Daniel E. Coslett, Ph.D., is a scholar of architectural and urban history and a Professor of Architecture at Drexel University. His research specialties include architecture and planning of the modern era, built environments of European colonialism, archaeology and heritage management, and tourism in North Africa and the Mediterranean region.
We first crossed paths in 2004 while studying abroad in Rome, Italy. We took our first trip to Tunisia together as part of a student group visit. Just 18 months later, we both received Fulbright grants to pursue research in Tunisia. We’ve stayed in touch over the years, exchanging stories of our ongoing connections to the country and its cultural heritage.
I’m thrilled that Daniel is sharing his top 10 architectural spots in central Tunis with us! — Pauline
I Heart Tunis (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
For much of its history, Tunisia has been an important crossroads of cultures, traces of which survive in the country’s identity and built environments today. Indeed, having been part of the Punic, Roman, Byzantine, various Arab, Ottoman, and French empires before securing its independence in 1956, Tunisia remains a complex and multifaceted place with impressive architecture that tells of its storied past and dynamic present. Nowhere is this more evident than in Tunis, its lively capital city. A discerning eye will find styles, materials, motifs, and traditions drawn from around the Mediterranean (and beyond), as well as elements unique to Tunisia.
As a specialist in the architecture of 19th- and 20th-century Tunisia, I’m often asked to share my favorite buildings. In all honesty, confining such a list to merely ten is a challenge, but I think this is a good start! With a decent pair of shoes, you’ll see a great deal of fascinating buildings amongst the highlights included below. These are landmarks and prominent structures, but they are also very relevant to Tunis, emblematic of its past and in several cases the beneficiary of careful preservation efforts undertaken by those dedicated to the study and enjoyment of historic architecture. In no particular order—
Avenue Bourguiba (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
1. Avenue Habib Bourguiba (1860s, renovated 2000–2003). The tree-lined spine of colonial-era Tunis, this wide avenue runs from the former port east of the city to the pre-colonial medina. Along its path you’ll find sidewalk cafés, eclectic shops and restaurants, significant architecture, and several monuments to illustrious Tunisians. Long known as the “Champs-Elysées of Tunis,” the busy street is a great place to people watch and pass some time in the shade of a leafy ficus or stone arcade. The culmination of the 21011 revolution occurred right here in this iconic public space.
Hotel du Lac (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
2. Hôtel du Lac (1973). Closed for decades and threatened with demolition since its purchase by foreign investors in 2013, the brutalist slab of a building sits at the edge of the city near the shallow lake’s shoreline. Though now inaccessible, the building’s inverted pyramid form contributes a surprising element to the Tunis skyline from a time when flashy concrete architecture was in high demand. Though in many ways it reflects broader global trends, when opened, it was decorated with sculpture by some of Tunisia’s most prominent artists.
Sea Gate/Porte de France (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
3. Sea Gate/Porte de France (12th–13th centuries). Most of the medina’s walls were dismantled during the nineteenth century, but a few gateways were saved, standing now like isolated triumphal arches along busy streets around the city. The Sea Gate—known during the colonial era (and by some still today) as the Porte de France—sits at the western end of the Avenue Bourguiba/Avenue de France. Isolated in its square since the late 1930s, it remains a bustling threshold between the gridded ville nouvelle (new city) and the organic medina.
Sidi Ben Arous Street (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
4. Sidi Ben Arous Street and Chéchia Souk. The medina is filled with lots of beautiful streets, but the Rue Sidi Ben Arous and its adjacent market streets from the late 17th century specializing in the production and sale of Tunisia’s iconic red felt hats (chéchias) are standouts. Though the hats are less popular than they used to be, the souk’s vaulted passageways remain inviting. There are some impressive wooden doors, great shops, and pleasant cafés here in the shadow of several important mosque minarets, including that of the grand Zitouna Mosque.
