Spencer Wells has done several interesting projects that try to fill in the gaps of archeology with genetic science. His documentary Journey of Man discovered that there were two human migratory waves out of Africa. The first ending in Australia, and the second going to Central Asia which led to the population of Asia, Europe and the Americas. He has applied the same technique to see what effect the empires of antiquity have had on genetics - and in particular one of the great seafaring empires, the Phoenicians. (more)
Carthage was one of many cities founded by the Phoenicians in approximately 800 BC. Like Rome, it had a Republican (non-regal) Constitution, which, as described by Aristotle, was a mixed one, with a dominant aristocracy and some oligarchic and democratic leanings. (more)
