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Archaeological investigations in Cartagena –the ancient Punic Qart Hadašt, Roman Carthago Nova– have manifested the existence of ritual, urban and topographical elements that could be analyzed from the perspective of Cultural Astronomy. Therefore, in October 2013, an interdisciplinary team of astronomers and archaeologists conducted a field campaign of the main topographic and archaeological landmarks of the Punic and Roman periods of the city. Methodologically, a basic guide criterion was established for each particular element, measuring its corresponding azimuth(s). Three tandems, including precision compasses and clinometers, were used to take the measurements. The data obtained have demonstrated the relevance, within the ancient city, of a series of orientations towards sunrise and sunset at the summer solstice, whose significance could be fully integrated within the context of the Punic ritual. This skyscaping was merged and reinterpreted in the framework of the subsequent Roman appropriation of the city landscape, including their successive urban and architectural programs, in particular that of the period of Emperor Augustus, when certain astronomical orientations could serve to strengthen the image of Rome and the ‘Princeps’ as restorers of peace and guarantees of a new order based in cosmological elements.

En este trabajo hace una revisión la evolución del conocimiento de Neapolis (Nablús, Palestina) a partir de las investigaciones desarrolladas en el Departamento de Prehistoria, Historia Antigua y Arqueología de la Universidad de Salamanca en los últimos años. Con ellas se han replanteado argumentos cerrados secularmente, sugiriendo, al menos, una imagen ciudadana diferente a la supuesta hasta el día de hoy, con una fisonomía urbana que, aunque en ocasiones no acertamos a situar o valorar correctamente, ayuda a entender como se conformó el devenir y la evolución de la ciudad desde su fundación en el año 72/73 d. C., hasta principios del siglo IV.