Megalithic Culture
Saint Augustine mentioned that the polytheistic Africans worshipped the rocks. Apuleius stated as well that rocks were worshipped in the second century A.D. The megalithic culture may have been part of a cult of the dead or of star-worship.
The monument of Mzora (also spelled as Msoura) is the best known megalithic monument in northwest Africa. It is composed of a circle of megaliths surrounding a tumulus. The highest megalith is longer than 5 meters. According to legend, it is the sepulchre of the mythic Berber king Antaeus. Another megalithic monument was discovered in 1926 to south of Casablanca. The monument was engraved with funerary inscriptions in the Berber script known as Tifinagh.
Herodotus mentioned that the ancient Berbers worshipped the moon and sun and sacrificed to them. He reported:
They begin with the ear of the victim, which they cut off and throw over their house: this done, they kill the animal by twisting the neck. They sacrifice to the Sun and Moon, but not to any other god. This worship is common to all the Libyans.
Tullius Cicero (105-43 BCE) also reported the same cult in On the Republic (Scipio's Dream):
When I (Scipio) was introduced to him, the old man (Massinissa, king of Massyle) embraced me, shed tears, and then, looking up to heaven, exclaimed I thank thee, O supreme Sun, and you also, you other celestial beings, that before I departed from this life I behold in my kingdom, and in my palace, Publius Cornelius Scipio ....
There were some Latin inscriptions found in Northwest Africa dedicated to the sun-god. An example is the inscription found in Souk Ahras (the birthplace of Saint Augustine; Tagaste in Algeria) written as: Solo Deo Invicto. Samuel the Confessor appears to have suffered from the sun-worshiping Berbers who tried unsuccessfully to obligate him worshiping the sun.
In Awelimmiden Tuareg, the name Amanai is believed to have the meaning of "God". The Ancient Libyans may have worshipped the setting sun, which was impersonated by Amon, who was represented by the ram's horns.
The sun was worshipped besides the mountains (e.g.: Atlas), rocks, caves, and rivers. Thus the Massyle tribe Chaouis took their name, meaning the horn of Ba'al Amon.
Read more about this topic: Berber Mythology
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