Timgad: the Roman grid

Timgad is a Roman colony in Algeria, founded around AD 100 under Trajan. The city was built to a plan: a strict street grid, a forum at the centre, a theatre on the slope. One of the most coherent surviving examples of Roman town planning — and a constant reference point whenever I think about light and proportion.

What survives:

• the colonnaded street grid
• the forum and the capitolium
• a theatre for three and a half thousand seats
• baths and a library

My sketching routine — in Workflow: the sketchbook. Details — on Wikipedia.