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(dramatic music)
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- [Narrator] Tunis, a North African city
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of tradition and transformation.
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And at its heart, a museum
with secrets dark and strange.
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How to cheat death in the Sahara,
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how to kill a gladiator,
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how the catapult toppled an empire,
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and the surprising location
of a galaxy far, far away.
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Secrets hidden in plain sight
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inside the Bardo National Museum.
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(dramatic music)
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If you travel down the boot of Italy,
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and stand on the southern tip of Sicily,
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you can see Africa.
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Across the water is a
nation called Tunisia.
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Just 300 kilometers wide,
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Tunisia stretches south
from the Mediterranean
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through fertile farmland
that becomes dry steppes
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and finally, the desert
wastes of the Sahara.
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Tunisia combines European, African,
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and Middle Eastern influences.
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A blend of cultures that is reflected
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in the Bardo National Museum.
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Inside is evidence that Tunisia
was colonized by the Arabs.
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Before them, the Romans.
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Before them, the Carthaginians.
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And throughout Tunisia's history,
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Berber tribes have made
its deserts their home.
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(Jawa screeches)
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A few decades ago, these deserts
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were invaded by another tribe
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led by a Hollywood director
named George Lucas.
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Lucas chose Tunisia as the
shooting location for Star Wars.
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The desert became the planet's Tatooine,
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a name borrowed from a nearby town.
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This is what's left of
the movie's spaceport.
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- [Stormtrooper] We don't need
to see his identification.
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- These aren't the droids
you're looking for.
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- [Narrator] Not far away is the set
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for Luke Skywalker's boyhood home,
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the Lars Homestead.
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- [Owen] Luke!
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Luke!
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- [Narrator] Every year, the sets attract
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Star Wars fans from around the world.
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- Everybody loves the movie, you know?
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It's very famous, in Korea too.
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- [Narrator] When this
set fell into decay,
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some super fans teamed up to repair it.
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For them, it's a revered icon,
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with Tunisia just a convenient backdrop.
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But in reality, the connections
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between Star Wars and Tunisia run deep.
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- Aunt Beru, Uncle Owen?
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- [Narrator] Where to find
them is a museum secret.
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The investigation begins with
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an arrival at the Tunis Airport.
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Terry Cooper, a British
science fiction illustrator,
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has made the Star Wars
pilgrimage several times.
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- I saw Star Wars in 1977
as an eight year old,
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and that's one of the,
obviously a big blockbuster
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at the time and changed
the way films were made.
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And it kind of changed my life,
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because as an eight year old
watching a film like Star Wars
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just tells you anything is possible.
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- [Narrator] On this trip, Terry's guide
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will be a young man from Tataouine.
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The town, not the planet.
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His name is Rad Adallah.
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Rad is also a Star Wars fan,
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but he sees it from a
Tunisian perspective.
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- So as you see, it looks
just like the Lars Homestead,
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and that's originally from
the Muslim architecture.
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There is one there, one there,
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one up there.
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- [Narrator] This architecture
appears in Star Wars,
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with the addition of an extra sun.
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- [Terry] I think it was a very wise move
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for George Lucas's part.
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There was this completely alien culture
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and feel to these buildings
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that no one had ever seen,
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and it was very clever of
him to take that at the time.
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- [Narrator] Down these stairs
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is another Star Wars connection.
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For centuries, Berber
tribes built dwellings
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underground to beat the heat.
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It looks like a Star Wars
set, but it's a real home.
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The couple who live here
have turned one room
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into a tiny museum.
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- It has all the
traditional Berber things,
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like the traditional
art and craft, carpet.
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- [Narrator] The woman
of the house weaves cloth
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in the traditional Berber way.
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- And here we have the Berber cloaks.
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- Okay.
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- You just put it as a robe.
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- And over your head, like this.
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- Exactly.
- Okay.
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You can see where they
got the Jedi knights idea.
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- [Rad] Yep.
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- [Narrator] But while traditional Berbers
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are nomadic traders, the
Jedi are warrior monks,
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who strive to become one
with an unseen force.
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- Through the force, things
you will see, other places.
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The future, the past.
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- [Narrator] The Jedi are mystics,
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and it so happens that the Star Wars sets
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are near the spiritual home of
Islamic mystics called Sufis.
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Sufis are famous for a whirling dance
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that looks a bit like
a Jedi fighting move.
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But the connection here
is not the spinning.
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The Jedi religion may have
been inspired by Sufi beliefs.
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- They even sometime have a vision
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for the future.
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They can see the future.
- Okay.
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- This is the myth.
- So it's like the miracles.
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- Exactly.
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- [Narrator] When night
falls, Terry and Rad
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accept a rare invitation
to witness a Sufi ritual
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that few outsiders have ever seen.
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Some Muslims think that Sufis
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are not true followers of Islam,
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but Sufi master Munia
Masa strongly disagrees.
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(speaks foreign language)
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(singing in foreign language)
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(speaks foreign language)
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(singing in foreign language)
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- [Narrator] Sufis believe that music
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can help believers achieve
a higher state of being.
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(speaks foreign language)
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(chanting in foreign language)
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- [Narrator] These men are all hoping
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that the change will happen to them,
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and for one believer, it does.
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(chanting in foreign language)
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He appears to have fallen
into a trance state.
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The Sufis believe he's
been touched by the divine.
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- [Terry] It creates a
big impression on people,
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even on me, because it strengthens
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and reinforces their beliefs,
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and it underlines the seriousness
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and the devotion to their faith.
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- [Narrator] Before Terry
heads home to England,
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he wants to pay a visit to the
Star Wars set one last time.
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He not only likes it,
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he was one of the super
fans who restored it.
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- [Terry] Pretty good, actually.
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The weather's beginning to take its toll,
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but it's no longer as bright as it was.
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- [Rad] Yeah.
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- [Terry] The first
time I ever went there,
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I felt like I'd stepped through
the screen into the film,
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because it's all around you.
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The heat, the sand, the look of the place,
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the exotic locations.
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You feel like you're standing
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right in the middle of Tatooine.
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If Luke Skywalker went
to the country Tunisia,
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the first thing he would say was
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it looks just like my home.
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- [Narrator] Up next, the secret of
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conquering an impenetrable wall.
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(dramatic music)
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Inside the Bardo National Museum,
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one gallery displays artifacts found
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just a few kilometers away,
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in the ruins of the
ancient city of Carthage.
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23 centuries ago, Carthage
controlled most of North Africa.
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Its biggest rival was the
powerful Roman Empire,
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and its best general was
a man named Hannibal.
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(horn fanfare)
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In 218 BC, Hannibal led an
army of men and elephants
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around the Mediterranean to attack Rome.
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(soldiers shouting)
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He won many battles.
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But finally lost the war.
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After his death, Roman legions
sailed to North Africa,
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bent on revenge.
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But the city was protected
by a formidable wall.
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- The Romans siege on
Carthage, and they tried to
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breach the walls from different sides.
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There was a triple wall,
doubled by triple trenches.
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But walls which were nine meters thick.
