2-491-971 - Vivienne Sharp/Heritage Images

Antonine Baths, Carthage, Tunisia. A perennial foe of Rome, the North African city-state of Carthage was absorbed into the Roman Empire after its defeat in the Third Punic War in 146 BC. The Roman city that was established on the ruins of Carthage grew to become the second largest city in the western half of the empire and the capital of the province of Africa. These baths, built between 145 and 165 AD during the reign of Antoninus Pius, were once the very largest in the Roman Empire. The main pool was as big as a modern Olympic pool.