The Tophet of Carthage
Site of Human Sacrifice to Baal and Tanit or a Children’s Graveyard?
Was the Tophet a graveyard or the site of the ritual sacrifice of Carthage's children to its patron gods?
Now situated in the middle of a residential area, Carthage’s Tophet was once on the edge of the ancient city. Packed with carefully interred urns, the cremated remains were often accompanied by rich grave goods and always marked with grave stelae dedicated to Baal and Tanit the city’s patron deities. The graves were exclusively of young children.
All this is suggests a children’s graveyard. However, ‘tophet’ refers to an open area of sacrifice. And sources suggest that the Carthaginian’s sacrificed the children of their elite in times of trouble.
The Graves of the Tophet
It has been established that the site was used for burial over a period of 600 years. Covering only a hectare of land, space was limited and excavations discovered that graves of subsequent generations were laid over their predecessors.
Excavations and analysis from the 1920’s to the 1970’s helped establish 3 key time periods, named after the Goddess Tanit whose sign proliferates the grave markers. Many of these are on display just in front of the entrance to the site.
Tanit I, II and III
- Tanit I: 730-600BC. First era of burial. Consisted of relatively few graves spread over a wide areas. Tested bone fragments revealed that the remains belong to very young children; babies of a few days or months. Each burial was in a little vault, marked by a throne like cippus or grave marker. The children’s remains were accompanied by Egyptian style beads and amulets. Additionally, bird bones were found, suggesting they were cremated with the children.
- Tanit IIa: 600-400BC. Second era burial found just above the first layer. They were placed over a narrow layer of debris which was thrown over the original burials. The amulets are fewer here. The main change is the Cippus thrones were are now sandstone.
- Tanit IIb: 399BC-299BC. The grave markers were now of sandstone covered in white stucco and painted in yellow, red or blue. Later in the period, they were replaced by narrow grave stelae with a triangular pediment. During this era the first inscriptions appear along with pictorial representations of Baal and Tanit.
Both phases of Tanit II are marked by an increase in age of the children, who now include 1-3 year olds.
- Tanit III: Covers the last 150 years up until the destruction of Carthage by the Romans. The grave markers are now fine slender limestone needles with a triangular pediment which still feature the sign of Tanit. Lowest occurrences of bird remains in the urns.
Evidence for Sacrifice
Ancient texts have been interpreted as describing Carthaginian child sacrifice. The Old Testament refers to places of high sacrifice were children were offered to Baal and Diodorus Siculus elaborates on this theme. He describes how the ancient Carthaginians sacrificed their children in times of crisis. He explicitly describes one such event in 310 BC when 300 upper class children were killed in order to gain the favour of Baal for a proposed expedition. The parents were reputed to have placed the infants in the outstretched arms of the statue after the child had been killed by a priest. It was then allowed to fall into a pit of fire.
Some believe the material evidence supports these descriptions. Many of the inscriptions to Baal contain the phrase ‘for having granted his prayer’, which has been interpreted as proof that the children were offerings for the achievement of specific aims. The cremated bird remains, whose decrease in the graves seems to correspond with period of crisis, have been taken to be proxy sacrifices, offered in place of children during calm periods but abandoned when a more meaningful sacrifice was required.
Evidence Against
However, the archaeological evidence for sacrifice is ambiguous and nothing remains that conclusively proves the theory. The literary evidence is questionable. Diodorus was writing to justify Roman aggression against Carthage. No material evidence has been found on the site to substantiate his description. Furthermore, no other classical writer makes reference to Carthaginian human sacrifice which they surely would have done if it had been common practice.
Biblical descriptions are also unreliable. Firstly they refer to Phoenician practices rather than Punic. Secondly, they specify that only one child per family was sacrificed. The evidence in Tanit III specifically points to multiple burials. Many urns have been fund to include infants and young children. This could suggest a family burial, possibly due to high infant mortality resulting in the loss of multiple children.
The increased size of the population would lead to increased infant mortality, especially at times of crisis for the city, which would again match the pattern of increase in burials.
Besides the careful burials and grave goods, there is evidence that the graves were regularly tended. Stelae from Tanit III, relating to the last era of the site show a woman kneeling on the ground next to a grave mound with a libation vessel in her right hand. In the same layer, holes were found next to the grave markers leading into the graves. This indicates relatives could have offerings to the dead children. This and the general lack of child remains in Punic graveyards could mean that children were given separate burial grounds.
Finally there are the inscriptions. The inscriptions to Baal, which is often accompanied by the word ‘Molk’, which means ‘gift’ or ‘offering’ has often been interpreted as referring to a sacrifice. However, this could mean something else. Both Tanit and Baal were linked to fecundity and regeneration. It is equally possible therefore, that the children were dedicated to those specific gods who could insure their return to life.
Sources
Carthage: A History by Serge Lancel