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- [Narrator] Over a three
year siege of the city,
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Rome's heaviest weapons
failed to break through.
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Its army suffered massive casualties,
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but historians know the
Romans took Carthage somehow,
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because today, within
the ruins of the city,
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there is evidence that its
buildings were destroyed.
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How the Romans conquered
Carthage is a museum secret.
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The investigation begins at the museum,
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with the arrival of British
historian Tracy Riehl.
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Tracy believes she will discover the key
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to Rome's conquest of Carthage
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in an artifact recovered
off a nearby coast
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at the bottom of the sea.
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- An ancient ship probably got
blown off course in a storm
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and sank off Mahdia on
the coast of Tunisia.
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- [Narrator] In a storeroom of the museum,
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she finds salvaged items from
an ancient Roman shipwreck.
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This case holds what
she was hoping to find,
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a bronze cylinder from a Roman catapult.
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- They're the key part of the machine
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because if we find a washer,
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we can reconstruct the
rest of the catapult,
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just on the basis of that one part.
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- [Narrator] You might expect it
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to look something like this.
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But the museum's reconstruction
isn't nearly so big,
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and that's just what Tracy expected.
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- Quite a large proportion
of the archeological evidence
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is for small caliber weapons
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that could be carried by one person.
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- [Narrator] The catapult
is powered by rope,
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bound tightly into a spring.
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- And if I pull it back,
you'll get some idea.
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Pull, you get some idea
of the discharge velocity.
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- [Narrator] Tracy knows
that catapults like this one
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were used during the siege of Carthage,
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but their tactical value
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can't be determined inside the museum.
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So she heads to Coventry, England,
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where Roman reenactors have built
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rope-powered catapults of various sizes.
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Today they will be put to the test,
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with the help of historian Lenn Morgan.
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- Maneuver this up.
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- Hello, I'm Tracy.
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- Tracy, nice to meet you.
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- And you, and you.
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I've heard a lot about your machine.
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- Yeah the big one, we call it the beast.
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It's two libra, or two pounder
stone thrower, ballista.
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And the smaller machine
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is the smallest catapult,
the arrow shooter.
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And the further one is
a three span catapult.
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Each of these machines are the
standard pieces of equipment
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that would have been used in a Roman army.
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- [Narrator] During a siege,
the beast would have lobbed
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small balls into the city.
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Creating havoc.
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But not knocking down the walls.
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- They also are very good, obviously,
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dropping into a mass crowd of warriors
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or whatever, you know, enemy.
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Try that.
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- Oh okay, can I go the other way around?
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Because I--
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- [Narrator] Tracy believes
the smallest catapult
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might have been fired almost like a rifle.
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Again, not useful for knocking down walls.
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But what about the mid-size model?
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The one most like the
catapult in the museum?
255
00:13:11,910 --> 00:13:14,610
It's light, and easy to set up,
256
00:13:14,610 --> 00:13:17,553
but it requires an expert
hand to prepare it for battle.
257
00:13:21,200 --> 00:13:23,520
- To the bowstring,
and then push the snake
258
00:13:23,520 --> 00:13:25,070
into position to lock it.
259
00:13:25,070 --> 00:13:27,080
Ratchets go back on.
260
00:13:27,080 --> 00:13:29,313
Number two would start winding on.
261
00:13:30,910 --> 00:13:34,640
And you place the bolt in
position on the slider,
262
00:13:34,640 --> 00:13:36,323
and fit it back into the trigger.
263
00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:39,050
- [Narrator] The first target
264
00:13:39,050 --> 00:13:40,763
will be a double sheet of steel.
265
00:13:42,500 --> 00:13:45,113
Tracy has never fired
this catapult before.
266
00:13:46,030 --> 00:13:47,340
- Right, okay.
267
00:13:47,340 --> 00:13:51,285
- [Narrator] Even so,
she scores a direct hit.
268
00:13:51,285 --> 00:13:52,118
- Well done.
269
00:13:52,118 --> 00:13:53,770
- At his feet, at his
feet where we hit him.
270
00:13:53,770 --> 00:13:55,500
- Got him in the foot.
- Yeah.
271
00:13:55,500 --> 00:13:57,780
- So that's the point of impact.
272
00:13:57,780 --> 00:13:59,842
Got a hole on the first sheet,
273
00:13:59,842 --> 00:14:02,200
and a hole through the second sheet.
274
00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:05,823
So that's 1.2 millimeters,
and we've punched through.
275
00:14:06,910 --> 00:14:09,690
- [Narrator] This suggests
the catapult's real purpose.
276
00:14:09,690 --> 00:14:10,610
- So it's anti-personnel.
277
00:14:10,610 --> 00:14:12,380
It's the small scale stuff.
278
00:14:12,380 --> 00:14:15,590
They probably would've been
used for wall clearing duties.
279
00:14:15,590 --> 00:14:17,030
- [Narrator] At the siege of Carthage,
280
00:14:17,030 --> 00:14:20,170
the Romans finally stopped
trying to go through the walls,
281
00:14:20,170 --> 00:14:22,820
and began to build a firing platform.
282
00:14:22,820 --> 00:14:24,860
- The whole idea was that
you're higher than the city wall
283
00:14:24,860 --> 00:14:28,290
so that your troops can
shoot down on the defenders,
284
00:14:28,290 --> 00:14:30,320
and the Carthaginians first thought was
285
00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:31,270
oh this is impossible.
286
00:14:31,270 --> 00:14:32,460
They'll never achieve it.
287
00:14:32,460 --> 00:14:34,760
But the Romans were
nothing if not persistent.
288
00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:38,870
- [Narrator] When the
platform was complete,
289
00:14:38,870 --> 00:14:41,290
Roman soldiers rushed to the top,
290
00:14:41,290 --> 00:14:44,120
carrying catapults in pieces.
291
00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:46,743
They assembled their
weapons, and began to fire.
292
00:14:48,550 --> 00:14:50,340
Carthaginian arrows were no match
293
00:14:50,340 --> 00:14:52,750
for the powerful and accurate catapults,
294
00:14:52,750 --> 00:14:55,313
which took out the defenders one by one.
295
00:14:56,490 --> 00:14:59,220
The Romans didn't need
to knock down the walls,
296
00:14:59,220 --> 00:15:01,763
because they could now
scale them with impunity.
297
00:15:02,900 --> 00:15:06,760
And when they did, the
story takes a darker turn.
298
00:15:06,760 --> 00:15:10,530
Still evident back here,
in the ruins of Carthage.
299
00:15:10,530 --> 00:15:12,850
- [Man] Bones, thousands of them.
300
00:15:12,850 --> 00:15:13,683
- [Tracy] They're all over aren't they?
301
00:15:13,683 --> 00:15:16,020
- Here are a good
example, could be a tibia.
302
00:15:16,020 --> 00:15:17,800
You know, a leg.
303
00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:20,680
So there you see a shoulder bone.
304
00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:22,670
Here you have another one there.
305
00:15:22,670 --> 00:15:24,083
Could be human.
