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" All the mountaineers lead a simple life, are water-drinkers, sleep
on the ground, and let their hair stream down in thick masses after the
manner of women, though before going into battle they bind their hair about
the forehead. They eat goat's-meat mostly, and to Ares they sacrifice a
he-goat and also the prisoners and horses; and they also
offer hecatombs of each kind, after the Greek fashion — as Pindar himself says, "to
sacrifice a hundred of every kind." They also hold contests, for
light-armed and heavy-armed soldiers and cavalry, in boxing, in running, in
skirmishing, and in fighting by squads. And the mountaineers, for two-thirds
of the year, eat acorns, which they have first dried and crushed, and then
ground up and made into a bread that may be stored
away for a long time. They also drink beer; but they are scarce of wine
"zythos , and what wine they have made they speedily drink up in
merry feastings with their kinsfolk; and instead of olive-oil they use
butter. Again, they dine sitting down, for they have stationary seats builded around the walls of the room, though they seat
themselves forward according to age and rank. The dinner is passed round, and
amid their cups they dance to flute and trumpet, dancing in chorus, but also
leaping up and crouching low. But in Bastetania
women too dance promiscuously with men, taking hold of their hands. All the
men dress in black, for the most part in coarse cloaks, in which they sleep,
on their beds of litter. And they use waxen vessels, just as the Celts do.
But the women always go clad in long mantles and gay-coloured gowns. Instead
of coined money the people, at least those who live deep in the interior,
employ barter, or else they cut off pieces from beaten silver metal and pass
them as money. Those who are condemned to death they hurl from precipices;
and the parricides they stone to death out beyond their
mountains or their rivers. They marry in the same way as the Greeks. Their
sick they expose upon the streets, in the same way as the Egyptians did in
ancient times, for the sake of their getting suggestions from those who have
experienced the disease. Again, up to the time of Brutus they used boats of
tanned leather on account of the flood-tides and the shoal-waters, but now,
already, even the dug-out canoes are rare. Their rock-salt is red, but when
crushed it is white. Now this, as I was saying, is the mode of life of
the mountaineers, I mean those whose boundaries mark off the northern
side of Iberia, namely, the Callaicans, the Asturians, and the Cantabrians,
as far as the Vasconians and the Pyrenees; for the modes of life of all of
them are of like character. I shrink from giving too many of the names,
shunning the unpleasant task of writing them down — unless it comports with
the pleasure of some one to hear "Pleutaurans,"
"Bardyetans," "Allotrigans,"
and other names still less pleasing and of less significance than
these..."
“…some call also these peoples Lusitanians. These four peoples, in the
eastern part of their countries, have common boundaries, thus: the
Callaicans, with the tribe of the Asturians and with the Celtiberians…”
Geography
of Strabo.
"Here there is a people of great force, of elevated spirit, of effective skill, dominating to all the passion for the trade; with ships of sewed skin they furrow haughtily the curled sea and the abyss of the Ocean full of monsters; since they could not construct the ships with wood of pine not of oak, not either with the fir, they were not curling the ships like it is a custom if not that, thing deigns of admiration, always they were constructing the ships with united skins, crossing often on such leather the coarse sea". Ora marítima, Avieno. "In West, almost the whole Hispania was appeased except the one that bathes the Ocean Citerior and touches to the mountains of the extremity of the Pyrenees. Here two very strong peoples were waved even not submitted, the cántabros and the ástures". Floro "In the year 726 of the foundation of Rome, being consuls the emperor Augusto for sixth time and Marco Agripa for the second time, Understanding that to few thing it was diminishing done in Hispania for two hundred years if it was allowed that the cantabros and the astures, both strongest peoples) of Roman Spain, should behave themselves to the free discretion, he opened the doors of Jano's temple and went in person with an army to Hispania". Orosio "The ástures, in this time, descended with a great army of your covered with snow rocks. And it was not blindly that those barbarians were tackling the assault, but, putting your camp close to the river Astura, they divided the army in three columns, they were preparing themselves to attack to the same time three Roman camps. And it would be a bloody and doubtful struggle (...) Of not being for the perfidy of the brigeginos that they warned Carisio, this one acted with your army (...) Lancia's powerful city received the remains of the army in defeat and one fought in her so stronger that, taken when the city the soldiers were claiming that fire was sticking, to hard sorrow the general could achieve that they were excusing her in order that, staying in foot, it was a better monument for the Roman victory that inflamed". Floro. "To condemn you to death they fling them down and stone the deathfather beyond the mountains or the rivers. They marry like the Greeks. Since former the Egyptians were doing, they put the patients in the ways in order that those who suffered give them advices on his disease". Geography. III, 3, 7. " With the cantabros twenty-two peoplesof the astures are connected, divided in augustani and transmontani " Natural History III, 28. Plinio. - Other phrases where ástures are mentioned: Punica, III, 338-339 "Cydnus agit, iuga Pyrenes venatibus acer Metari iaculove extendere proelia Mauro."
LUCIUS ANNAEUS FLORUS
Epitomae, II, 33, 46
"Sub occasu pacata erat fere omnis Hispania, nisi quam Pyrenaci desinentis scopulis inhaerentem citerior adluebat Oceanus. Hic duac validissimae gentes, Cantabri et Astures, inmunes imperii agitabant."
CLAUDIUS CLAUDIANUS
Larus Serenae,
72-82
XXVII
"...Callaecia risit floribus, et roseis formosus Duria ripis, Vellera puepureo passim mutavit ovili. Cantaber Oceanus vicino littore gemmas exspuit: effosis nec pallidus Astur oberrat montibus: oblatum sacris natalibus aurum vulgo vena vomit: Pyrenaisque sub atris Ignea fluminae legere ceraunia Nymphae."
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Ástures
by the classic authors: 
Ástures descriptions: 