Are carthagians known for child sacrifice?

by Advanced12

So, I been reading some articles about the punic religion, and some sources are telling that this claim in unconfirmed.

[1] - Source: Wikipedia --> Various Greek and Roman sources describe and criticize the Carthaginians as engaging in the practice of sacrificing children by burning.[12] Classical writers describing some version of child sacrifice to "Cronos" (Baal Hammon) include the Greek historians Diodorus Siculus and Cleitarchus, as well as the Christian apologists Tertullian and Orosius.[72][73] These descriptions were compared to those found in the Hebrew Bible describing the sacrifice of children by burning to Baal and Moloch at a place called Tophet.

And after that I did find out this [2] - Source: Wikipedia --> The degree and existence of Carthaginian child sacrifice is controversial, and has been ever since the Tophet of Salammbô was discovered in 1920.[88] Some historians have proposed that the Tophet may have been a cemetery for premature or short-lived infants who died naturally and then were ritually offered.[76] The Greco-Roman authors were not eye-witnesses, contradict each other on how the children were killed, and describe children older than infants being killed as opposed to the infants found in the tophets.[74] Accounts such as Cleitarchus's, in which the baby dropped into the fire by a statue, are contradicted by the archaeological evidence.[89] There are not any mentions of child sacrifice from the Punic Wars, which are better documented than the earlier periods in which mass child sacrifice is claimed.[74] Child sacrifice may have been overemphasized for effect; after the Romans finally defeated Carthage and totally destroyed the city, they engaged in postwar propaganda to make their archenemies seem cruel and less civilized.[90] Matthew McCarty argues that, even if the Greco-Roman testimonies are inaccurate "even the most fantastical slanders rely upon a germ of fact."

Holy_Shit_HeckHounds

In 'Punic Nightmares', Dan Carlin suggests that at one point the Carthaginians might have practiced child sacrifice; is this claim credible, or likely to be Roman propaganda? written by u/sunagainstgold discusses and links to answers by u/kookingpot and u/QuickSpore; the reply by u/yodatsracist discusses the topic more, and links to an answer by u/ScipioAsina.

Additionally, there is Carthage and child sacrifices written by u/ScipioAsina

Alkibiades415

See also this post.