Carthage, Rome's Greatest Rival (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798235582002)

For centuries, Rome told the story of Carthage as the tale of a defeated enemy. The archaeology tells a different story. Beneath the ruins of Tunis lies the remains of a vast maritime civilization that once controlled the western Mediterranean through naval power, trade, engineering, and military ambition. From the Phoenician ports of the Levant to the harbors of Iberia and Sicily, Carthage built an empire of movement and wealth that rivaled Rome at the height of the ancient world. Carthage: Rome's Greatest Rival reconstructs the rise, expansion, and destruction of the Punic world through archaeology, ancient texts, battlefield evidence, harbor excavations, and surviving inscriptions. Inside are the harbors that launched Carthaginian fleets, the rise of Hannibal Barca, the mystery of the tophet, the struggle for Sicily, the wealth of Iberian silver, and the final siege that ended one of history's greatest civilizations in fire. Written in a grounded narrative style with strong historical detail, this book restores the lost superpower Rome tried to erase.