Carthage excursion. Carthage. History of the Phoenicians in North Africa. The internal situation of the Carthaginian state

Carthage is the birth of the Tunisian legend. Tunisia is the northernmost country in Africa, where there was a mixture of different styles from Africa, Asia and Europe. It was in Tunisia that East met West. The Carthage area is the most expensive and prestigious suburb of the capital of Tunisia. It is built up with white mansions with luxurious gardens. The summer residence of the country's president is located in the Carthage region. Lovers of antiquities and ancient history, your path lies in Carthage for self-development, gaining new knowledge about the mysterious African country of Tunisia, to broaden your horizons!

The history of Tunisia is the history of Carthage. In Tunisia, the Phoenicians became the pioneers. As skilled sailors and traders, they founded several colonies in the eastern territory of Tunisia in the Mediterranean Sea. Carthage achieved the greatest prosperity. The Punic period of Tunisia's history covers 814-146 BC. In 146 BC. e. During the Third Punic War, the city of Carthage was burned and completely destroyed by the ancient Romans. After 100 years, the Romans returned here and rebuilt Carthage. It is his artifacts that tourists see on excursion routes.

The Roman period (146 BC - 439 AD) entered the history of Tunisia with the seizure of all the lands of the “Province of Africa”. The Romans and Greeks began to explore ancient cities. Income from the trade and sale of olive oil was a success in the development of this North African territory. Plunge into the history of the rule of Great Rome! Today in Carthage we are wandering among typical Roman ancient buildings.

Carthage is the ancient capital of Tunisia. The legendary city of Carthage, even today, retains traces of its former power in elements of columns, buildings, sculptures, ancient coins and other artifacts. Particularly impressive are the National Museum of Carthage and the Baths of the Roman Emperor Antony Pius - the second largest in the Roman Empire after the Baths of Caracalla in the “eternal city” of Rome.

Excursion Carthage in Tunisia

Excursion Carthage - the remains of a former civilization in the form of ruins and excavations, presented as an open-air museum in the center of the Tunis vilayet. From Tunis to Carthage can be reached by the urban railway TGM (Tunis-Goulet-Marsa) 12 km from the city center. The TGM Tunis Marine station is located near the Clock Tower on Avenue Habib Bourguiba. On the territory of Carthage there are 10 different sites for tourists to explore in remote places (single ticket for all sites). The ruins of Carthage are interesting because of the layers of excavations and remains of structures from several eras: Phoenician, Roman, Arab and Byzantine. Archaeologists have restored: a Roman amphitheater, an ancient aqueduct, Roman baths, the remains of residential areas, sanctuaries. One of the main excavation sites of Carthage is a 6.5 km long site. The ruins of the Punic Tophet are an altar for open-air burials of children.

A suburb of Tunisia, the famous city-state of Carthage and its sites currently look like solid stones in the crown of the archaeological park of the capital. Plan your route around the sights of Carthage in advance. You need to start your visit from the sea and move from south to north as if through the pages of history. Start of the journey through the antiquities of Carthage - Phoenician burials and trading ports of the Phoenicians. Next, explore the exhibits of the Roman era and finish the tour with the treasures of the Christian basilica. You have the right to choose any course of events! The islet of Amyroth in Carthage is a landmass of a military and commercial port of the Phoenicians. The quarter of Roman villas, the baths of Antonius Pius, rainwater collection tanks and Birsa Hill are mesmerizing in size.

Birsa is the citadel of Carthage on the high hill of the same name. Birsa has reached our times in the form of ruins from the Roman era. Birsa is compared to the acropolis - an unchanging attribute of Greek cities. This is the so-called “Upper City”. The Temple of St. Louis on the hill of Birsa is the most interesting part of the excursion to Carthage. The National Museum of Carthage was built in the place where the Romans laid the first stone for the construction of the ancient city. The museum with archaeological finds from ancient Carthage was opened in 1875 in a former monastery and is considered the oldest in Tunisia.

