Though the town dates back to Roman times and was an important settlement in the Byzantine Empire and early Islamic period, very few monuments from those times remain today. There are interesting ruins of a fortified palace and a mosque, both dating to the 10th-century Fatimid period. Near the town is the Ajdabiya Distributing Station, where waters from the irrigation plan known as the Great Manmade River Project surface after their long journey from the southern Sahara. Don't go out of your way to visit the project as there really isn't that much to see. 512 mi/854 km southeast of Tripoli (100 mi/160 km south of Benghazi on the coastal highway).
