A river with an ancient name
The river that runs past the site, now the Martil, was known in antiquity as the river Tamuda. Pomponius Mela, writing around AD 45, mentions the river, and so does the geographer Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD.
A town in Pliny
Pliny the Elder, writing in AD 79, names both the river and a town called Tamuda. By then the Mauretanian town had been largely destroyed in the revolts of AD 40, and a Roman camp was built on its ruins.
Between the mountains and the sea
The site lies about 10 km from the Mediterranean, on the right bank of the Martil. From the camp you can look across the valley to Tétouan, the city that grew up nearby from the late 13th century.