And so, the second part of the review: EXCURSION PROGRAM.
As I already wrote in a previous review, we vacationed in Tunisia from September 11 to September 27 this year. Back at home, we planned six excursions, five of which we managed to implement. I prepared in advance a list of places I would like to visit, but no tourist guides can replace a personal impression of what I saw. And don’t believe those who claim that there is nothing to see in Tunisia. This is what people say when they spend their entire vacation on the beach. I'll try to convince you of this. I will write about my favorite places.

TUNISIA-CARTHAGE – SIDI BOU SAID
During this excursion we visited three cities in Tunisia. The first city on our way was the capital of Tunisia, which bears the same name as the country. For about an hour, a wonderful guide told us the glorious history of his country. According to the GUIDE, “Olives and Tourism” are the two gods that local residents pray to.
TUNISIA is a very modern, noisy and energetic city. It is also called the country of “victorious feminism.” In other countries of the Arab world, women wear veils and take care of the kitchen, home, and raising children. In Tunisia, thanks to the reforms of President Bourguiba, women have all the conditions for a full life. They, along with men, study, work and have fun. Those. live a full life, which, for example, our beloved Egypt cannot boast of. Polygamy has been legally abolished in Tunisia; you must agree, this is a phenomenal phenomenon for the Muslim world. In general, the legislation makes a lot of concessions for women.
The capital of Tunisia has modern highways, an overground metro, hotels, cafes, restaurants, stadiums and museums. The city itself has many French-style buildings, reminiscent of colonial times. As in other cities of the country, the Central Street of Tunis is named after the first president - Avenue Habib Bourguiba. This street starts from the gates of the old city - Medina. On the main street of the capital is the National Theater of Tunisia. Its steps are a meeting place for young people and students. By the way, the University of Tunisia itself is not much younger than Oxford. On the same street is the International Hotel, where our first stop was. The group was given time to walk to the Old City of Medina, which is famous for its large bazaar, with a labyrinth of shopping arcades. Here you could buy all kinds of memorable souvenirs and gifts. The guide immediately warned that the bazaar is so big that you can get lost, so you shouldn’t get carried away and go deep into the shopping arcades. When you find yourself in the Old Medina, you get the impression that you are immersed in oriental life with all its flavor and spicy aromas of spices. We were really afraid of getting lost and returned to Avenue Bourguiba to take memorable photos. In general, the central street of the capital looks very European. I got the impression that Tunisia is a city where “yesterday and today” naturally mixed and intertwined.
BARDO MUSEUM
The National Bardo Mosaic Museum is also located in the capital. The museum building is an ancient palace, where the largest collection of ancient Roman mosaics, as well as statues of gods and heroes, is presented. All museum exhibits were found during excavations in various cities of Tunisia.
The entrance to the museum is guarded by two marble lions. In order to take photographs, you need to pay 1 dinar (22 rubles). The museum has just a huge amount of wall and floor mosaics, of all possible sizes and subjects. There are wall mosaics several stories high that hang on the museum's staircases. In the festive hall there is the largest surviving fragment of the mosaic - as much as 56 square meters!
The ceilings of the palace building itself are very beautiful, many are decorated with Italian-style paintings or unusually fine lace carvings. In general, it is very difficult to talk and write about the museum; you have to see it. You can look at the mosaics for hours, and the guide will tell you in detail who created them and for what reason. Throughout the entire tour, our GUIDE never tired of repeating the aphorism “Life is short, but art is eternal.”
CARTHAGE
The next place to visit was the famous city of Carthage or Carthage, familiar to everyone from school. This once powerful empire, founded by the Phoenician princess Elissa, was destroyed several times and was reborn again. To this day, the remains of the Roman buildings of the Capitol, the Carthaginian Amphitheater and the Baths of Antony have been preserved. The ruins of Carthage are located in several scattered places, where excavations are still ongoing. We only visited the park of the complex of baths of Emperor Anthony Pius, which were built on the seashore and are best preserved to our times. After the Baths of Trajan in Rome, these baths were the largest in the Roman Empire. The aristocracy of Carthage met here to relax, bathe and conduct business conversations. Of course, only ruins remain of all the splendor, but they are also impressive.
Near the park there is a fence of the summer residence of Tunisian President Ben Ali, which is strictly guarded (there are booths with machine gunners around the fence). There are signs around the area warning that photography is not allowed in this direction. By the way, portraits of the president and state flags hang everywhere - in hotel lobbies, in shops, in shops, in cafes. A sort of patriotism for show.
Modern Carthage is one of the most prestigious suburbs of Tunisia. There are many snow-white villas and nobility live here, as well as the residences of foreign ambassadors. Carthage is carefully preserved from modernity. All telephone and electrical cables are hidden underground, so when walking around the city, it is easy to imagine that time has turned back and you have found yourself in a different era. According to the Guide: Local authorities are still fining homeowners if they don't update the paint on their homes.
In general, we caught ourselves thinking that it was somehow unusual to touch ancient stones that preserve memories of the past greatness of the entire Empire... Once in Soviet times, while studying the history of Carthage in the school curriculum, we could not even imagine that we will see all this with our own eyes...
From Carthage we went to the suburbs to have lunch at one of the Caribbean hotels. Next, our excursion followed to the romantic town of artists, performers and poets...
SIDI BOU SAID
And finally, the last point of our journey is the picturesque blue and white town of Sidi Bou Said, which is located on Mount El Manar, and is located not far from Carthage. In my opinion, this is one of the most beautiful places we have seen in Tunisia.
White and blue are the main colors of the houses in this town. Back in the early 20s, the town of Sidi Bou Said, on the initiative of the British Baron Erlanger, was taken under protection as a historical monument.
We follow the GUIDE past blooming cactus plantations, galleries and souvenir shops. Every now and then we meet students with tablets in their hands, making sketches of local architectural “masterpieces”... We literally turn our heads 180 degrees with our mouths open and take photographs, photographs and photographs...
The steeply rising main street finally leads us to the Nutt cafe. They say this is the most famous cafe in Tunisia, thanks to Auguste Macke's painting "View of the Mosque". Here the guide interrupted his narration and let us go free swimming for an hour and a half. It was the shortest hour and a half of my life. There was no trace of fatigue left. We have time to walk along a shopping street with many shopping shops, take a lot of pictures and look into the famous cafe. Every house in this town, every door covered with ivy or roses, are real works of art. And what an amazing view opens from the terrace of the cafe to the Gulf of Tunis and Mount Bou Cornin. I think that this wonderful, fairy-tale town will not leave any tourist indifferent. To feel the atmosphere of this amazingly beautiful place, you need to stay here for at least one day, but, alas, we have too little time. We are forced to rush back to the bus. It's a pity that there was very, very little time to explore.
This wonderful, educational excursion took the whole day. The cost for 1 person with lunch is 65 Dinars (1400-1450 rubles). In time for dinner we were brought back to the hotel for a well-deserved rest.
The whole next day we peacefully arrived at the beach and shared our impressions of what we saw with new acquaintances from our vacation. Having rested and gained strength, ready for new experiences, we went on an excursion to the city of El Jem.