306
00:15:26,210 --> 00:15:28,510
- [Narrator] The Romans
believed there was only one way
307
00:15:28,510 --> 00:15:31,933
to ensure that Carthage never
threatened their empire again.
308
00:15:33,590 --> 00:15:35,800
Every building was razed,
309
00:15:35,800 --> 00:15:38,413
every man, woman, and
child was slaughtered.
310
00:15:39,300 --> 00:15:42,543
It was the first genocide
in recorded history,
311
00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:44,920
and it may never have happened
312
00:15:44,920 --> 00:15:47,080
without the catapult.
313
00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:50,450
(dramatic music)
314
00:15:50,450 --> 00:15:55,199
Up next, did the priests of
Carthage commit child sacrifice?
315
00:15:55,199 --> 00:15:58,440
(dramatic music)
316
00:15:58,440 --> 00:16:01,107
(ominous music)
317
00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:06,670
Inside Tunisia's Bardo National Museum,
318
00:16:06,670 --> 00:16:09,190
the gallery of Carthage
contains the likeness
319
00:16:09,190 --> 00:16:11,613
of a pagan god named Baal Hammon.
320
00:16:13,410 --> 00:16:15,600
Since the first century AD,
321
00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:18,533
Baal has been associated
with a dark ritual.
322
00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:24,840
Witnesses describe priests
holding babies above a fire,
323
00:16:24,840 --> 00:16:27,380
as music drowns their mothers' screams,
324
00:16:27,380 --> 00:16:30,580
the young ones are hurled into the flames.
325
00:16:30,580 --> 00:16:32,740
These terrible events were recorded
326
00:16:32,740 --> 00:16:35,433
by ancient Greek and Roman historians.
327
00:16:37,670 --> 00:16:39,960
Then, in the early 20th Century,
328
00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:44,683
in the ruins of Carthage,
archeologists discovered evidence.
329
00:16:45,970 --> 00:16:47,730
Near the city's main cemetery,
330
00:16:47,730 --> 00:16:50,683
they found a smaller one
they named the Tophet.
331
00:16:52,780 --> 00:16:55,493
Tophet is Hebrew for roasting place.
332
00:16:56,410 --> 00:16:58,870
Here, they pieced together stone markers,
333
00:16:58,870 --> 00:17:02,210
including one that is
now in the Bardo Museum.
334
00:17:02,210 --> 00:17:05,910
It shows a priest grasping a tiny child.
335
00:17:05,910 --> 00:17:07,930
- This was for many scholars the evidence
336
00:17:07,930 --> 00:17:12,763
that these Carthaginians were
sacrificing their babies.
337
00:17:14,120 --> 00:17:16,200
- [Narrator] Then, in the 1970s,
338
00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:18,290
PBS filmed American researchers
339
00:17:18,290 --> 00:17:20,783
as they excavated the cemetery's graves.
340
00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:25,517
The team was led by biblical
archeologist Lawrence Stager.
341
00:17:26,620 --> 00:17:29,200
A young anthropologist
named Jeffrey Schwartz
342
00:17:29,200 --> 00:17:31,940
was put in charge of collecting the bones.
343
00:17:31,940 --> 00:17:33,690
- It seems fairly certain that
344
00:17:33,690 --> 00:17:36,360
in fire individuals
were placed in the urn.
345
00:17:36,360 --> 00:17:38,623
This one is reasonably burned.
346
00:17:39,540 --> 00:17:42,890
- [Narrator] There were
540 tiny skeletons,
347
00:17:42,890 --> 00:17:46,263
revealing the scale of the
horrors reported in antiquity.
348
00:17:47,110 --> 00:17:50,880
- Some of the classical sources suggest
349
00:17:50,880 --> 00:17:53,123
that the infants were thrown in alive.
350
00:17:54,050 --> 00:17:55,680
- [Narrator] Today, the people of Carthage
351
00:17:55,680 --> 00:17:58,023
are remembered as baby killers.
352
00:17:59,030 --> 00:18:02,193
But the real truth is a museum secret.
353
00:18:07,460 --> 00:18:09,890
Our investigation begins with the arrival
354
00:18:09,890 --> 00:18:13,340
of an older, grayer Jeffrey Schwartz,
355
00:18:13,340 --> 00:18:16,933
who has come to revisit the
research he did as a young man.
356
00:18:17,860 --> 00:18:22,003
- I started my career doing
more biblical archeology
357
00:18:22,003 --> 00:18:23,920
than anything else.
358
00:18:23,920 --> 00:18:27,870
And had been trained to analyze
359
00:18:27,870 --> 00:18:30,173
human bones, and animal bones.
360
00:18:31,370 --> 00:18:33,150
- [Narrator] After his
team's initial findings
361
00:18:33,150 --> 00:18:35,660
were made public, he
began looking for bones
362
00:18:35,660 --> 00:18:37,580
that might fit together.
363
00:18:37,580 --> 00:18:40,540
- Got some ribs, I've got neck vertebrae.
364
00:18:40,540 --> 00:18:42,710
You can piece together pieces of face.
365
00:18:42,710 --> 00:18:47,030
It's just wild to bring these
things to life that way.
366
00:18:47,030 --> 00:18:49,360
- [Narrator] Jeffrey discovered
that many urns in the Tophet
367
00:18:49,360 --> 00:18:51,693
contained the bones of
more than one child.
368
00:18:53,600 --> 00:18:55,680
This does not match the ritual burial
369
00:18:55,680 --> 00:18:58,500
described in some classical sources,
370
00:18:58,500 --> 00:19:00,893
which he and others
were beginning to doubt.
371
00:19:15,609 --> 00:19:16,442
- [Narrator] Jeffrey decided that
372
00:19:16,442 --> 00:19:19,370
to uncover the whole truth,
he would need to look
373
00:19:19,370 --> 00:19:21,960
beyond the Tophet cemetery to determine
374
00:19:21,960 --> 00:19:24,360
where the rest of the
Carthaginians were buried.
375
00:19:26,090 --> 00:19:30,450
In museum archives, he
found a surprising answer.
376
00:19:30,450 --> 00:19:33,900
The main cemetery of
Carthage contained adults,
377
00:19:33,900 --> 00:19:36,390
but no young children at all.
378
00:19:36,390 --> 00:19:38,000
- The general population
379
00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:40,620
in the main cemetery starts at about five,
380
00:19:40,620 --> 00:19:42,920
and that's where my
sample more or less stops.
381
00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:46,460
- [Narrator] And since natural
child mortality was high
382
00:19:46,460 --> 00:19:49,960
in ancient times, Jeffrey
wondered if the stone marker
383
00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:53,260
in the museum could have a
different interpretation.
384
00:19:53,260 --> 00:19:55,310
- It's been interpreted
as this is a priest
385
00:19:55,310 --> 00:19:57,340
bringing a child to be sacrificed,
386
00:19:57,340 --> 00:20:00,580
but there isn't just one
interpretation of it.
387
00:20:00,580 --> 00:20:02,180
You look at this little thing,
388
00:20:02,180 --> 00:20:07,180
it looks slumped over in this
priest's or this person's arm.