Post office (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
5. Central Post Office (1892). Built by a French archaeologist and architect during the early years of the French occupation near the city’s central market, the massive stone building recalls ancient Roman monuments (thing triumphal arches and aqueducts) while embodying the most modern post and telegraph (and eventually telephone) technology of its time. Though some of its décor has been lost, its central hall retains the grand scale and brightness of the original pompous building. Look out for historic inscriptions and mosaics inside and out.
Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul and St. Olivia (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
6. Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul and St. Olivia (1897). Intended to unite the sometimes-contentious Catholic French, Italian, and Maltese residents of Tunis, the downtown cathedral’s Byzantine style reflects the historicism that was popular at the time in Europe and the West. Adding symbolic cachet, its plan was said to resemble that of an early Christian church nearby, its stone taken from an ancient quarry, and its towers made of concrete using water from the source of the ancient Zaghouan aqueduct. The 1930 frescos in the apse illustrates the era’s understanding of the building’s significance and the apotheosis of St. Vincent de Paul.
Municipal Theatre (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
7. Municipal Theatre (1902). An Art Nouveau gem on the Avenue Bourguiba, the public theatre continues to host regular orchestral and dramatic performances. A lovely venue in the heart of the colonial-era city, the building’s façade incorporates relief sculptures of Apollo and his muses. Its gold-guilt main hall and colorful interiors are delicate, having also been restored by the Association for the Preservation of the Tunis Medina (ASM). Set slightly back from the Avenue, its stairs are a theater to themselves, a popular place of gathering and peoplewatching.
Dar ben Gacem (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
8. Dar Ben Gacem (18th century). This large home was built on the Rue du Pacha around an arcaded courtyard in the typical Tunisian manner. Beautifully restored with help from the ASM in the 2010s, it’s a lovely place to spend a few nights surrounded by colorful painted tiles, intricately carved plasterwork, an interesting collection of ceramics and folk art, and bright pink bougainvillea. Nice views of the medina and surrounding hills can be had from its sunny rooftop, while its shaded courtyard offers a place of quiet repose in the busy city.
City hall (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
9. City Hall (1998). Decades of talk about a new, larger, city hall came to an end with the construction of this massive building in its vast square with a forest of iron lampposts (but sadly, no shade). Wrapped in horseshoe arches and mashrabiya screens, the imposing Postmodern building represents a resurgence of interest in historic (pre-colonial) architecture in the region during the 1990s and 2000s. Built on the high ground that was the site of the medina’s old casbah and colonial barracks, you get a nice view over the medina from its front steps. You can also find some surviving medina wall fragments nearby.
Republic Square (Photo: Daniel E. Coslett)
10. Republic Square (Place de la République). This is a very busy space at the intersection of several big tree-lined avenues and tram lines, but it’s surrounded by Habib Thameur park and several beautiful buildings. The whitewashed Enicar building (with its square clocktower) and former Ritz Hotel (with its protruding cylindrical tower) are standouts—great examples of Art Deco architecture in Tunis. The Art Nouveau Majestic Hotel (1914) nearby on the Avenue de Paris (another attractive tree-lined street!) is worth a look too.
Additional reading:
Abdelkafi, Jellal. La Médina de Tunis: Espace Historique. Paris: Alif, 1989.
Ben Khoud, Faouzia. Architectural Guide: Tunis. Berlin: DOM, 2020.*
Bilas, Charles. Tunis: L’Orient de la Modernité. Paris: Éditions de l’Eclat, 2010.
Çelik, Zeynep. Empire, Architecture, and the City: French-Ottoman Encounters. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2008.*
Coslett, Daniel E. “(Re)branding a (Post)colonial Streetscape: Tunis’s Avenue Bourguiba and the Road Ahead.” International Journal of Islamic Architecture 6.1 (2017): 59–96.*
Hueber, Juliette and Claudine Piaton, eds. Tunis: Architectures 1860–1960. Tunis: Elyzad, 2011.
Lamine, Sihem. “Colonial Zaytuna: The Making of a Minaret in French-Occupied Tunisia.” Muqarnas 38.1 (2021): 185–221.*
*English-language text.
Pauline Eveillard and Daniel E. Coslett at the Amphitheater of El Djem in 2005.
