North of the small city of Baza in southern Spain lies a pre-Roman necropolis known as Cerro del Santuario. Mystery cultureWriters in antiquity referred to people who lived across a swath of what now Spain as Iberians. A century before, the Iberian Lady of Elche was discovered, and presumed to be a bust. When the Baza lady was alive, Iberian wealth depended on a powerful new trading center created in North Africa by Phoenicians. As Rome’s influence grew in the region, the local Iberian culture and its ancient language began to disappear.

Source: The North Africa Journal November 24, 2020 17:03 UTC