EL JEM
First of all, the city of El Jem is famous for its amphitheater, which was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979. Like almost all other Roman settlements in Tunisia, the city of El Jem was built on the site of a former Phoenician settlement. The Romans called it Tisdrus (Fisdrus) and under them it was the place where many trade routes converged, along which food was delivered to Rome. The huge Colosseum is a reminder of those times.
And so, about the main attraction of the city - the amphitheater or Colosseum.
We noticed this structure from afar, but thought it was just a mountain. It was only when we got closer that we realized that this was the creation of human hands. This huge building, 38 m high, is visible from all points of the city. The diameter of the building is about 430 meters. The three floors of the structure can accommodate up to 40 thousand spectators. By the way, the Colosseum in Rome is not much larger in size and capacity, but is much worse preserved. I haven’t seen the Roman Colosseum, but I imagine that the Tunisian Amphitheater looks no less majestic. The building at El Jem is very well preserved, including the underground rooms where prisoners and animals were kept. In ancient times, gladiator fights took place here, and Christian martyrs were thrown to be torn to pieces by wild animals. Often the Colosseum became a defensive fortress. According to one legend, El Jem is connected to the city of Mahdia by an underground tunnel through which an elephant can pass, and another tunnel supposedly leads to the catacombs of the city of Sousse. Excavations are still underway on the territory of the amphitheater and underground rooms are being restored. The destruction of the Caliseum was also greatly facilitated by the local residents of the city, who used its walls as a quarry for new construction. But no matter how much destruction the Colosseum suffered, it still stands proudly and majestically above El Jem.
Currently, international classical music festivals are held on the territory of the Colosseum. A modern stage is being installed on the territory of the former arena, and the spectator stands are also being decorated. What else I remember was the excellent acoustics present in the amphitheater. By the way, it was in this Colosseum that the Oscar-winning film “Gladiator” was filmed. In general, there is something to see, something to be impressed by, and something to admire. Our group was given a little over an hour of free time to explore and buy souvenirs. We independently wandered through the underground labyrinths of the Colosseum, took interesting pictures, and climbed to the highest points of the building, from where we had a good view of the modern city of El Jem.
From the Colosseum we are taken to an ancient residence - Villa Africa. This was once one of the most luxurious houses in Roman Africa with an area of ​​3 thousand m2. To date, the villa has been restored and restored by 70 percent. The ancient mosaic depicting the goddess of Africa, after whom the villa is named, has also been restored. Excavations are still underway on the territory of the villa.
This interesting excursion takes only half a day. At 6 a.m. tourists are picked up from the hotel and brought back by mid-lunch. The cost for 1 person is 35 Dinars (770 rubles). After lunch we relaxed on the beach of our hotel.
I’m all about the educational, now about the entertaining excursion.

