Eric's Top 5 Archaeological Sites in Bulgaria

In the 15 years that I had the pleasure and privilege to travel, work, and live in parts of SE Europe, I visited many archaeological sites. In particular, I came to learn about the archaeological heritage of Bulgaria, during my 3-year term directing a research institute in Sofia. This is a list of my 5 favorite archaeological sites in Bulgaria (in alphabetical order):

Diocletianopolis (modern Hisarya) was one of the most important cities in the province/diocese of Thrace during the Roman period, Late Antiquity and the Byzantine period. Today, only the Late Antique phase of the city is visible. The city’s fortification wall had the shape of an irregular tetragon, and consists of alternating courses of stone and brick. There are four main gates whose vaults are composed of brick and, in addition to the gate towers, there are 38 defensive towers. Barracks and storage facilities have been identified along the southern and eastern walls. While mineral springs were present in the city, as they are today, an aqueduct provided Diocletianopolis with fresh water from Sredna Gora Mountain which was collected in a cistern.  

         One of the most prominent structures visible today is a thermal bath complex near the center of the city, likely constructed in the later 3^rd century with late 4^th century modifications; a second bath complex can be dated to 308 CE, during the reign of the emperors Galerius and Licinius. The thermal bath complex of Diocletianopolis was one of the largest in the Balkans, offering medical mineral water treatment. Not far from the 3rd century baths is a small amphitheater. Residential buildings were concentrated in the city center and two large exemplars were explored in detail. They were built during the first half of the 4^th century and their construction follows the manner of typical Late Antique style with mixed masonry and interior plans akin to the planning schemes of Italic houses. A pagan temple has been identified in the west-central area of the city, while two Christian basilicas are known – one within the walls and on set beyond the south wall. Five necropolises have been identified beyond the fortified section of the town. A small number of tombs with mural paintings and burials date from the 3^rd century, but most come from the 4^th-6^th centuries.  

Kabyle (near Yambol). The National Archaeological Reserve of Kabylе is situated in east-central Bulgaria within a broad bend in the Tundzha River. Archaeological evidence suggests that the site and surrounding area were inhabited since the Neolithic era, while a settlement was established around 2000 BCE. From the beginning, an important feature of the site was an acropolis with a sanctuary. During the Iron Age, this was an important Thracian city; and in 341 BCE Kabyle was absorbed into the Macedonian Kingdom. And, in 46 CE, Kabyle was annexed and incorporated in the Roman Empire as the Roman province of Thrace.

         The site has been excavated by Bulgarian, Czech, and Polish scholars. Little remains of the acropolis sanctuary; however, the view from the rock outcrops is spectacular. The principal cult during the Macedonian period was dedicated to the goddess Phosphoros (Greek: Φωσφόρος, the “Light-Bearer”), while in the Roman period, the sanctuary was later associated with the goddess Cybele. The city lies to the east and southeast of the acropolis and while there is ample evidence for earlier phases, the standing architectural remains at Kabyle date to the late Roman period. The late Roman phase of Kabyle consists of a fortified town whose walls are organized according to the uneven contours of the land and, thus, have a roughly bell-shaped form. One of the most impressive features is a public bath in the SW sector of the city. Elements of the dressing room, cold bath, hot bath and hypocaust (heating system) are visible. To the west of this, as one climbs toward the acropolis, are the remains of an early Christian church. The sizeable basilica has three naves and a baptistery. Finally, archaeologists have unearthed the remains of several modest dwellings built of mud and medium-sized stones both inside and outside the fortification walls. 

Novae (near Svishtov). The Roman legionary fortress and Late Antique town of Novae is located in northern Bulgaria, about 4 kilometers east of the modern town of Svishtov, on the tall, well-defended southern bank of the Danube. The military base was founded in the middle of the 1st century CE and played an important role in the Roman defense system in this part of the empire. Novae is the best explored legionary fortress in Bulgaria thanks the joint efforts of Polish and Bulgarian archaeologists working on the site for more than a half century. According to the Polish-Bulgarian archaeological excavations, the spatial dimensions of the legionary camp were 368 meters north and south, and 492 meters east and west; the total area of ​​Novae was 44 hectares. Within the fortress, a number of features have been investigated, including the principia (headquarters), barracks, baths, and a unique military hospital (valetudinarium). The principal bath complex, located near the principia, is unusual for a military base due to its large size and lavish decoration consisting of mosaic floors, wall paintings and stucco work. The hospital is the only known example within a Roman military base and is the best preserved hospital in the whole Roman Empire. It measures ca. 77 x 65 meters and consists of more than 40 chambers along the perimeter wall and 27 chambers surrounding a central courtyard. A corridor separates the two sets of chambers. There is a sacred precinct with a small temple dedicated to Asclepius and votive inscriptions to Roman Asclepius, Hygia, Jupiter and Minerva.

