Re-using Temples in the Contested Landscape of Vandal North Africa: The cella-Baptistery of Jebel Oust

A temple built atop a hot spring at Jebel Oust, southwest of Carthage, was repurposed as a baptistery during the early fifth century, suggesting continuity between ancient healing cults and Christian practices. The study proposes that this site may have been 'arianized,' aligning Arian Christianity with local pre-Christian traditions amid Vandal anti-Nicene policies. By analyzing archaeological evidence—including temple statues of healing deities (Aesculapius and Hygea) and the placement of a baptismal font in the former cella—the research reinterprets Jebel Oust as a symbol of ecclesio-political contestation during Vandal rule (439–533 AD). The findings challenge assumptions about the strict separation between pagan and Christian religious practices, highlighting how Arianism could be strategically linked to enduring local cults.

Lenk, S. (2025). Re-using Temples in the Contested Landscape of Vandal North Africa: The cella-Baptistery of Jebel Oust. Governance in Iberia and North Africa in the Long Late Antiquity, 166–199. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004747494_007