My preliminary research on the site of the indicative list "Rammadiya d'El magtaa (El Mekta), the princeps site of the Capsian culture" on Google Map did not lead to conclusive results: the satellite view of the archaeological excavations does not reveal any traces of habitation, nor of an earth embankment, nor of an access path.

But on the other hand, tourist guides like Les Guides bleus or Le Routard mention a small museum in the town of Gafsa, 10 km away, where artifacts from the excavations of ancient El Magtaa are exhibited.

So I decided to visit this museum on my way from Sbeitla to Kebili.

It wasn't easy to park Wilson, which is 6 m long, in the chaos of the city center, and I must admit that it wasn't easy for me to find the museum either. The place seemed so unsafe that I memorized the city map before leaving Wilson and continued on foot. I made a first attempt without finding it by walking along the medina, but on my way back to the mobile home I told myself that it was too stupid and went looking for it again, small discreet camera in hand, and this time, after several requests for directions from the locals, I found myself in the kasbah where I was taken back to the museum!

My efforts were rewarded. The museum is located directly across from two Roman-era pools that were part of a water temple where the children of the medina now bathe. I lingered around the pools for a while, as the location and timing were so charming, then went to see the museum (5 dinars admission).

The ticket clerk turned on the light for me and indeed the few artifacts found on the site of Magtaa or in Gafsa itself are exhibited there, but meh! Compared to the Roman mosaics which represent, in particular, sports disciplines including a boxing match, it's not really worth it.

A rare thing: there were leaflets available, so I took one. Note that this leaflet informs us that the Magtaa civilization dates back to 7,000 to 4,000 BC and is so unique that it bears its own name: the Capsian civilization. It's also worth noting that these hunter-gatherers were so fond of snails that they left mounds of them, which can still be seen today on the outskirts of town.