Ancient Carthaginians really did sacrifice their children
After decades of scholarship denying that the Carthaginians sacrificed their children, new research has found ‘overwhelming’ evidence that this ancient civilisation really did carry out the practice. Published Jan 24, 2014 – University of Oxford news A collaborative paper by academics from institutions across the globe, including Oxford University, suggests that Carthaginian parents ritually sacrificed young children as an offering to the gods. The paper argues that well-meaning attempts to interpret the ‘tophets’ – ancient infant burial grounds – simply as child cemeteries are misguided. And the practice of child sacrifice could even hold the key to why the civilisation … Continue reading Ancient Carthaginians really did sacrifice their children