The UNESCO-listed Medina of Tunis lies in Tunis, the capital of Tunisia.
The Medina is the historic old quarter of Tunis and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. It developed around the Zitouna Mosque after the city’s foundation in 698, and its dense network of lanes, souks, religious buildings, palaces, and gates preserves the form of a medieval Islamic city.
The medina contains roughly 700 monuments, including mosques, mausoleums, madrasas, fountains, and aristocratic houses. It reached particular importance under the Almohad and Hafsid dynasties, when Tunis became a major political, intellectual, religious, and commercial center. Visitors sometimes confuse Tunis with Carthage, the ancient city located nearby, or with Tunisia’s other historic centers such as Kairouan. The UNESCO property, however, is specifically the old city within the modern capital of Tunis.