Carthage Antique, des origines jusqu’à l’invasion Vandale (814 BC-439 AD) by Samir Aounallah

Clip and clear, one of the best historical overviews of Carthage is to be found in this booklet, Carthage Antique, des origines jusqu’à l’invasion Vandale (Antique Carthage from its origins to the invasion of the Vandals) (814 BC-439 AD) by Samir Aounallah (ISBN 978-9973-878526).

In a concise but very transparent way, the author walks us through Punic Carthage, telling us how it disappeared, followed by the birth of another Carthage as created by the Romans after having destroyed the city about a century before until it became the mighty Colonia Concordia Iulia Carthago.

Carthage was founded in 814 BC as a colony of Phoenician Tyre and the principal information comes from its cemeteries, the so-called tophets. Soon Carthage outshone Tyre to become a powerful nation in its own right that inevitably grew to be the envy of Rome. This led to what went down into history as The Punic Wars.

The First Punic War was fought from 264 to 241 BC mainly in and around Sicily. The Second Punic War that raged from 218 until 201 BC is probably best known for Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps. The decisive blow happened during the Third Punic War that lasted only three years (149-146 BC) and ended with the victory of the Romans. After the loss of hundreds and maybe thousands of soldiers on both sides, the almighty Romans thoroughly destroyed the city of Carthage.

Since the city sat on a strategic location, Octavian, the future Emperor Augustus decided in 44 BC that it should be rebuilt. So whatever poor remains were left from the Punic city were now buried underneath the new Roman metropolis, hence the complication for modern archaeologists to redefine the outlines of either city.

This booklet is an excellent attempt to sort out the widespread ruins. It contains plenty of photographs of the ruins as visible today but also many artifacts that have been moved to the Bardo Museum in Tunis and the Museum of Carthage on the spot. Several drawings, maps, reconstructive maquettes, and visualization pictures help to create a vivid image of what this grand city once looked like. Besides, many pages contain inserts in italics quoting texts from antique writers and other historical authors.

In short, it is an excellent tool for whoever wants to visit the remains of Carthage in modern Tunisia or for those interested in a solid historical overview.