389
00:20:07,290 --> 00:20:10,360
It has absolutely no facial
expression whatsoever.
390
00:20:10,360 --> 00:20:12,330
So another way you can interpret it is
391
00:20:12,330 --> 00:20:16,500
this was a dead child, or infant,
392
00:20:16,500 --> 00:20:19,230
and it was being taken to
393
00:20:19,230 --> 00:20:20,893
a special burial place.
394
00:20:21,960 --> 00:20:23,870
- [Narrator] Jeffrey
theorized that the Tophet
395
00:20:23,870 --> 00:20:25,270
was simply the graveyard
396
00:20:25,270 --> 00:20:28,173
where all the young children
of Carthage were buried.
397
00:20:29,020 --> 00:20:32,563
Not an evil sanctuary for baby sacrifice.
398
00:20:34,090 --> 00:20:37,563
His colleagues reacted
with shocked disbelief.
399
00:20:39,050 --> 00:20:41,900
- I was confronted by
people who are really wedded
400
00:20:41,900 --> 00:20:43,960
to the sacrifice.
401
00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:46,067
Everything here had to be sacrificed.
402
00:20:46,067 --> 00:20:47,550
- [Narrator] To find proof
403
00:20:47,550 --> 00:20:50,320
that babies died from natural causes,
404
00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:54,160
he made detailed
measurements of every bone.
405
00:20:54,160 --> 00:20:57,050
Many seemed extremely small.
406
00:20:57,050 --> 00:20:59,410
He wondered if they might
be the bones of fetuses
407
00:20:59,410 --> 00:21:00,753
that had died in the womb.
408
00:21:03,800 --> 00:21:06,240
Jeffrey knew for every live birth,
409
00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:09,543
the moment of birth is
recorded in the teeth.
410
00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:13,710
- Before you're born, enamel is laid down
411
00:21:13,710 --> 00:21:15,820
in a certain wavy pattern.
412
00:21:15,820 --> 00:21:18,468
And the first insult you have in your life
413
00:21:18,468 --> 00:21:20,320
is when you're born.
414
00:21:20,320 --> 00:21:22,431
It's a big shock, and you actually see
415
00:21:22,431 --> 00:21:24,360
a break in the wavy pattern
416
00:21:24,360 --> 00:21:27,310
in the microstructure of the teeth.
417
00:21:27,310 --> 00:21:29,110
And that's called the neonatal line.
418
00:21:30,580 --> 00:21:32,040
- [Narrator] More than half the samples
419
00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:35,193
from the Tophet cemetery
lack the neonatal line.
420
00:21:36,360 --> 00:21:39,020
This is definitive proof that most babies
421
00:21:39,020 --> 00:21:42,180
in the Tophet were stillborn.
422
00:21:42,180 --> 00:21:45,800
So they weren't roasted
alive in sacrifice.
423
00:21:45,800 --> 00:21:49,453
They had already died, and were
brought here for cremation.
424
00:21:50,700 --> 00:21:53,230
This suggests a culture that cared deeply
425
00:21:53,230 --> 00:21:56,083
for children, even the unborn.
426
00:21:57,270 --> 00:21:58,720
- It gives a more realistic picture
427
00:21:58,720 --> 00:22:00,520
of the Carthaginians I think.
428
00:22:00,520 --> 00:22:03,530
There was something
special about this place,
429
00:22:03,530 --> 00:22:05,300
and it was a place to receive the young,
430
00:22:05,300 --> 00:22:06,523
no matter how they died.
431
00:22:08,070 --> 00:22:10,390
- [Narrator] Jeffrey has
rejected some of the assumptions
432
00:22:10,390 --> 00:22:11,993
he held when he was younger,
433
00:22:12,900 --> 00:22:15,860
and as he continues to
delve into the past,
434
00:22:15,860 --> 00:22:18,729
to investigate the archeological record,
435
00:22:18,729 --> 00:22:23,370
he takes with him the lessons
he learned in Carthage.
436
00:22:23,370 --> 00:22:27,260
- I think what I've relearned
is to use your own eyes.
437
00:22:27,260 --> 00:22:30,710
Not to accept received wisdom,
438
00:22:30,710 --> 00:22:35,450
and to just to do as good
of science as you can,
439
00:22:35,450 --> 00:22:38,052
and let the cards fall where they may.
440
00:22:38,052 --> 00:22:39,890
(dramatic music)
441
00:22:39,890 --> 00:22:43,003
- [Narrator] Up next, the
secrets of the gladiator games.
442
00:22:44,228 --> 00:22:47,369
(crowd cheering)
443
00:22:47,369 --> 00:22:50,119
(dramatic music)
444
00:22:52,390 --> 00:22:54,508
Inside the Bardo National Museum,
445
00:22:54,508 --> 00:22:57,788
there is evidence that
when Rome ruled Tunisia,
446
00:22:57,788 --> 00:23:01,633
North Africans enjoyed
Roman style entertainment.
447
00:23:03,670 --> 00:23:06,083
The men in this mosaic are gladiators.
448
00:23:07,640 --> 00:23:10,570
They were involved, along
with exotic animals,
449
00:23:10,570 --> 00:23:15,009
in a violent spectacle
called the gladiator games.
450
00:23:15,009 --> 00:23:17,590
(crowd cheering)
451
00:23:17,590 --> 00:23:19,260
In Hollywood depictions,
452
00:23:19,260 --> 00:23:22,310
the games take place in Rome's Colosseum.
453
00:23:22,310 --> 00:23:26,493
Before a bloodthirsty crowd,
lions devour Christians.
454
00:23:27,690 --> 00:23:29,373
Unlucky slaves do battle.
455
00:23:30,990 --> 00:23:32,260
And the emperor gives
456
00:23:32,260 --> 00:23:35,233
the deciding thumbs up, or thumbs down.
457
00:23:36,250 --> 00:23:38,733
It appears to be all
about pain, and death.
458
00:23:40,210 --> 00:23:43,530
But how the gladiators
really lived and died
459
00:23:43,530 --> 00:23:45,273
is a museum secret.
460
00:23:47,210 --> 00:23:50,529
Our investigation begins 200
kilometers south of the museum
461
00:23:50,529 --> 00:23:52,423
in the town of El Djem.
462
00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:56,160
While most movies show
only Rome's Colosseum,
463
00:23:56,160 --> 00:23:58,350
in reality similar amphitheaters
464
00:23:58,350 --> 00:24:00,133
were built in every Roman colony.
465
00:24:01,490 --> 00:24:04,603
El Djem's Colosseum is one
of the biggest anywhere.
466
00:24:06,290 --> 00:24:08,563
This local guide knows why.
467
00:24:15,989 --> 00:24:19,780
They decide to build this
colosseum to say to Rome
468
00:24:19,780 --> 00:24:21,250
that they have a lot of money,
469
00:24:21,250 --> 00:24:24,663
and they can build a colosseum
like the Colosseum of Rome.
