpRut
— ICAC-CERCA, Institut Català d'Arqueologia Clàssica (@ICAC_cat) October 28, 2026
The discoveries included objects used to hold containers over a fire. Such finds help researchers examine household activities and contacts between communities in the region.
The September and October excavation was led by Yamen Sghaïer and Chokri Touihri of Tunisia’s National Heritage Institute (INP), alongside Maria Carme Belarte and David Montanero of the Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC). Researchers, conservators and students from Tunisia and Catalonia took part. The institutions worked under an international cooperation agreement, with support from the Palarq Foundation.
Sidi Saïd was discovered when construction crews widened the GP4 national road linking El Fahs and Siliana through Bargou.
Early excavations found defenses, while later surveys identified ancient tombs
Because the roadwork affected the settlement’s southern edge, archaeologists excavated the area from December 2017 to April 2018.
Those initial digs revealed a complex arrangement of buildings and a defensive wall. The remains were well preserved, and investigators found no evidence that the settlement was occupied again in later periods. Campaigns in 2025 and 2026 have since helped establish the site’s history more precisely.
The latest campaign also continued surveys of a pre-Roman burial ground identified near the settlement in 2025. The cemetery contains at least 85 monuments, offering another source of evidence about ancient funerary practices and the people who inhabited the region.
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