        An undefended vicus lying to the east of the fortress had developed into a prosperous town by the late Roman period. With the incursions of barbarians from the north of the Danube, the vicus was fortified in the 4th century. Within the town are several churches, craftsmen’s workshops, and private residences. A large, three-aisled early Christian basilica was constructed within the legionary camp at about the same time. About 200 m west of the fortress are the remains of a large villa, perhaps owned by a retired officer; a feature of the villa is a private bath

Pavlikeni (Bulgaria). This is the site of a well-excavated Roman villa, dated 1st-3rd c. CE. The main part of the villa extends over an area of ​​4100 square meters and has a roughly rectangular shape. Different rooms surrounded a courtyard with a colonnade. In the lower part of the courtyard are two wells that supplied the buildings with water. The main body of the villa measures 82 x 59 m with a number of small residential, storage and utilitarian buildings in the immediate vicinity. The villa is irregular in plan, consisting of a large open space bordered on the east and south by a series of rooms that served for pottery manufacture and other utilitarian functions. A small bath complex with is situated in the SE corner of the villa, while a series of chambers to the west, some of which were heated, appear to have been residential space. Two large structures extend into the courtyard in the north and west sides. The feature to the north, a residential unit, is the earliest component of the villa, which consists of six small-medium sized rooms and a large L-shaped chamber arranged around a roughly rectangular courtyard. The structure on the west side consists of a porticus facing onto the villa’s large courtyard, a large chamber with broad doorway and a long, rectangular farthest to the west. This was likely a storage unit. There was clearly an agricultural component to the villa at Pavlikeni; however, further archaeological work is required in order to investigate this question. The villa is best known for the manufacture of pottery, oil lamps, statuettes and brick. The yard had a quarry for clay extraction that was later filled with waste, which included clay used for building materials and domestic ceramics. More than 50 kilns have been identified and they serve as proof that the ceramic production made there was not only for the needs of the local population, but also for the market.  

Villa Armira (near Ivaylovgrad) is situated in a region inhabited since the Early Stone Age and rich in cultural monuments and artifacts. The villa is built on a gentle slope along the easternmost part of Rhodopes, 5 km from the Bulgarian-Greek border and 4 km SW of modern-day Ivaylovgrad. In antiquity, the villa was located within the territory of Hadrianopolis, modern-day Edirne, some 45 km to the northeast. This luxurious villa was built with concrete masonry faced with painted plaster around 50-70 CE and was utilized for about three centuries. The villa’s first owner may have been an heir of a Thracian king, a noble Thracian aristocrat who was awarded Roman citizenship. It is an impressive complex, covering a total area of 3600 m2. The living area of 978 m2 consists of a garden and a large courtyard surrounded by a covered gallery with a peristyle and impluvium (the sunken part in the center of the atrium in a Roman house). 

        The impressive two-story building has a panorama terrace and many rooms - bedrooms, official rooms for guests, big feast hall, living rooms, a bathroom, all organized around a large pool in the middle. Like all Roman villas, this house consisted of two parts, a public area for guests and a private area for the family. The villa had 22 separate rooms on the first floor, including a private bath complex equipped with a sauna. This complex faced south and surrounded an open air pool with a depth of 1.6 meters and dimensions of 11 x 7 meters. Around the pool were 4 roofed corridors, one of which had a wooden staircase to the second floor, where more bedrooms and workplaces for women were located. The ground floor was built entirely of stone, covered in beautifully decorated white marble. The excavations revealed many decorative marble elements in the villa as well as well preserved mosaics with geometric motifs, mythological scenes and other figural images. Some of the mosaics represent the earliest mosaics discovered in Bulgaria from the Roman era, dating to 50-70 CE. The mosaics are both black and white and colored. The best known figures consist of portraits of the villa’s first owner and his children; there are also representations of characters from Greek mythology, such as Apollo, Artemis and Satyr. An interesting mythological image in the villa’s decoration is also the gorgon Medusa, a symbol that appears repeatedly many times in the decoration of the building. The excavations also unearthed capitals, tracery railings, hermes, profiled fragments of columns, pilasters, cornices, more than 3000 marble fragments and marble facings, as well as numerous pottery, jewelry and household items. The building had glass windows, beautifully placed in marble frames. The villa was destroyed by fire in the 4^th century CE around the Battle of Hadrianopolis in 378 CE, fought between Romans led by the Emperor Valens and the Goths.

(text and photos by Eric C. De Sena)