LASER SHOW
An entertaining performance takes place in the evening on the territory of the Medinat El Zahra park, near the city of Sousse. The park and its stages are surrounded by mountains and occupy about 3 hectares of land. The laser show is preceded by a folklore performance, where scenes of matchmaking and weddings from the life of the Berbers are played out.
First we were taken to a makeshift Berber village where invited guests are entertained before the wedding. Here you could take pictures in improvised Berber huts, listen to musicians and watch Tunisian dances, which actively attract tourists. Then everyone moved to an improvised amphitheater, where the matchmaking and wedding itself actually took place. The whole performance was accompanied by a beautiful horse riding on Arabian horses.
Next, all guests were invited to the restaurant, where a classic Tunisian dinner took place. Guests were served traditional dishes, the main one, of course, being couscous. Unlimited table red wine, mineral water and other drinks are served with dinner. The entire dinner is accompanied by a folklore show on stage, where national costumes, dances, customs and the wedding ceremony itself are shown.
By the way, in reality, weddings in Tunisia last 7 days and are a grandiose show. Moreover, the bride and groom celebrate separately, each with their family and friends, and do not see each other, but meet only on the last day of the wedding)))
In our opinion, the first part of the evening, although it was quite eventful and interesting, was a little drawn out. People, having tried the treats, began to actively leave the restaurant.
Next, an even more amazing spectacle awaited us - the Laser Show “Sound and Light”. The entire show is accompanied by voice-over text in several languages, incl. and in Russian. The action takes place in an amphitheater, where on one side there are stone stands with wicker mats for spectators, and on the other side there is the decoration of an eastern fortress, with battlements and loopholes. In the center of the amphitheater there is an improvised pond about 80 meters in diameter, and in the middle there are illuminated fountains.
As soon as the first three-dimensional laser projection appeared on the wall, like on a screen, applause rang out in the amphitheater. Truly spectacular! In addition to the laser show, in parallel there is a theatrical action on stage, telling the 3000-year history of Tunisia. The whole performance is so interesting that it keeps you in suspense until the last minute. And how all this was complemented by the dark night, the African starry sky and the thin face of the crescent moon...
If you are going to Tunisia, I highly recommend including the Medinat El Zahra park on your list of must-see places, of course - in addition to Carthage.
With this I will finish my long story about our excursions in Tunisia. Of course, it turned out to be chaotic and incomplete, and we simply didn’t see much. We didn’t see, for example, Bizerte, where the largest harbor in the entire Mediterranean is located. We didn’t see many ancient cities, for example, the famous Utica... And we didn’t even see all of Carthage... I think that the next time I visit Tunisia, I will still decide on an exciting two-day excursion to the Sahara. Or maybe we’ll take it and head to the very south of Tunisia, to the island of Djerba. Then we will be very close to the Sahara)))
And I still want to finish my opus the same way:
If you are still tormented by doubts whether it is worth visiting Tunisia, my answer to you is “MANDATORY”!

