Day 1 Morning - Carthage

Carthaginian water transport system


This head is over 2m in height. Could have done with someone to stand next to it for scale

In and aorund Carthage and the cathage Museum

The romans soon rebuilt Carthage as a city of their own. Here is the Roman amphitheatre.

Roman remains are more substantial

The Punic Carthaginian port

More Punic remains

We start the trip in Carthage the ancient capital of the Punic empire which is adjacent to the modern capital of Tunisia (Tunis).

Carthage was founded by the Phoenicians from modern Tyre in about 814BC. The Cathaginians built a trading empire which occupied most of the North African Littoral from Egypt to Morocco. They also occupied Southern Spain, Sardinia, Corsica and Western Sicily.

The growing Roman Republic fought three wars with the Carthaginians culminating in the destruction of Carthage after the third Punic war in 146 BC. Scipio Africanus captured Carthage for the Romans. After the capture everything of value was removed and the ruins were levelled to the ground. A plough was then drawn over the site, salt thrown into the furrow and a curse was pronounced that neither crops nor houses should rise again. Consequently the remains of the Punic civilisation were rather sparse.