Saguntum
Saguntum, located in present-day Valencia, Spain, was an ancient Iberian town that played a significant role in the history of the Roman Empire. Positioned on a plateau by the river Udiba, it served as a strategic fortress, overseeing crucial coastal and inland routes. Its name is linked to various historical interpretations, with some suggesting connections to colonizers from Italy or neighboring islands. Saguntum gained prominence during the third century BC when it became a focal point for tensions between Rome and Carthage, leading to the outbreak of the Second Punic War. The town was besieged by Hannibal for eight months before its fall, which escalated into broader conflict between the two powers.
After falling under Roman control, Saguntum evolved into a municipium, showcasing a vibrant economy noted for its agricultural products, particularly grain and figs, as well as distinctive pottery. The remnants of its Roman heritage, including a theater and various temples, highlight the town's historical significance. Following the German invasions in the fifth century, much of its architecture was left in ruins, leading to its medieval name, Murviedro. Today, archaeological excavations continue to reveal the rich history and cultural importance of Saguntum, making it a site of interest for those exploring ancient Iberian and Roman civilizations.
Subject Terms
Saguntum
(Sagunto)
A township near the coast of Hispania Citerior (later Tarraconensis; eastern Spain), on the river Udiba or Uvida (Palancia) south of the Iberus (Ebro), in the territory of the Edetani or Arsetani. The name of the Iberian town, Arse (`high fortress’), prompted Livy and Silius Italicus to put forward the fictitious idea that its founder city had been Ardea in Italy, whereas Strabo and Pliny no less erroneously assumed that the name of Saguntum came from colonizers from the Ionian (Adriatic) island of Zacynthus (Zante).
The fortress (Castillo) stood on a plateau dominating coastal and inland roads. The town enjoyed trading relations with Massalia (Massilia, Marseille), but only briefly took the center of the historical stage during the third century BC, when it provided the immediate cause of the Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome. The Carthaginians had built up a powerful empire in Spain; and in 226 Hasdrubal came to an agreement with the Romans. As far as can be discerned through the subsequent fog of propaganda, he agreed not to march north of the Ebro on the condition that the Romans should not cross to its south—where Saguntum was situated. When, however, the Saguntines felt threatened by Hasdrubal's brother-in-law Hannibal, they appealed to Rome, which took the fateful step of responding favorably and sending delegates to Hannibal. But he pressed on with the blockade of the city, which fell to him after a savage eight months' siege (219). The Romans' demand to the Carthaginian government that he should be handed over to them was inevitably refused, and the sequel was the Second Punic War (218–201).
Cnaeus and Publius Cornelius Scipio (the uncle and father of the elder Scipio Africanus) moved against Saguntum in 217, and it fell to them some five years later, thereupon initiating a coinage inscribed (in Iberian) ARS(-A,-ESKEN), subsequently replaced by bilingual pieces which also bear the name of Saguntum in Latin. During the civil war between the rebel Quintus Sertorius and the governmental forces of Quintus Caecilius Metellus and Pompey the Great, Saguntum was one of the few eastern centers to resist the insurgent forces; when, however, Pompey, forcing the Ebro, marched down to its walls, Sertorius defiantly occupied the place (75), until his murder two or three years later.
Under Augustus Saguntum became a citizen municipium, issuing coins with this designation in the time of Tiberius (AD 14–37), if not earlier. The city was noted for its grain, a brand of fig, and a type of pottery (including amphorae found stacked on a vast refuse heap [the Monte Testaccio] in Rome). The German invasions of the fifth century left its buildings mostly in ruins, to which it owed its medieval name Murbiter, Murviedro (murum vetus, old wall).
Excavations on the slope of the fortress have uncovered traces of a forum and theater (of the first century AD), accommodating 10,000 spectators; a circus (of second-century date) between the hill and the river had similar accommodation. There are also remains attributed to Temples of Diana and Venus, and sections of an aqueduct. The Roman inscriptions discovered in the city have now been collected.