The first battle that the Roman army fought in what is now Catalonia took place in 218 BC in the area around the Iberian town of Kissa. Although it was a major event in the development of the Punic Wars between Carthage and Rome and in the beginning of the Roman occupation of the Iberian Peninsula, the location of Kissa had remained unknown. A team of researchers of the University of Barcelona has now located the remains of Kissa in Valls, specifically at the Vilar site."The findings of Punic coins and ballista projectiles inside destroyed houses, as well as the stratigraphic sequence of the settlement and the analysis of historical sources, are evidence that allow us to ensure that the Vilar site in Valls is the ancient Kissa", says Jaume Noguera, director of the excavations and UB professor. The researcher reconstructs the events of more than two thousand years ago. The Carthaginians attacked and partially destroyed the Iberian city of Kissa in 218 BC during a military campaign led by Hannibal Barca. However, after a few months, Roman troops landed in Empúries and defeated the Carthaginian army that had settled near Kissa. These events, told by Roman historians Polibi and Livi, marked the beginning of the Roman occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. Moreover, the Roman victory prevented Hannibal from getting reinforcements from the Iberian Peninsula during the battles he fought in present-day Italy.
"The location of dozens of Punic coins in Valls can only be related to the presence of Carthaginian troops during the few months in 218 BC when they were in the north of the Ebro", notes Noguera, who adds that "Valls controls the passage from the coast through the coll de la Cabra or the Riba strait, towards the Conca de Barberà and Ponent; therefore, when leaving the ancient Cese-Tarraco, it was impossible for the Roman army not to meet the Carthaginian army near Valls". The excavations also show that the city was not abandoned immediately after the 218 BC destruction, but continued to be populated for another 10 to 20 years.