The founder of Carthage, Queen Dido, agreed with the local Berbers to purchase a plot of land for the city. The cunning Berbers, naturally, did not want to see the Phoenicians on their land. They sold as much land as could be covered by one ox hide. Dido cut the skin into narrow strips, joined them, and covered a large area of ​​​​ground. This is how the city of Carthage was founded.

A little clarification needs to be made here. Probably in the ancient Berber language the prepositions “in” and “under” were denoted by one word, or the second version is “buy as much land as will fit in one bull hide.” We will never know the truth; the Berber language has changed too much over the past 2.5 thousand years.

In modern Tunisia, the times of Carthage are remembered with nostalgia, because then the Carthaginians were the masters of the Mediterranean Sea. For example, Queen Dido is depicted on the 1 Tunisian dinar coin (pictured on the left), let’s look at the names of the hotels: “Hannibal Palace” or “Carthage Thalasso”, remember the amusement park, and the assortment of souvenir shops is replete with items with the theme of ancient Carthage. At the same time, modern Arabs are not embarrassed by the fact that they have nothing to do with the Phoenicians from Carthage.

The city of Carthage was founded in 814 BC. Over the course of 500 years, it became the political center of all Phoenician colonies in the western Mediterranean. The Carthaginians subjugate part of Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, and part of Spain. Carthage becomes the largest naval power with a combat fleet of more than 300 ships.

Relations with the Roman Republic were initially good, with two treaties of alliance and trade relations concluded in 508 and 348. However, a conflict of interests is brewing, and from 264 to 241 the First Punic War takes place between Rome and Carthage. Rome wins, and Carthage loses its possessions in Sicily.

The Second Punic War takes place from 219 to 201. During this war, the famous Carthaginian commander Hannibal Barca crossed the Alps with his army and defeated the Romans in Italy, the Battle of Cannae took place - the largest one-day battle of antiquity. But for every legion defeated by Hannibal, the Romans field a new one. The enormous mobilization potential of the Roman Republic played a decisive role. At the end of the war, the Romans landed near Carthage and won the decisive battle of Zama. Carthage loses all territory except a small area of ​​land around the city.

The Third Punic War ends with the complete destruction of Carthage. All the inhabitants were either exterminated or taken into slavery, and the land was covered with salt so that nothing would grow here. Let's make a small note: salt in those days was very expensive, and the Romans could not afford to cover the entire earth with salt; we are talking about symbolically scattering, probably a maximum of one bag.

25 years later, the tribune of the people, Gaius Gracchus, proposes to build a new city on the site of Carthage, but this initiative is not successful in the Senate. The next idea came to Julius Caesar, but his death at the hands of Brutus and other senators prevented these plans from being realized. Emperor Octavian Augustus was next, and he already succeeded.

The Romans carried out large-scale excavation work and built a new large city. Over time, Roman Carthage became the center of the province of Africa, the largest and richest city.

In 439 the city was captured by the Vandals, in 553 by the Byzantines, and in 698 by the Arabs. These three conquests proved fatal for the city.

Most of the ruins and artifacts that tourists see are from Roman Carthage, but there are a few remains of buildings and objects from Punic Carthage.

