The Thermal Baths at Can Mercadé

Few remnants of the ancient city of Iesso remain in the modern town of Guissona, Spain, but one of the most intriguing is the thermal baths at Can Mercadé. Described by Pliny the Elder as being in the territory of the Lacetans, the thermal baths were built by the Romans around 100 BC as part of the city’s public facilities. The baths, originally including an atrium with impluvium, a cold bath, and a semicircular pool, are protected by a wall that is now only a tram-width preserved.

The southern part of Iesso is still unknown, but it is thought to have included private and necropolis areas, as well as an industrial area for wine production. Currently, visitors can see buildings from the 1st century BC, a residential villa from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, and the thermal baths at Can Mercadé, which were active for more than 700 years and continued to be in use during the Visigothic period (6th century). Although Iesso may have been conquered by the Saracens in the 8th century, it is not mentioned again historically until the 11th century.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons