Saguntum (Sagunto)CARMEN ARANEGUI GASCO

Saguntum (province of Valencia, Spain) was an

oppidum (19.7 acres) on the center of the Med-

iterranean coast of the Iberian peninsula,

famous for its fidelity to Rome during the Sec-

ond Punic War (218–202 BCE) (see PUNIC WARS).

Located on a hill, it was inhabited from the sixth

century BCE onwards by Iberian-speaking people

who named the place Arse, as seen on local

coinage. Its earliest local silver and bronze

coins show Phokaian influence (see MASSILIA

(MARSILLES)) (Ripolles and Llorens 2002). A har-

bor with a watch tower, south of the mouth of

the Udiva (modern Palancia) River (Plin. HN

3.3), has been surveyed (Grau Vell). HANNIBAL’s

siege and Roman reconstruction are archaeo-

logically attested, but the sanctuaries of Diana

(Plin. HN 16.216) and Venus (Polyb. 3.97.6)

have not yet been identified. Arse was especially

prosperous due to its early participation in

Mediterranean commerce (Livy 21.7.3). Its geo-

graphical situation facilitated relationships both

within the peninsula and beyond it, as well as

ensuring its continuity until the present. By the

third century BCE, the town had acquired the

name Saguntum; itsGreek equivalent, Zakantha,

may have led to the belief among Classical

historians that it was a colony of the Greek city

of ZAKYNTHOS (Strabo 3.4.6; Livy 21.7.2).

Saguntum’s role in the origins of the Second

Punic War (218–201 BCE) has generated

considerable scholarly debate. The town,

threatened by Carthaginian expansion in

Spain, had appealed to Rome for help. In 219,

Hannibal, in defiance of Roman instructions,

attacked and captured it, setting in motion

the Second Punic War (Polyb. 3.6.1,

3.14–15; Appian Hisp. 2.7). The inhabitants

of Saguntum became well known for their

heroism in supporting Rome against CARTHAGE

(Livy 28.39.1–29). The reconstruction of the

town by 175 BCE affected both its harbor and

the upper area on the hill. By that time, a

contingent of Latin people had probably set-

tled there, as can be seen by the building

of a Vitruvian-plan temple (see VITRUVIUS,

POL(L)IO) with a reservoir in front of it. By

80 BCE, Saguntine coins mentioned an aedilis

coloniae.

The final urban transformation of the place

took place under Augustus, when it became a

municipium of Roman citizens and lay on the

route of the ViaAugusta. The economic support

of the Baebii appears in local inscriptions (CIL

II2/14, 327). The city is laid out as a series of

terraces, with the municipal forum in the dom-

inant position at the top, next to the ancient

oppidum, the theater (about twelve thousand

seats) on the slope (Hernandez 1988), and the

circus (Pascual 2002) by the river. This layout

resembles that of Tarraco, albeit on a very

reduced scale.

The inhabitants of Saguntum lived mostly by

wine production (Juvenal 5.24–29; Fronto Ep.

1a. 23.27) and maritime traffic. Local DresselFigure 1 The forum of Saguntum. From Aranegui

(1988).

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, First Edition. Edited by Roger S. Bagnall, Kai Brodersen, Craige B. Champion, Andrew Erskine,

and Sabine R. Huebner, print pages 6009–6011.

© 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Published 2013 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

DOI: 10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah16130

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2–4 stamped amphorae provide archaeological

evidence for wine production, while Pliny

(HN 35.160–1) and Martial (14.108) refer to

local drinking cups. Saguntines belonged to a

traditional society and do not appear to have

held office above the municipal level (Aranegui

2004). Surprisingly, there was a collegium

saliorum (CIL II2/14, 349, 351, 352, 359, and

365) (see SALII). There was a decemvirate

(CIL II2/14, 368). Local Visigothic coins con-

firm the town’s continuity until the Middle

Ages, when it was named Murviedro (murum

veterum). The theater has been fully rebuilt

and can be visited. The castle (eleventh to

nineteenth centuries) and a local museum are

open to the public.

REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS

Aranegui, C. (2004) Saguntum. Oppidum, emporio

y municipio romano. Barcelona.

Aranegui, C. (2006) “From Arse to Saguntum.” In

L. Abad, S. Keay, and S. Ramallo, eds.,

Early Roman towns in Hispania Tarraconensis:

63–74. Oxford.

Hernandez, E. (1988) El teatro romano de

Sagunto. Valencia.

Pascual, I. (2002) “El circo romano de Sagunto.”

In El circo en Hispania Romana. Museo Nacional

de Arte Romano: 155–74: Madrid.

Ripolles, P. P. and Llorens, M. M. (2002) Arse

Saguntum.Historia monetaria de la ciudad y de su

territorio. Sagunto.

Figure 2 Roman theater, Saguntum. Photograph by Carmen Aranegui Gasco.

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