Thapsus (Tpsr, Thapsos, or Tapsa) is an ancient site located in the present-day Ras-Dimass area, near Bekalta (Monastir, eastern coast of Tunisia), in the Tunisian Sahel. The site was occupied from the 7th century BCE to the 3rd century CE. The Urban Complex underwent extensive spoliation of construction materials, particularly marble and limestone. Limestone was reused during a later phase for structural consolidation, including the closure of certain access points and modifications to the monument’s architecture (without the use of mortar). In contrast, the marble spoliation appears to be primarily related to supply raw material for a lime-production workshop identified at the entrance to the baths within the same urban complex. White and colored marbles collected from the Urban Complex of Thapsus were analyzed using portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, digital and polarized light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and stable isotope ratio analysis (δ¹⁸8O and δ¹³C) to determine their characteristics and provenance. The results indicate that the white marbles consist of medium- to fine-grained calcitic varieties of diverse provenance. Based on isotopic signatures and petrographic features, the identified marbles include Parian marble (Paros-2 variety from the Lefkes region, Greece), Rosso Antico, Greco Scritto, red Iasian marble, and Cipollino Verde. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) further supports the provenance interpretations by integrating mineralogical, petrographic, and isotopic data.
Amadori et al. (Sun,) studied this question.