The chilling Sanctuary of Tophet was first excavated in 1921. French archaeologists uncovered a sacrificial site and burial ground, where it's believed Carthaginian children were sacrificed to the deities Baal Hammon and Tanit - a stele now in the Bardo Museum shows a priest carrying a child, perhaps to sacrifice. It's an extraordinary, haunting place, with a mass of stubby stele engraved with simple geometric shapes and symbols under shady trees.
Some later Roman foundations shelter more stele, a particularly spooky spot. The name Tophet is Hebrew for 'place of burning' and comes from Bible references to child sacrifice, such as in Jeremiah: '(people of Judah) have built the altar called Tophet… and there they burn to death their little sons and daughters.'
More than 20,000 urns have been discovered here, each containing the ashes of a child (mostly newborn, but also older children up to the age of four) and marked with a stele. Many also contained the burned bones of lambs or kids. The majority of them have been dated to the period between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC when Carthage was embroiled in numerous wars and rebellions, and the need to appease the gods was at its greatest. However, there is some controversy about interpretations of the site.
The Romans later built workshops, warehouses, and a temple over the site.