Let's talk in detail about what tourists watch.

Today we will talk about the once powerful and richest city - Carthage. Nowadays, only picturesque ruins remain from it. Today Carthage is also a revered city; for example, the residence of the President of Tunisia is located here. However, only memories remain of its former greatness. Today, a photo of Carthage in Tunisia is available in all tourist brochures of this country. Therefore, we invite you to take a closer look at this ancient city, its history, culture and location.

Carthage (Tunisia): history

According to legend, this city was founded by the Tyrian princess Elissa, who was forced to flee her native place after a palace coup. This happened in 814 BC. Elissa and her supporters sailed for a long time by sea until they reached the African shores, where they landed on land in the Gulf of Tunisia. The local residents were very happy to see the strangers, who brought with them many amazing goods. The fugitive queen wanted to buy a plot of land equal in area to the size of an oxhide. The local leader was very surprised at this proposal and made fun of Elissa for a long time. He was sure that all her people would never be able to fit into such a small space, but still agreed to the deal. The next night, Elissa ordered the ox skin to be cut into thin strips and surrounded with them over a fairly large area of ​​land, thus marking her new possessions. This is how the city of Carthage in Tunisia was founded. It is no coincidence that the citadel built in its center is called Birsa, which means “skin.”

By the 3rd century BC, Carthage (Tunisia) had become the largest state in the western Mediterranean. Its geographical position made it possible to control all ships passing by. The Carthaginians were very businesslike, resourceful and warlike. They surrounded themselves with a high fortress wall, and along with the merchant fleet, they created their own military fleet, numbering more than two hundred ships. Thus, Carthage turned out to be impregnable both from land and sea.

Carthage was not ruled by a senate, where the best people of their time were elected, as in Rome. Here all decisions were made by the plebs, that is, the people. However, some scholars are confident that in fact in Carthage everything was run by the oligarchy (a group of the richest citizens). Be that as it may, along with Rome, this city was the most cultural and developed at that time.

The Carthaginians actively sailed to other countries and subjugated a number of lands in Southern Spain, North Africa, Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica. At first they were on good terms with Rome. Both states supported each other in military operations. However, tensions soon arose between them over the ownership of Sicily, as a result of which the First Punic War began in 264 BC. Military operations proceeded with varying degrees of success. However, in the end the Carthaginians were defeated. However, they were a persistent people and were able to recover. This was followed by two more, which ultimately ended in complete victory for the Romans. This is how the call of a Roman statesman named Marcus Porcius Cato came true, who ended each of his speeches with the phrase that later became popular: “Carthage must be destroyed!” The wars of the Roman Empire destroyed the city of half a million. The surviving inhabitants were sold into slavery, and the ruins of Carthage were sprinkled with salt so that no one would have the desire to settle here. However, after some time, the Romans regretted the complete destruction of the city, because they could only get by with the liquidation of its army. Eventually they began to rebuild and repopulate Carthage. After some time, the city became the main center of Africa.

In the 2nd century AD, the Carthaginians converted to Christianity. In the 6th century, along with the collapse of the Roman Empire, this once majestic city also fell into decay. Just a hundred years later it was captured by the Arabs. The new rulers of Carthage used the remains of local structures to build a new city - Tunisia. Today Carthage is a suburb of Tunis. And due to its greatest historical value, it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Carthage (Tunisia): description and geographical location

So, today this city is one of the main ones. Few tourists who find themselves in this region deprive themselves of the opportunity to touch the ancient history of once great empires. Carthage is not difficult to find on a map of Tunisia. It is located in the northern part of this state on the shores of the Gulf of Tunisia, which is part of the Mediterranean Sea.

Carthage Hotels

The number of rooms in this locality can be called modest. This is due to the fact that Carthage is a unique place; there is no possibility of building hotels here. The only option for travelers who want to definitely stay here is the five-star Villa Didon hotel with 20 rooms. If you are looking for a more budget option, then it makes sense to choose a hotel in the city of Tunis or Gammarth.

