Tivissa

History

The area was settled in prehistoric times, and cave paintings have been discovered in several sites near the village. In Iberian times, Tivissa was an important community, and the name itself may be of Iberian origin. There are the remains of an Iberian settlement at Banyoles, some five kilometres from the modern village and overlooking the Ebre river. The importance of these settlements was surely related to their position on the route through the pass of Coll de Fatxes, leading from the coast of Tarragona to what is now Zaragoza. In the Roman period, amphorae made in Tivissa made their way as far as Rome itself, presumably to transport olive oil or wine. In the Middle Ages it was home to a castle, and about 1350 Tivissa became a walled settlement. Some remains of these walls can still be seen, particularly the gateways of Portal de l'Era, Portal d'Avall and Portal de la Raval, as well as of the castle. On 4 August 1939, Tivissa was the site of Spain's first fatal airliner accident. The Hans Wende, a Junkers Ju 52/3mte (D-AUJG) of Deutsche Lufthansa, crashed into the Llaberia mountains near Tivissa en route from Toulouse to Casablanca, killing all 7 occupants.

Most-observed species

• European Serin

  Serinus serinus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  957
• Sardinian Warbler

  Curruca melanocephala (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  852
• White Wagtail

  Motacilla alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  751
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  740
• Wood Lark

  Lullula arborea (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  718
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  713
• European Goldfinch

  Carduelis carduelis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  707
• Mistle Thrush

  Turdus viscivorus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  699

Most recent

• M 3.7 — 2013-10-04
  28 km ESE of Vinaròs, Spain
• M 4 — 2013-10-02
  29 km ESE of Vinaròs, Spain
• M 4.3 — 2013-10-02
  30 km ESE of Vinaròs, Spain
• M 4.1 — 2013-10-01
  30 km ESE of Vinaròs, Spain
• M 2.5 — 2008-12-31
  1 km NE of Castellfort, Spain
• M 2.8 — 2008-06-17
  12 km SSE of Tarragona, Spain