470
00:24:25,920 --> 00:24:27,420
- [Narrator] The massive architecture
471
00:24:27,420 --> 00:24:29,243
extends well below the ground.
472
00:24:36,320 --> 00:24:39,620
And from this hall, they go up
473
00:24:39,620 --> 00:24:43,450
the lions with hand lift to arena
474
00:24:43,450 --> 00:24:44,923
to start the game.
475
00:24:46,810 --> 00:24:49,000
- [Narrator] Not far
from the animal cages,
476
00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:50,833
gladiators prepared for battle.
477
00:24:51,860 --> 00:24:53,770
And today, it's where several men
478
00:24:53,770 --> 00:24:56,760
are preparing for gladiator school.
479
00:24:56,760 --> 00:24:59,173
They aren't actors or stuntmen.
480
00:24:59,173 --> 00:25:02,352
They're historians, who strive to recreate
481
00:25:02,352 --> 00:25:04,843
the authentic fighting techniques.
482
00:25:08,250 --> 00:25:10,500
In Roman times, gladiators were owned
483
00:25:10,500 --> 00:25:12,880
by private games promoters,
484
00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:16,050
who spent great sums on
weapons and training.
485
00:25:16,050 --> 00:25:18,250
They hoped to make a
profit on ticket sales.
486
00:25:19,260 --> 00:25:20,970
Movies that imply that the emperor
487
00:25:20,970 --> 00:25:25,750
put on the games are
wrong, and so is this.
488
00:25:25,750 --> 00:25:27,823
The famous thumbs down gesture?
489
00:25:28,980 --> 00:25:31,000
Never happened.
490
00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:34,763
The sign for death was something else.
491
00:25:34,763 --> 00:25:38,263
(speaks foreign language)
492
00:25:44,600 --> 00:25:45,640
- [Narrator] The Hollywood version
493
00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:48,990
comes from a French painting
of the 19th Century.
494
00:25:48,990 --> 00:25:51,783
It was never seen in a real colosseum,
495
00:25:51,783 --> 00:25:55,394
and the gesture for
mercy was different too.
496
00:25:55,394 --> 00:25:58,894
(speaks foreign language)
497
00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:04,773
- [Narrator] In the movies,
the fights are no holds barred,
498
00:26:05,950 --> 00:26:09,373
but Roman mosaics reveal
the presence of referees.
499
00:26:10,399 --> 00:26:13,899
(speaks foreign language)
500
00:26:20,532 --> 00:26:24,030
(intense music)
501
00:26:24,030 --> 00:26:25,150
- [Narrator] A referee's job
502
00:26:25,150 --> 00:26:27,877
was to keep opponents
from killing each other.
503
00:26:27,877 --> 00:26:31,377
(speaks foreign language)
504
00:26:36,870 --> 00:26:37,870
- [Narrator] Games promoters
505
00:26:37,870 --> 00:26:40,652
wanted their gladiators to stay alive,
506
00:26:40,652 --> 00:26:43,603
especially those who impressed the crowds.
507
00:26:44,870 --> 00:26:46,730
The best gladiators were revered,
508
00:26:46,730 --> 00:26:50,140
like today's sports
heroes and movie stars.
509
00:26:50,140 --> 00:26:52,693
And they might even see
their names in stone.
510
00:26:54,070 --> 00:26:55,860
The artist who made this mosaic
511
00:26:55,860 --> 00:26:58,609
portrayed specific famous gladiators,
512
00:26:58,609 --> 00:27:02,972
and even captured their post-game banter.
513
00:27:02,972 --> 00:27:06,472
(speaks foreign language)
514
00:27:14,343 --> 00:27:16,250
(dramatic music)
515
00:27:16,250 --> 00:27:17,480
- [Narrator] And while in the movies,
516
00:27:17,480 --> 00:27:20,710
only unknown Christians face wild animals,
517
00:27:20,710 --> 00:27:22,770
in reality animal fighters
518
00:27:22,770 --> 00:27:25,123
were often the most
famous gladiators of all.
519
00:27:26,327 --> 00:27:29,827
(speaks foreign language)
520
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:39,590
- [Narrator] The animals
did not have an easy meal.
521
00:27:39,590 --> 00:27:43,033
In fact, they were almost always killed.
522
00:27:43,033 --> 00:27:45,783
(crowd cheering)
523
00:27:46,830 --> 00:27:48,960
The festival of violence would climax
524
00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:51,223
with a battle between two stars.
525
00:27:52,120 --> 00:27:54,670
Their goal was not to
kill or maim each other,
526
00:27:54,670 --> 00:27:56,673
but to put on an exciting show.
527
00:27:58,170 --> 00:28:01,973
So serious wounds were
rare, but they did happen.
528
00:28:03,290 --> 00:28:05,010
In the movies, this is the moment
529
00:28:05,010 --> 00:28:07,630
when an emperor might
allow the loser to live
530
00:28:07,630 --> 00:28:09,463
to recover from his wounds.
531
00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:14,460
But in reality, serious
wounds couldn't be treated,
532
00:28:14,460 --> 00:28:16,613
and everyone in the colosseum knew it.
533
00:28:17,480 --> 00:28:20,350
The wounded man would
gesture for a decision,
534
00:28:20,350 --> 00:28:23,810
and so to end the gladiator's suffering,
535
00:28:23,810 --> 00:28:27,233
the games promoter would
make the sign for death.
536
00:28:28,633 --> 00:28:32,133
(speaks foreign language)
537
00:28:39,080 --> 00:28:41,819
- [Narrator] As the
gladiator committed suicide,
538
00:28:41,819 --> 00:28:44,443
it's likely the crowd fell silent,
539
00:28:45,430 --> 00:28:47,290
but not for long,
540
00:28:47,290 --> 00:28:49,670
because in the Roman Empire, the appetite
541
00:28:49,670 --> 00:28:52,493
for violent entertainment was insatiable.
542
00:28:53,370 --> 00:28:55,761
And so the show must go on.
543
00:28:55,761 --> 00:28:58,511
(crowd cheering)
544
00:29:00,350 --> 00:29:04,423
Next on Museum Secrets, a
very desirable Roman bath.
545
00:29:06,377 --> 00:29:09,127
(dramatic music)
546
00:29:15,300 --> 00:29:17,900
Inside the Bardo National Museum,
547
00:29:17,900 --> 00:29:20,590
this gallery reveals how
the people of Carthage
548
00:29:20,590 --> 00:29:23,823
and North Africa were changed
by the Roman conquest.
549
00:29:25,970 --> 00:29:28,440
The mosaics are in a Roman style,
550
00:29:28,440 --> 00:29:31,283
but were made by colonized North Africans.
551
00:29:32,620 --> 00:29:35,140
They displayed Roman
mosaics in their homes,
552
00:29:35,140 --> 00:29:37,560
and worshiped Roman gods.
553
00:29:37,560 --> 00:29:40,920
But for those who aspired
to be Roman in every way,
554
00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:41,920
there was a problem.
555
00:29:44,450 --> 00:29:49,450
True Romans washed, networked,
and flirted at public baths.
556
00:29:51,030 --> 00:29:52,840
This pleasurable tradition required
557
00:29:52,840 --> 00:29:55,603
hundreds of liters of
water per person per day.
558
00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,260
In Rome in Italy, there
was plenty of water
559
00:30:00,260 --> 00:30:02,700
to achieve the Roman lifestyle,
560
00:30:02,700 --> 00:30:05,903
but North Africa is a dry
land for much of the year.
561
00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:10,960
For the 500,000 people of Roman Carthage,
562
00:30:10,960 --> 00:30:13,600
there was hardly enough water to drink,
563
00:30:13,600 --> 00:30:15,743
let alone for public baths.
564
00:30:17,480 --> 00:30:20,680
When Emperor Hadrian
learned of the shortage,
565
00:30:20,680 --> 00:30:23,130
he demanded that Roman
Carthage be supplied
566
00:30:23,130 --> 00:30:26,380
with abundant water without delay.
567
00:30:26,380 --> 00:30:28,380
How did his subjects tackle the problem?
568
00:30:29,310 --> 00:30:31,653
That is our museum secret.
569
00:30:33,106 --> 00:30:35,773
(horns honking)
570
00:30:37,340 --> 00:30:40,650
The story begins in Tunis, a modern city
571
00:30:40,650 --> 00:30:43,870
built on the ruins of Roman Carthage.
572
00:30:43,870 --> 00:30:46,850
Its water supply is
pumped up from reservoirs,
573
00:30:46,850 --> 00:30:49,750
and the nearby Miliane River watershed.
574
00:30:49,750 --> 00:30:53,430
But in ancient times, these
were not viable water sources
575
00:30:53,430 --> 00:30:56,393
because the Romans didn't have pumps.
576
00:30:57,720 --> 00:31:00,560
The city required water
from a high elevation
577
00:31:00,560 --> 00:31:02,453
so it could flow by gravity alone.
578
00:31:04,050 --> 00:31:05,270
Such a source existed
579
00:31:05,270 --> 00:31:08,113
at the sacred mountain
spring called Zaghouan.
580
00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:10,640
Roman engineers were sent
581
00:31:10,640 --> 00:31:13,040
to make this water flow to Carthage,
582
00:31:13,040 --> 00:31:15,840
and today, British historian Olie Martin
583
00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:19,830
has come here too, to
find out what they did.
584
00:31:19,830 --> 00:31:21,230
- I mean it's amazing.
585
00:31:21,230 --> 00:31:22,580
I often think of the person that was
586
00:31:22,580 --> 00:31:24,150
given the job to start with, you know?
587
00:31:24,150 --> 00:31:26,523
And you think where do you
start with all of this?
588
00:31:30,380 --> 00:31:31,630
- [Narrator] Water can only be seen
589
00:31:31,630 --> 00:31:33,130
at the bottom of a deep shaft.
590
00:31:35,345 --> 00:31:37,810
But in ancient times,
water filled this pool
591
00:31:37,810 --> 00:31:41,720
300 meters above Roman Carthage.
592
00:31:41,720 --> 00:31:44,560
- Well assuming that for now
have found the best source,
593
00:31:44,560 --> 00:31:46,340
here we now need to look across that plain
594
00:31:46,340 --> 00:31:48,380
and the first thing we need to do really
595
00:31:48,380 --> 00:31:50,120
is get an idea, roughly,
596
00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:52,103
of which direction we need to build it.
597
00:31:53,140 --> 00:31:55,130
- [Narrator] The direction is northeast,
598
00:31:55,130 --> 00:31:58,381
the distance is 75 kilometers.
599
00:31:58,381 --> 00:32:01,020
In Rome, engineers had constructed
600
00:32:01,020 --> 00:32:03,163
long, gravity fed aqueducts.
601
00:32:04,420 --> 00:32:06,580
Here, they would need
to adapt this technology
602
00:32:06,580 --> 00:32:09,300
for North Africa's rough terrain.
603
00:32:09,300 --> 00:32:11,140
- Of course it's highly
unlikely that your aqueduct
604
00:32:11,140 --> 00:32:12,710
is gonna be able to
run in a straight line.
605
00:32:12,710 --> 00:32:14,180
The whole thing is gravity run,
606
00:32:14,180 --> 00:32:16,410
so it must be a nice, sloping gradient
607
00:32:16,410 --> 00:32:17,720
good enough to run the water,
608
00:32:17,720 --> 00:32:19,040
but not too steep.
609
00:32:19,040 --> 00:32:21,270
This is where you need
your expert surveyors
610
00:32:21,270 --> 00:32:22,890
to walk this ground and see
611
00:32:22,890 --> 00:32:24,980
where they could get this decent gradient.
612
00:32:24,980 --> 00:32:26,630
Do you go around the hill?
613
00:32:26,630 --> 00:32:28,230
Do you tunnel through the hill?
614
00:32:28,230 --> 00:32:30,840
Do you go over the valley by bridging it?
615
00:32:30,840 --> 00:32:33,021
So all of these are problems
that the Roman engineers
616
00:32:33,021 --> 00:32:35,230
have got to think about.
617
00:32:35,230 --> 00:32:37,710
- [Narrator] Once the
engineers made a general plan,
618
00:32:37,710 --> 00:32:40,183
they needed precise curves and angles.
619
00:32:41,030 --> 00:32:43,770
And so they employed a Roman innovation,
620
00:32:43,770 --> 00:32:45,678
a surveyor's tool.
621
00:32:45,678 --> 00:32:46,760
- So here we have a groma,
622
00:32:46,760 --> 00:32:49,260
almost the symbol of a
Roman engineer really.
623
00:32:49,260 --> 00:32:50,520
Now to get a straight line,
624
00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:52,780
which is what this thing is used for,
625
00:32:52,780 --> 00:32:54,650
you simply stand here
626
00:32:54,650 --> 00:32:56,500
and you're gonna line
up those three strings.
627
00:32:56,500 --> 00:32:58,750
We're gonna send an
assistant out with the pole,
628
00:32:58,750 --> 00:33:00,340
however far we want him to,
629
00:33:00,340 --> 00:33:01,630
move him left and right
630
00:33:01,630 --> 00:33:04,320
until the pole is lined
up with the three strings,
631
00:33:04,320 --> 00:33:06,570
and there we have a straight line.
632
00:33:06,570 --> 00:33:07,970
Now the other thing you can use it for
633
00:33:07,970 --> 00:33:10,840
is to measure 90 degrees, a right angle.
634
00:33:10,840 --> 00:33:12,520
- [Narrator] This tool
allowed the engineers
635
00:33:12,520 --> 00:33:15,220
to produce a blueprint of
the shortest possible route.
636
00:33:17,310 --> 00:33:20,000
It snaked around mountains, over valleys,
637
00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:23,663
and through hilltops for 128 kilometers.
638
00:33:24,920 --> 00:33:26,950
For an aqueduct this long,
639
00:33:26,950 --> 00:33:29,783
the gradient had to be just
two meters per kilometer.
