Malta also produced, in ancient as in modern times, the remarkable breed
of small dogs[5130] which is still held in such high esteem. But the
Phoenician colonisation must have taken place rather on account of the
situation and the harbour than on account of the products.

From Sicily and North Africa the tide of emigration naturally and easily
flowed on into Sardinia, which is distant, from the former about 150
and from the latter about 115 miles. The points chosen by the Phoenician
settlers lay in the more open and level region of the south and the
south-west, and were all enclosed within a line which might be drawn
from the coast a little east of Cagliari to the northern extremity of
the Gulf of Oristano.[5131] The tract includes some mountain groups,
but consists mainly of the long and now marshy plain, called the
"Campidano," which reaches across the island from Cagliari on the
southern to Oristano on the western coast. This plain, if drained, would
be by far the most fertile part of the island; and was in ancient times
exceedingly productive in cereals, as we learn from Diodorus.[5132]
The mountains west of it, especially those about Iglesias, contain
rich veins of copper and of lead, together with a certain quantity of
silver.[5133] Good harbours exist at Cagliari, at Oristano, and between
the island of S. Antioco and the western shore. It was at these points
especially that the Phoenicians made their settlements, the most
important of which were Caralis (Cagliari), Nora, Sulcis, and Tharros.
Caralis, or Cagliari, the present capital, lies at the bottom of a deep
bay looking southwards, and has an excellent harbour, sheltered in
all weathers. There are no remains of Phoenician buildings; but the
neighbourhood yields abundant specimens of Phoenician art in the shape
of tombs, statuettes, vases, bottles, and the like.[5134] Caralis
was probably the first of the settlements made by the Phoenicians in
Sardinia; it would attract them by its harbour, its mines, and the