In the course of the Second Punic War, King Syphax of the Masaesyli allied himself with the Roman Republic and the armies led by Scipio Africanus, while the Maesulians ruled by Masinissa sided with Carthage.

With the defeat and capture of Syphax by Masinissa, the western tribes were conquered and gradually absorbed into a united kingdom under his rule.

His successors minted coins at Siga with Punic script, in which its name appears as Shigan (𐤔𐤉𐤂𐤏𐤍, ŠYGʿN).

[1] Some remains of buildings (of Siga) can be seen on a hill with a flat top in the lower valley of the Tafna at a bend of the river.

[2]After a temporary decline, the city got some importance inside the Roman Africa, especially with African emperors Septimius Severus and Caracalla.