640
00:33:30,930 --> 00:33:34,213
To the unaided eye, the
slope appears horizontal,
641
00:33:35,490 --> 00:33:37,833
and so another Roman invention was needed.
642
00:33:38,770 --> 00:33:40,330
- Here we have a chorobates,
643
00:33:40,330 --> 00:33:42,850
an instrument for measuring level.
644
00:33:42,850 --> 00:33:44,610
It's basically a level plank.
645
00:33:44,610 --> 00:33:47,650
We have four plumb lines hanging down,
646
00:33:47,650 --> 00:33:50,310
and in the center we have a trough
647
00:33:50,310 --> 00:33:52,433
which we are gonna fill with water.
648
00:33:54,170 --> 00:33:56,660
As long as the water touches
the top of all four sides,
649
00:33:56,660 --> 00:33:58,453
we know it must be level.
650
00:34:01,030 --> 00:34:03,300
- [Narrator] Armed with
their level and blueprints,
651
00:34:03,300 --> 00:34:06,840
the engineers announced
that building could begin.
652
00:34:06,840 --> 00:34:09,590
(dramatic music)
653
00:34:10,540 --> 00:34:14,283
Roman overseers enslaved
North Africans to do the job.
654
00:34:15,330 --> 00:34:19,700
As a colonized people, they
had no right to refuse.
655
00:34:19,700 --> 00:34:22,400
For 10 long years, they dug tunnels,
656
00:34:22,400 --> 00:34:25,030
hauled stone, and erected arches
657
00:34:25,030 --> 00:34:27,393
until they numbered in the thousands.
658
00:34:28,660 --> 00:34:32,763
And then the engineers' design
was put to the crucial test.
659
00:34:33,784 --> 00:34:36,600
From the sacred pool of Zaghouan,
660
00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:39,950
water flowed briskly
down half-buried pipes,
661
00:34:39,950 --> 00:34:42,953
and then more slowly through
channels, over valleys,
662
00:34:44,170 --> 00:34:46,090
and through hillsides.
663
00:34:46,090 --> 00:34:50,700
The precious water crept along,
kilometer after kilometer,
664
00:34:50,700 --> 00:34:53,120
until it crossed above the Miliane River,
665
00:34:53,120 --> 00:34:56,293
into the stone reservoirs
of Roman Carthage.
666
00:35:00,140 --> 00:35:02,990
But how much water had been delivered?
667
00:35:02,990 --> 00:35:05,330
Was there enough for a Roman bath?
668
00:35:05,330 --> 00:35:06,983
Or only enough to drink?
669
00:35:08,020 --> 00:35:11,203
The answer is hidden in plain
sight in the Bardo Museum.
670
00:35:12,100 --> 00:35:15,870
In Roman mosaics, images
of fish and ocean waves
671
00:35:15,870 --> 00:35:18,920
were used for the floors of Roman baths.
672
00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:20,720
Their presence in Carthage
673
00:35:20,720 --> 00:35:23,773
reveals that the aqueduct was a success.
674
00:35:25,240 --> 00:35:26,640
- In many ways we think of the Romans
675
00:35:26,640 --> 00:35:28,200
as all conquering people.
676
00:35:28,200 --> 00:35:30,110
We all hear about the Roman
Army and stuff like that,
677
00:35:30,110 --> 00:35:32,350
and perhaps sometimes we don't remember
678
00:35:32,350 --> 00:35:34,664
that the Romans were also great engineers.
679
00:35:34,664 --> 00:35:35,540
To have been able to achieve this
680
00:35:35,540 --> 00:35:37,683
2,000 years ago is quite amazing.
681
00:35:38,863 --> 00:35:40,580
- [Narrator] And their achievement
682
00:35:40,580 --> 00:35:42,230
provided a colonized people
683
00:35:42,230 --> 00:35:45,050
with even more than a pleasant bath.
684
00:35:45,050 --> 00:35:47,223
It gave them the Roman lifestyle.
685
00:35:48,200 --> 00:35:51,940
By the emperor's command,
those who lived as Romans
686
00:35:51,940 --> 00:35:54,730
could be granted the
rights of Roman citizens,
687
00:35:54,730 --> 00:35:57,390
who could not be enslaved.
688
00:35:57,390 --> 00:36:00,340
In a dry land, water is valuable,
689
00:36:00,340 --> 00:36:03,123
but human rights are priceless.
690
00:36:05,690 --> 00:36:10,030
Next on Museum Secrets, how
to stay alive in the Sahara.
691
00:36:11,365 --> 00:36:14,662
(dramatic music)
692
00:36:14,662 --> 00:36:17,027
(doors creak)
693
00:36:17,027 --> 00:36:19,940
The Bardo National
Museum displays treasures
694
00:36:19,940 --> 00:36:22,163
of Tunisia's Islamic heritage.
695
00:36:23,030 --> 00:36:25,380
There are several pages
of an ancient holy book
696
00:36:25,380 --> 00:36:26,853
known as the Blue Qur'an.
697
00:36:28,230 --> 00:36:29,680
They are among the most valuable
698
00:36:29,680 --> 00:36:31,763
paper artifacts in the world.
699
00:36:33,410 --> 00:36:34,920
And near the scripture,
700
00:36:34,920 --> 00:36:38,020
there's an example of Islamic science.
701
00:36:38,020 --> 00:36:42,033
This astrolabe is an Arab
take on a Greek invention.
702
00:36:44,306 --> 00:36:47,806
(speaks foreign language)
703
00:36:57,510 --> 00:37:00,190
- [Narrator] Astrolabes
were used by Arab seafarers
704
00:37:00,190 --> 00:37:02,120
to navigate the ocean,
705
00:37:02,120 --> 00:37:05,073
and by those who dared to
enter the Sahara Desert.
706
00:37:06,110 --> 00:37:08,250
When sighted on the noonday sun,
707
00:37:08,250 --> 00:37:10,660
an astrolabe reveals a traveler's distance
708
00:37:10,660 --> 00:37:13,513
from the equator, and
from your destination.
709
00:37:14,500 --> 00:37:17,070
It's an important tool for navigation,
710
00:37:17,070 --> 00:37:18,763
but it won't help you survive.
711
00:37:20,040 --> 00:37:21,450
The Sahara is one of the most
712
00:37:21,450 --> 00:37:23,233
unforgiving environments on earth.
713
00:37:24,660 --> 00:37:27,883
And historians believe it's getting worse.
714
00:37:28,950 --> 00:37:31,240
- The story of the Sarah
since climate change occurred
715
00:37:31,240 --> 00:37:35,540
about 5,000 years ago, is
that the level of groundwater
716
00:37:35,540 --> 00:37:38,180
has gradually gone down.
717
00:37:38,180 --> 00:37:40,471
The Sahara has been a high powered desert
718
00:37:40,471 --> 00:37:42,503
for the last 5,000 years.
719
00:37:44,690 --> 00:37:45,770
- [Narrator] How to stay alive
720
00:37:45,770 --> 00:37:48,283
in the Sahara is a museum secret.
