The assertion of Greek and Roman historians is confirmed, who insisted that the Phoenicians killed their children and buried them together with sacrificial animals in special cemeteries to thank for the mercy of their gods.
Josephine Quinn, a professor of ancient history at Oxford who researches this issue, noted:
In our time, people simply do not want to believe in this and consider it black propaganda. But when you collect all the evidence: archaeological, epigraphic and literary, the conclusion becomes obvious - they killed their children and not only as an offering at the expense of future favors, but also fulfilling promises for a service already done.
This was not a common occurrence, such a custom was widespread among the elite, because the cremation of bodies was very expensive, and this was one of the stages of the burial ritual of these children.
Disputes related to this topic have been raging for a long time, since the beginning of the 20th century, from the moment excavations began on a necropolis located on the outskirts of Carthage, known as Tophet. Then similar burials were found in other places of residence of the Carthaginians in Sicily and Sardinia.
Necropolis Tophet, a specially designated area for the burial of babies
Burials consisted of tiny cremated bones, carefully packed in urns, under the tombstones with the glorification of the gods. Some archaeologists and historians interpreted them as evidence of child sacrifices, while others believed that it was a sign of respect for children who died before or immediately after birth.
Without any doubt, these were human sacrifices, and this is evidenced by the fact that the animals that were sacrificed were buried in the same way, and sometimes in the same urns as the children. Although hundreds of such burials have been found, according to Dr. Quinn, perhaps 25 such burials were made per year per city of 500,000.
Promotional video:
Human sacrifice to Moloch
The Roman historian Diodorus and other ancient writers wrote about the Carthaginian sacrifices like this: "There was in their city a bronze statue of Kronos, holding his hands with palms up, but with a slope to the ground, so that the child placed on them fell into a gaping pit filled with fire."
To drown out the cries of the unfortunate victims, the Phoenicians danced to the sound of flutes and tambourines. Diodorus also reported that some citizens specially raised children from poor families in order to give them a sacrifice later and not bring their own offspring to God.