XV: Matho explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Love and Obsession

  Salammbô's conflicted feelings for Matho surface as she watches his torture, leading to her own death.

• Religious Fanaticism and Sacrifice

  Matho's death is a ritual sacrifice; his heart is offered to the sun by the high priest.

• War and Destruction

  The aftermath of the Mercenary War is celebrated with the brutal execution of Matho.

Characters to notice

• Matho

  Paraded through Carthage, tortured, and finally killed; his heart is offered to the sun.

• Salammbô

  Marries Narr'Havas but is emotionally overwhelmed by Matho's suffering; she dies after drinking a toast.

• Narr'Havas

  Marries Salammbô and drinks to the Genius of Carthage.

• Hamilcar Barca

  Present at the wedding feast; his slaves distribute food in his name.

• Schahabarim

  Cuts out Matho's heart and offers it to the sun.

Key passages

• “There were rejoicings at Carthage⁠—rejoicings deep, universal, extravagant, frantic; the holes of the ruins had been stopped up, the statues of the gods had been repainted, the streets were strewn with myrtle branches, incense smoked at the corners of the crossways, and the throng on the terraces looked, in their variegated garments, like heaps of flowers blooming in the air.”

  Carthage erupted in wild, all-encompassing celebrations: ruins were repaired, statues repainted, streets decorated with myrtle, and incense burned everywhere, while the crowds on the terraces, dressed in colorful clothes, resembled blooming flowers.

  Describes the city's festive atmosphere after victory.

• “Thus died Hamilcar’s daughter for having touched the mantle of Tanith.”

  So perished Hamilcar's daughter because she had touched the sacred veil of Tanith.

  Explains Salammbô's death as a consequence of her earlier sacrilege.