Economy of the Punic Empire, by Roy Decker
|
||
Trade
The Carthaginian empire had a very diversified and complex economy. They relied heavily on trade, but this is only a part of the story.Like their Phoenician cousins, they produced the much prized purple dye so coveted by royalty, from the crushed shells of a saltwater snail species called Murex. Their trading ships called at every port of antiquity, and they traded overland with peoples of the interior of Africa, such as the Garamantes, Berbers, Numidians, Mauretanians and Ethiopians, and possibly with the mysterious Nok culture of central Africa. From the interior they obtained salt, which was highly prized in ancient times, the exchange rate being equal to gold. Roman soldiers (and probably Carthaginians too) were paid in part in salt, from which comes the old saying "worth your salt". Carthage had excellent relations with the warlike Gauls, Celts, and Celtiberians, from whom they obtained amber, tin, silver, and furs. Their merchant vessels (often capable of transporting 100 tons or more, a size not reached by European ships until the fifteenth century A.D.) brought exotic goods from faraway lands such as spices like cinnamon, cassia (a Chinese type of cinnamon, much stronger) sesame seeds, frankincense, myrrh, ebony wood, ivory, and metals such as copper, lead, and gold. There is evidence that Carthaginian and Phoenician vessels were sailing at least as far as Sumatra in southeast Asia, which may be the "mythical" land of Punt, and were credited with having circumnavigated Africa soon after the Phoenician expedition sent by the Egyptian pharoah Necho in the seventh century B.C.
A bronze coin of Carthage 3rd century B.C. called a "zar"
The secret of how to make the purple dye was not the only trade that Carthaginians learned from their Tyrian motherland, they also learned how to make glass. The glassware produced by Carthage and Tyre, in a surprising variety of colors (even in swirls of rainbow colors), was highly prized through the ancient world. Their glass beads were traded for metals and other goods with more uncivilized cultures, and they are found in many ancient sites.
Carthaginian traders brought amber from northern Europe and other gems to trade in Mediterranean ports. One type even came to be called after them (Carchedon). From their own homeland of Zeugitana (which nearly matches the borders of modern Tunisia) they brought wine, grain, fruits and nuts to trade, and dried fish from the Atlantic, as well as the products traded by their competitors the Greeks, such as olive oil. They also were famous for the quality of their furniture, beds and bedding, their wood joinery being widely copied. They brought furs from the barbaric lands and sold cheap pottery to nearly every people they traded with. The big surprise product only recently discovered, was marijuana, which was found in the wrecks of several Carthaginian ships.
Next page > Part 2: Punic Faith and Slavery > Page 1, 2, 3
This resource page is copyright © 2001-2002 Roy Decker.
