The Grief of Carthage

Nearly 800 years before the new era, in the city of Tyre on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in present-day Lebanon, a fratricide drama unfolded. Over an inheritance, as often happens. The widow of the murdered brother – Princess Elissa, also known as Dido, decided to save herself by fleeing, which ended on the northern shores of the same sea. Dido bought a piece of land from the local Berber king “as big as an oxhide”, only she managed to cut the hide into thin strips and fence off a fairly decent plot of land, on which the city of Carthage grew. Or so the legends say.

Not much remains of this first Carthage, which for six centuries became the dominant power in North Africa and the entire Mediterranean. The reason is that in the 3rd century BC, they seriously started to step on each other’s toes with the then Roman Republic. For nearly 120 years they fought on land and water, until in -146 (this is how they denoted “before the New Era” in Tunisia, I really liked it) the Punic Wars ended with the tragic death of the African pretender. As a reward, the Romans ruined the city to the ground.

Today’s Carthage has practically merged with the capital of Tunis (of the state of Tunisia). The archaeological site is well-maintained and is one of the most visited places in the country. After the skillful intervention of the Romans, alas, the preserved Punic heritage is very scarce. Its remains represent a small part of the site, which is scattered along the coast in the form of separate buildings and structures. The visit usually starts from the central part, because both Google and the brown tourist signs lead to this point.

A little more of the Punics (Carthaginians) can be seen in the so-called Tophet, also designated as the “Punic sanctuary”. According to various sources, it is an ancient necropolis with a burial temple and numerous tombstones, which are quite different from the Roman ones. They are made of local stone, which is apparently susceptible to the elements by the sea, so they are not in a good condition. Nowadays, they are simply piled up next to each other, leaving it to visitors to guess about the meaning of the images.

The Old Port of Carthage also dates back to Punic times, but it requires a lot of imagination to see it in all its glory. That would be worth it, because it was a true engineering marvel of its time. A hand-dug circular artificial canal with one direction of entry and exit. In its center was the repair dock, consisting of parallel corridors – ships were passed through them to be repaired. The Romans turned it into a park for walks. It is difficult to show it without an aerial photo.

Much more abundant in today’s Carthage is the Roman heritage. After systematically destroying the Punic city, our friends from Rome built their own town, why waste the great location. The most impressive are the Antonine Baths. They are also in ruins, but you can get an idea of the scope of the construction. They were on more than one floor, with the obligatory hot and cold pools, changing rooms, gyms and so on. Their location on the seafront contributes to the overall beauty.

Next is the so-called Roman Villa, which may or may not have been an actual villa. A villa in Roman terms means a farm with gardens and often vineyards, which is generally located outside the city limits. After centuries of urbanization, it is difficult to outline the exact boundaries of Roman Carthage, but judging by the immediate proximity of the theater, it seems more like a town house to me. I may of course be wrong, and the undeniably rich owner of the house may have paid for an entire theater in his yard, to make it more convenient.

And here is the theater. If you are a maniac about ancient history like me, you are likely to be slightly disappointed. The Roman “pieces” of the theater are very few in number and are firmly positioned in their respective historical places. By very strong concrete. Judging by various signs, such as metal scaffolding for the stage, the theater may still be used for its intended purpose today. However, its value for me is sharply lost by the approach of conservation and renovation. That’s all I will say on the matter.

I also want to show you the amphitheater of Carthage. I have found that non-specialists (or non-nerds, let’s face it) often confuse the Roman theater with the amphitheater, since the seats in the former ARE arranged amphitheatrically. The Colosseum in Rome is an amphitheater – the stage is more of an arena in the middle, surrounded on all sides by seats for the spectators. Also arranged amphitheatrically, but don’t let that confuse you. There are six well-preserved Roman amphitheaters in the world, and the one in Carthage is not one of them.