Location: Plovdiv is located in the western part of the Upper Thracian plain, along the banks of the largest river that takes its source in Bulgaria – Maritsa. The city was built at the foot of seven syenite hills and this is why it is often called “The city of the hills (tepeta)”, or “The city of the seven hills”. It stands at a distance of 150 km south-east from Sofia.
Population: With its population of 380 311 inhabitants, Plovdiv is the second largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia.
History: Plovdiv is one of the oldest European cities, and it is considered to be at the same age as Troy. During the 12th century B.C. the pre-historic settlement on the Hill of the Guards (Nebet tepe) developed to the ancient Thracian city of Eumolpia, which is one of the first urban centres in South-east Europe. In 342 B.C. it was conquered by Philip II of Macedonia, who changed its name to Philippoupolis. At the time the “city of Philip” was surrounded by strong fortress walls. Later, the Thracians restored their control over the city and called it Pulpudeva, a translation of Philippoupolis. In 1364 the city was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and it was called Filibe.
During the period of the Bulgarian National Revival, Plovdiv became big economic centre, just like Istanbul, Thessalonica and Edirne. It was liberated on 17th of January, 1878 by the armies of general Gurko. Today Plovdiv is the second city in Bulgaria after Sofia with regard to its population, area and significance.
The city is a large cultural, historical, tourist and fair centre. Numerous economic and cultural events take place in Plovdiv, such as the International Trade Fair, the International Theatre Festival “A Stage at a Crossroad”, the Television festival “The Golden Chest” and others. Plovdiv will be the European City of Culture in 2019.
Landmarks:
- Ancient Plovdiv architecture and historic reserve is one of the symbols of the city. It is located on three hills – Nebet tepe, Dzhambaz tepe and Taksim tepe. Today’s appearance of the Three hills is defined by unique unity and combination of monuments from different eras – archaeological sites, museums and galleries, ancient buildings, operating temples, cosy hotels, cafes and restaurants, picturesque cobblestone streets – this is Old Plovdiv.
- The Antique Theatre or Roman Theatre was built in the beginning of the 2nd century A.D. during the rule of Emperor Trajan (98-117). The theatre was one of the most significant public buildings of Trimontium (the Roman name of Plovdiv which in translation means – city on three hills), which was remarkable for its architecture attractiveness and magnificence. It had room for 5 to 7 thousand spectators. The stage was decorated with friezes, cornices and statues and is one of the best preserved monuments of that time in our country. Today it is often used for different performances.
- The Roman Forum was built at the time of Emperor Vespasian during the 1st century and it was completed during the 2nd century. It is located close to today’s Central Post Office in the city of Plovdiv. It has an area of 11 ha and is surrounded by shops and public buildings. In the immediate vicinity one can see the Roman Odeon (small city theatre), which was probably used as a bulevterion (city council), the antique library and the archaeological complex “Eirene” – remnants from a an impressive building, with mosaic floor, built during III-IV century and most probably used as a residence by a notable citizen of Philippoupolis.
- The Roman Stadium is another significant monument of the ancient city. It is situated at the slope between Sahat tepe and the three hills, on today’s “Dzhumayata square”. It was built in the 2nd century and modelled after the stadium in Delphi. In Roman times it could hold 30,000 spectators, who observed gladiator’s fights and sports. Currently one can see the north arc of the stadium with 13 seats, the overarched north entrance and part of the racing track.
- The Archaeological Museum was established in 1882 as a People's Museum of Eastern Rumelia. In 1928 the museum was moved to a 19th century edifice on Saedinenie Square built by the famous Plovdiv architect Josef Schnitter. The museum constitutes the largest treasury of the archaeological findings of ancient Thrace. The three sections - "Prehistory", "Antiquity" and "Middle Ages" contain precious artefacts from the Palaeolithic to the early Ottoman period (15th-16th centuries).
- The Regional History Museum – it was founded in 1951 as a scientific and cultural institute for collecting, saving, and researching historical evidence about Plovdiv and the region from 15th to 20th century. The exhibition of the museum is situated in three separate buildings, which are cultural monuments themselves.
- The Regional Ethnographic Museum – it was opened in 1917. On 14th of October, 1943, the new building of the museum - Kuyumdzhiev's House was open for visitors. There are more than 40 thousand objects in the museum storehouse, which are distributed in the sections: Agriculture, Crafts, Textiles and clothes, Furniture and interior, Music instruments and ritual requisites and works of art.
- Regional Natural History Museum - The rich collection of the museum is split in several thematic exhibitions - Minerals, Botany, Invertebrates, Aquarium, Sea bottom, Fishes, Amphibians and Reptiles, Birds, Mammals. It is the second largest museum of the kind in the country with modern lay-out.
Surroundings:
- Bachkovo Monastery: is the second largest Bulgarian monastery after the Rila monastery. Situated in Rhodope Mountains 24 km south of Plovdiv. Found in 11th century, this is one of the oldest monasteries on the Balkan peninsula. The wall paintings are priceless, but the most interesting thing here is the miracle making icon of the Holy Virgin, work of Georgian painter from 1311, which was fully destroyed in a fire and later miraculously appeared again in 1604 on a Monday after Easter as the legend says it. Carried back to the monastery, the icon becomes object of immense worship. Along with the main church there are two others: the church of Archangels (13th-14th)century and St. Nicholas church (1834-1837). St. Nicholas church is famous with its wall paintings work of the great Bulgarian artist of that period Zahary Zograf. The library in the monastery is in possession of 103 manuscripts and 256 old books.
- Asenova krepost (The fortress of Asen) is a medieval fortress in the Rhodopå Mountains, 3 km south of the town of Asenovgrad, 20 km from Plovdiv and 168 km from Sofia, located on a high rocky ridge on the left bank of the Asenitsa River. The earliest archaeological findings in the fortress are form Thracian settlements, the area of the fortress being also inhabited during the Ancient Roman and Early Byzantine period. The fortress gained importance in the Middle Ages. It was considerably renconstructed in the XIIIth century during the rule of Bulgarian tsar Ivan Asen II to serve as a border fortification against Latin raids. The foundations of fortified walls (the outer ones being 2.9 m thick and preserved up to a height of 3 m, originally 9 - 12 m high), a feudal castle with 30 rooms and 3 water repositories from the same period have been excavated so far. The best preserved and most notable feature of Asenova krepost is the Holy Theotokos of Petrich Church from the XIIth - XIIIth century. It is a two-storey cross-domed single-naved building with a wide narthex and a large rectangular tower which features mural paintings from XIVth century. The conservation and partial restoration works on the church were finished in 1991 (the whole fortress was left to decay after the Ottoman conquest in the XIVth century and only the church remained standing in its original appearance as it was used by the local Christians) and now it is in regular use as a Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
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