Excursions

One of the must-see places in Carthage are the Baths of Antonina. In size they were second only to their Roman counterpart. Today, little remains of its former grandeur, but you can appreciate the scale of the construction by looking at the model erected here. As a rule, no excursion to Carthage (Tunisia) is complete without a visit to Tophet, which is an open-air burial altar. Here the Phoenicians sacrificed their firstborns in order to appease the gods. In addition, it is worth looking at the Roman amphitheater, which accommodated 36 thousand spectators, the remains of a huge aqueduct, as well as the Maalga water tanks.

Shopping

In addition to the standard souvenirs for any country in the form of magnets, key rings, postcards, etc., merchants here offer tourists items that supposedly have historical value: coins, mosaics, pieces of steles and columns, etc. You should not fall for this fishing rod You can buy such things only as a souvenir, and do not hesitate to bargain.

Cafes and restaurants

On both sides of Habib Bourguiba Avenue, which runs along the coastline, there are a whole host of cafes where you can quench your thirst with a cool juice or have lunch. If you want to pamper both your stomach and your eyes, then visit the restaurant at the five-star Villa Dido hotel, which offers stunning views of the whole of Carthage.

For the average modern person ancient Carthage, most likely, is associated with Hannibal, Rome and the fact that it certainly had to be destroyed. Someone might remember where was Carthage and that it was the Carthaginians who began to use elephants on the battlefield. At this point, the stock of knowledge about this ancient city will most likely be exhausted.

In fact Carthage was one of the most powerful states of antiquity, and not only in military terms. In its heyday, this state, located in the north of what is now Tunisia, controlled vast territories in northern Africa and Europe. The Carthaginians monopolized shipping in the western Mediterranean. This monopoly was an inexhaustible source of replenishment of the treasury, allowing it to maintain a powerful army and an excellent navy. Agriculture provided great income in an almost ideal climate.

Carthage - stages of the history of the ancient city

As often happens in history, it was power that destroyed Carthage. Rome could not tolerate such a strong neighbor at hand. As a result of the three Punic Wars, Carthage suffered an unconditional defeat.

The hatred of Senator Cato Sr., who mentioned the destruction of Carthage even in speeches dedicated to the budget of Rome, materialized. The city was wiped off the face of the earth, and the ruins were also covered with salt. But the strategic location of Carthage was so advantageous that the Romans soon came to their senses and built a new beautiful and modern city for those times on the site of ancient Carthage. After the Romans, the city was ruled by Vandals and Arabs. History of Carthage tells about at least four eras of prosperity and decline.

Due to the concentration of archaeological artifacts in a relatively small area, modern archaeologists have to work hard to correctly date and classify their finds, so multi-layered are the excavations.

Bardo Museum

Research that began at the end of the 19th century immediately brought such a number of finds that it became clear that they would not fit into any existing museum. The French colonial authorities gave away an entire palace for the new museum. Now it is called the Bardo Museum. But a huge palace was not enough - many exhibits are located in the open air.

Despite the predominance of Roman and Muslim artifacts, a whole hall is dedicated to monuments of the Punic era (the Romans called the Carthaginians Punics) in the Bardo Museum. The main and most controversial exhibit in the hall is considered to be a stele depicting a scene of the sacrifice of a small child. A number of scientists and historians are confident that the Carthaginians sacrificed infants and the stela “priest with child” is convincing evidence of this. In addition to the heritage of the Carthaginians, the museum widely displays exhibits dating back to the times of the Roman possession of Carthage and the Muslim conquest.

In memory of the Romans, sculptures, weapons and coins remained. The Muslim period enriched the museum's treasury with beautiful mosaics.

The stela with the image of the unfortunate child was delivered to the Bardo Museum from Tophet. This place is believed to have served as both an altar and a cemetery. The remains of small burnt bodies found here spoke in favor of human sacrifice. But later studies showed that most of the buried children were either stillborn or died of natural causes at an early age. Most likely, very young children who died from illnesses were simply buried in Tophet. Nevertheless, the gloomy aura of the cemetery at this altar still remains - in later times, the first Christians buried their dead here.

