El Jem, or El Djem, was built by the Romans on a former Punic settlement, under the name Thysdrus. In a less arid climate than today's, Thysdrus, which became part of the Roman province of Byzacena, prospered especially in the 2nd century, at the time of Emperor Hadrian (AD 117-138), when it became an important center of olive oil manufacturing for export. It was the seat of a Christian bishopric, which is included in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees. By the early 3rd century AD, it rivaled Hadrumetum (modern Sousse) as the second city of Roman North Africa, after Carthage.
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