Abritus Archaeological Reserve, Razgrad, Bulgaria

The Abritus Archaeological Reserve is located 2 km east of Razgrad, near the main road Ruse - Varna. The entire reserve covers an area of 1000 acres and preserves the archaeological remains of the Roman city of Abritus.

Abritus was founded at the end of the 1st century AD. as a Roman military camp on the ruins of an old Thracian settlement and has grown to one of the largest urban centers in Lower Moesia - the Roman province located in present-day Northern Bulgaria.

Ancient authors mention Abritus in connection with the battle that took place in his vicinity in 251, in which Emperor Trajan Decius died.

An archeological museum has been set up in the Abritus Reserve, in which some of the objects found during excavations in the area are exhibited. The entire archeological exposition is divided into five themes, which represent the development of human society. In Abritus was discovered the largest in the country gold coin treasure from the V century - 835 solidi (coins), which is presented in the museum in photos. Visitors, however, can see an exposed smaller treasure, again of solids, dating from the tenth century.

The large finds discovered during archeological excavations in the reserve have been collected in an open-air museum. 70 epigraphic monuments are exhibited in the park part of Abritus, most of which date from the Roman era. Here you can see finds related to the pagan cult, including an altar dedicated to Hercules from the time of Emperor Septimius Severus. Numerous tombstone inscriptions in ancient Greek and Latin are evidence of the diverse population that inhabited Abritus over the centuries - Romans, Bulgarians and Turks.