National Museum of Carthage

A very impressive collection of antiquities is also collected in the National Museum of Carthage. It was originally located in the building from which the Romans began rebuilding Carthage at the beginning of our era. On Birsa Hill, strategically dominating the area, the ruins of the Carthaginian citadel still remained, and have survived to this day. Gradually, other buildings were added to the museum, and as a result, the National Museum has now become a gigantic complex, which is very difficult to get acquainted with without prior preparation in just one day.

The museum building itself is made of white marble. Inside there are several rooms of different sizes. They present works of art and folk art, sorted in chronological order: Punic Carthage, the era of Roman rule, the period of the Arab conquest. There are also exhibits brought from other places and associated with Carthage solely by the time of creation. The National Museum houses one of the largest collections of ancient and medieval coins.

Baths of Antoni Pius

Emperor Antony Pius is not very famous in history. No wonder - he did not wage major wars and did not annex new provinces to Rome. He paid primary attention to improving the well-being of the inhabitants of the empire. And his name is in city ​​of Carthage immortalized in the name of the baths. From the actual baths, only fragments of walls and several columns have been preserved, only one of which stands in its proper place.

It is not very convenient for a modern person to walk on the hewn stones with which the road is paved. But when you go to the Baths of Antonius Pius, you really touch antiquity. The baths had direct access to the sea, but the marble staircase along which the Romans descended to the shore has not survived to this day.

Cathedral of Saint Louis

On Birsa Hill is located the relatively new, by the standards of Carthage, St. Louis Cathedral. A very beautiful building was built at the end of the 19th century on the site of a crusader camp in which the French king Louis IX died during the Eighth Crusade.

The cathedral dominates the area and is clearly visible from all sides. For some time, St. Louis Cathedral was considered the main Catholic church on the continent. After Tunisia became an independent state from a French colony in 1964, the relics of the holy king were taken to France, and Catholic services in the cathedral ceased. Since 1994, the temple has been used only as a concert hall and museum.

Hill of Jupiter

Somewhat north of Birsa Hill there is another noticeable hill - Jupiter Hill. Unlike the remains of buildings preserved on Birsa Hill, the ruins here have not been identified. Archaeologists have not yet figured out the purpose of the vast buildings and colonnades. There was once a Christian monastery on the hill, but the surviving fragments clearly do not belong to it.

Carthaginian aqueduct

After the recreated Carthage became the center of a large Roman province, the city became attractive to the nobility and the rich. The still preserved ruins of Roman villas eloquently indicate that, as in other centers of Ancient Rome, there was competition among the ruling elite in the size, beauty and functionality of the villas, the owners of which spent at most a couple of months a year in them. Some villas were as tall as today's six-story buildings.

Water supply to dense and fairly high-rise buildings was not a problem for the Romans. In Carthage, for this purpose, they built a giant aqueduct. Water was supplied to the city from a distance of 132 kilometers, from the foot of the Tunisian mountains.

The average height of the aqueduct was 20 meters. Now parts of the aqueduct are destroyed, but the surviving sections are enough to evoke admiration for ancient engineering and the amount of labor spent on the construction of the water pipeline. According to the calculations of modern experts, the carrying capacity of the Carthage Aqueduct was up to 400 liters per second.

Amphitheater and modern Carthage

An amphitheater was just as important an attribute of a large Roman city as an aqueduct. There was also an amphitheater in Carthage. The building was multi-purpose. Not only gladiator fights took place there, but also naval battles (the arena could be turned into a lake), and the executions of the first Christians. It is estimated that in the Roman era the amphitheater could accommodate up to 50,000 spectators.

It has now been restored on a much smaller scale, with only minor fragments remaining of the Roman structure.

The modern name of Carthage is Carthage. This is a suburb of the capital of Tunisia - the city of Tunis, in which, in addition to historical buildings, there is also the residence of the president and a university.