721
00:37:52,430 --> 00:37:54,010
Our investigation begins
722
00:37:54,010 --> 00:37:55,973
with a gathering of Berber tribesmen.
723
00:37:57,100 --> 00:37:59,690
Caravan leader Fausi Buali and his crew
724
00:37:59,690 --> 00:38:01,653
are preparing to enter the Sahara.
725
00:38:05,040 --> 00:38:07,340
It may look like they belong here,
726
00:38:07,340 --> 00:38:10,203
but they are as vulnerable
in the desert as anyone.
727
00:38:11,090 --> 00:38:13,500
Luckily for them, their ancestors
728
00:38:13,500 --> 00:38:14,993
domesticated the camel.
729
00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:20,310
In the past, Berbers braved the desert
730
00:38:20,310 --> 00:38:21,663
for trade and profit.
731
00:38:23,320 --> 00:38:25,607
A camel caravan from one side to the other
732
00:38:25,607 --> 00:38:28,590
was a four month journey.
733
00:38:28,590 --> 00:38:32,370
- There must have been
caravans of hundreds of camels,
734
00:38:32,370 --> 00:38:34,450
perhaps even thousands of camels
735
00:38:34,450 --> 00:38:36,990
in the peak years, and
it says a lot I think
736
00:38:36,990 --> 00:38:39,930
about the consumer demand
in the Central Sahara.
737
00:38:39,930 --> 00:38:43,750
They wanted Roman tableware,
that nice, red, glossy pottery
738
00:38:43,750 --> 00:38:47,950
and things like textiles,
salt, the dates from the oases.
739
00:38:47,950 --> 00:38:50,290
And we know that gold from West Africa
740
00:38:50,290 --> 00:38:53,193
is one of the key commodities.
741
00:38:56,250 --> 00:38:57,670
- [Narrator] The camel is well-suited
742
00:38:57,670 --> 00:38:59,510
to these long desert caravans
743
00:38:59,510 --> 00:39:01,170
because of the large amount of water
744
00:39:01,170 --> 00:39:03,003
it can store in its hump.
745
00:39:12,648 --> 00:39:14,890
- [Narrator] But that's
only one of its adaptations.
746
00:39:14,890 --> 00:39:18,680
- The camel has this
extraordinary splay-toed foot
747
00:39:18,680 --> 00:39:22,540
which is very effective
in traversing sand.
748
00:39:22,540 --> 00:39:27,540
It also has well-adapted
eyes and ears and lips
749
00:39:27,580 --> 00:39:29,990
and whiskers that sort
of keep out the dust
750
00:39:29,990 --> 00:39:31,780
when it's blowing around.
751
00:39:31,780 --> 00:39:36,210
It also has the ability to
vary its body temperature
752
00:39:36,210 --> 00:39:39,130
in a way that other
mammals simply don't have.
753
00:39:39,130 --> 00:39:41,040
Its body temperature can go
754
00:39:41,040 --> 00:39:44,071
from about 89 degrees Fahrenheit
755
00:39:44,071 --> 00:39:46,790
up to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
756
00:39:46,790 --> 00:39:48,403
Well that would kill you or me.
757
00:39:49,490 --> 00:39:52,493
- [Narrator] Requiring
only spiny grass for fuel,
758
00:39:52,493 --> 00:39:56,730
the camel provides reliable
transport between water sources
759
00:39:56,730 --> 00:39:59,623
that are sometimes hundreds
of kilometers apart.
760
00:40:01,010 --> 00:40:04,610
In the Sahara, if a lone
traveler loses their camel,
761
00:40:04,610 --> 00:40:05,923
they can easily die.
762
00:40:08,130 --> 00:40:10,140
So if a camel wanders off,
763
00:40:10,140 --> 00:40:11,990
it's critical to know how to find it.
764
00:40:22,930 --> 00:40:23,900
- [Narrator] But while Berbers
765
00:40:23,900 --> 00:40:26,540
depend on their camels for survival,
766
00:40:26,540 --> 00:40:29,390
the camels depend on the Berbers too.
767
00:40:29,390 --> 00:40:31,640
- Even your wonderful camels,
768
00:40:31,640 --> 00:40:35,820
they cannot endure without
finding a water source.
769
00:40:35,820 --> 00:40:37,487
You've got to know where
the water sources are.
770
00:40:37,487 --> 00:40:39,003
That's the crucial thing.
771
00:40:48,827 --> 00:40:51,130
(camels grunting)
772
00:40:51,130 --> 00:40:53,420
- [Narrator] In the
desert, survival can depend
773
00:40:53,420 --> 00:40:55,603
on convincing a camel to cooperate.
774
00:40:56,910 --> 00:40:58,923
This camel is ready and willing.
775
00:40:59,845 --> 00:41:02,720
(camel grunts)
776
00:41:02,720 --> 00:41:04,800
This one, not so much.
777
00:41:11,728 --> 00:41:15,228
(speaks foreign language)
778
00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:19,360
- Camels are extraordinary animals,
779
00:41:19,360 --> 00:41:22,113
but they also have very nasty tempers.
780
00:41:23,660 --> 00:41:25,010
- [Narrator] Experienced Berbers
781
00:41:25,010 --> 00:41:28,150
do not respond with anger or abuse,
782
00:41:28,150 --> 00:41:32,785
because camels, like
elephants, never forget.
783
00:41:32,785 --> 00:41:36,285
(speaks foreign language)
784
00:41:47,786 --> 00:41:50,286
(men snoring)
785
00:42:01,256 --> 00:42:03,923
(camel bellows)
786
00:42:11,155 --> 00:42:14,030
- [Narrator] Unlike the
caravans of old, Fausi's convoy
787
00:42:14,030 --> 00:42:15,723
is not involved in trade.
788
00:42:17,970 --> 00:42:19,660
He and his men make their living
789
00:42:19,660 --> 00:42:23,100
by taking tourists on expeditions
790
00:42:23,100 --> 00:42:24,703
deep into the Sahara.
791
00:42:25,870 --> 00:42:28,950
The purpose is not to
get to the other side.
792
00:42:28,950 --> 00:42:31,093
The desert is the destination.
793
00:42:53,960 --> 00:42:56,670
- [Narrator] As it has been
for thousands of years,
794
00:42:56,670 --> 00:42:59,070
understanding the
interdependence of humans
795
00:42:59,070 --> 00:43:00,770
and the natural world
796
00:43:00,770 --> 00:43:03,403
is the secret of survival in the Sahara.
797
00:43:09,290 --> 00:43:12,950
In this place where ancient enemies meet,
798
00:43:12,950 --> 00:43:15,570
for every mystery we reveal,
799
00:43:15,570 --> 00:43:18,323
far more must remain unspoken.
800
00:43:19,360 --> 00:43:24,310
Secrets of the Holy Spirit,
and of the bravest hearts,
801
00:43:24,310 --> 00:43:28,603
hidden in plain sight inside
the Bardo National Museum.
802
00:43:31,387 --> 00:43:33,970
(somber music)
62156
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