The last human sacrifices carried out in Rome—beyond considering the ludi gladiatorii as an acceptable adaptation of the concept—took place in 216 BC. It was during a colossal catastrophe that shook Rome to the point of desperately reviving those ancient practices. The same disaster that caused tens of thousands of deaths, the loss of many […]
Carthage
Marcus Valerius Laevinus, the Roman general who persuaded the senators to donate their assets to fund the war against Hannibal
The name Marcus Valerius Laevinus doesn’t mean much to most history enthusiasts, not even to those interested in Ancient Rome, as he remains overshadowed by other contemporaries who achieved lasting fame due to their roles in the Second Punic War, such as Hannibal Barca, Scipio Africanus, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, or Quintus Fabius Maximus. But Laevinus […]
The Sicilian Wars that Pitted Carthage against Magna Graecia were the Longest-Lasting Conflict in Antiquity
The rivalry between Rome and Carthage for control of the western Mediterranean culminated in the three Punic Wars, fought between the two powers from 264 B.C. to 146 B.C., ending in Roman victory. However, this wasn’t the first time the Carthaginians had resorted to arms to contest maritime dominance; they had been doing so since […]
Punic Tophets Did Not House Sacrifices, They Were Sacred Spaces for Children Who Died of Natural Causes, Researchers Discovered
An international team of researchers has conducted a thorough study of the cremated remains of infants and children found in the tophet of Zita, Tunisia, revealing a complex history of poor health and careful mortuary rituals that challenges previous interpretations of these controversial sacred sites. The study, recently published in the journal Antiquity, focuses on […]
Another Bronze Ram Recovered at a Depth of 80 Meters in the Site of the Battle of the Aegates Islands that ended the First Punic War
The sea, which was the setting for the Battle of the Aegates Islands off the coast of Sicily, continues to reveal its archaeological treasures. During the August research campaign, a new bronze ship ram (rostrum) was recovered from the seabed at a depth of around 80 meters. This valuable find was retrieved by divers from […]
The Small North African Elephants, Now Extinct, with Which Hannibal Crossed the Alps
Animals have accompanied humans in warfare practically since the domestication of dogs, serving as combat vehicles of the era, alongside chariots, horses, camels, and elephants. The latter can be considered the tanks of bygone times and are often depicted in illustrations and films, though almost always inaccurately: illustrations typically show them as enormous, the typical […]
Remains of a Devastating Fire from 2200 Years Ago, Set by Hannibal’s Troops En Route to the Alps, Found at a Site in Spain
Archaeologists have unearthed the charred remnants of an ancient settlement in the Pyrenees, providing a rare glimpse into a catastrophic event from over two millennia ago. This settlement, known as Tossal de Baltarga, was incinerated so swiftly and violently that the inhabitants had no chance to save their livestock or valuable belongings. The ruins of […]
The Battle of Drepana, the Greatest Roman Naval Defeat in the First Punic War, was Foretold by Chickens
A while ago, we dedicated an article to the long siege that the Romans subjected Lilybaeum to, the last Carthaginian stronghold in Sicily. We then pointed out that this episode, which determined Rome’s victory in the First Punic War, was marked by a series of land and naval battles and that in one of them […]
The Remains of the Battle of Himera, One of the Greatest Archaeological Discoveries in Recent Decades
Himera, currently known as Termini Imerese on the north coast of Sicily, was a Greek city founded in 648 B.C. by colonists from Zancle (Messina). Its location, the westernmost of all Greek cities on the island, made it a strategic point at the edge of the territory controlled by Carthage, which occupied the west. The […]
The Story of the Phoenician Sarcophagi of Cádiz and the “Man Who Was Never Thanked”
In 1887, on the occasion of the celebration of the International Maritime Exhibition in Cádiz (Spain), the dismantling of the grounds where it would be located took place at the so-called Punta de la Vaca. In the excavations, a necropolis with several Phoenician-Punic burials was discovered, about five meters deep, whose grave goods disappeared at […]