Attractions and Places To See in Plovdiv Region - Top 20

Tsar Asen's Fortress As archaeological finds show, the fortress was built by the Byzantines in the 9th century to both monitor the passage to the White/Aegean Sea and to protect the Byzantine border in this area. In 1231, Tsar Ivan Asen II carried out a series of improvements to the fortress to strengthen it. This is evidenced by an inscription carved into a rock of the fortress. The fortress existed until 1410. It occupied the entire rock massif and had an area of 12 decares. The only remaining building from the fortress's past grandeur is the Church of the Holy Mother of God of Petrich, built in the 12th century. The fortress has been declared a National Cultural Monument.

The mosque is known as the Sultan Murad Mosque, Hüdavendigar Mosque, Cuma (Friday) Mosque, and Ulu (Great) Mosque. It was built during the reign of Sultan Murad I in 1358 and was part of the Sultan Murad Hüdavendigar building complex. The complex included Kulliye, Kursunlu Khan, the Great Bedesten (Bazaar), and the Hüdavendigar Mosque. Today, only the mosque remains. With its elongated shape and size of 30 x 40 m, it is one of the largest mosques in the Balkans.

Orthodox Church The complex of the Church of Saints Constantine and Helena, comprising several church buildings with different purposes, is located south of Hisar Kapia. In the space enclosed by a high stone wall with a decorative brick cornice, in addition to the church, there is also a tall bell tower, a sexton's primmis, a priest's premise, a marble fountain, and a school. The complex is accessible from the west through a large courtyard gate that leads to a cobblestone street. At the eastern courtyard gate is the building of the Bozhi Grob Monastery, where monks from Jerusalem once lived. From the east, the buildings overlap or border the early Byzantine fortress wall of Philippopolis from the 5th to 6th centuries, which is part of the architectural and historical circular tower complex of Hisar Kapia. In 304, on the site where the church stands today, the martyrs Severian and Memnos were beheaded following Emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. Before them, 38 martyrs from Plovdiv were also persecuted for their faith. The temple dedicated to the Apostles Constantine and Helen, located on this site, is mentioned in the travel book of the German theologian Stephan Gerlach, who visited Plovdiv in 1578. At the beginning of the 19th century, as the economic power of the Bulgarian Christian community grew, the chief governor of the temple, Todor Moravenov, raised funds for its reconstruction and another. The prominent Plovdiv revivalist Valko Kurtovich Chalakov obtained a sultan's decree for the restoration of the two nearby churches of St. Nedelya and St. Constantine and Helen. The church was restored in 1832 by masters from the town of Bratsigovo. Soon after, the tall, wood-carved iconostasis, executed by John Pashkula from the village of Metsovo, was completed. The icons on the two rows were made by the Revival artist Zahari Zograf, who worked here from 1834 to 1866. Later, Nikola Odrinchinin and Stanislav Dospevski also left their works here. Between 1864 and 1866, the church walls were painted by Stefan Andonov and Atanas Gyudzhenov from the town of Pazardzhik. They also decorated the iconostasis with gilding and rich polychromy.

ROMAN STADIUM OF PHILIPOPPOL The Stadium of Philippoppol was built at the beginning of the 2nd century AD during the reign of Emperor Hadrian. It is located at the northern end of the fortified city, between two fortress walls, in the natural area between the western slope of Taksim Tepe and the eastern slope of Sahat Tepe. The approximately 240-meter-long and 50-meter-wide facility can accommodate up to 30,000 spectators. Many different sports and other competitions were held on the Roman stadium's race track. Over the years, archaeological excavations, carried out in various phases and beginning in 1907-1908, have uncovered the monumental portal at the southern end and the curved part of the northern end – the sfendona. The 14 rows of seats, made of monolithic marble blocks decorated with stylized lion paws, are located beneath the buildings on both sides of today's main street. Like the spectacular buildings throughout the empire, some of the seats in the stadium bear Greek inscriptions designating the honored spectator positions. The northern curved section of the stadium (sendona) is exhibited in situ in the Roman stadium plaza. A covered vaulted passage was found beneath the amphitheater rows of seats (cavea), connecting the track to a corridor—a road excavated into the natural terrain. A hut was built over the vault. North of the corridor, a section of the Phili Poppol fortress wall was found, built in the 2nd century AD and renovated in the 3rd-4th centuries AD. In the 4th century AD, this area was crossed by an ancient aqueduct. The main entrance to the stadium consists of masonry columns decorated with marble pilasters and reliefs, and is now on display in the Regional Archaeological Museum in Plovdiv. On the pilasters are busts of Hermes (Hermai), with prize vases containing palm sprays placed above them, accompanied by Heracles' attributes – a lion's skin, a club, and a kite. In 1995, the Phili Poppol Stadium was declared a landmark of national and cultural importance. Between 2009 and 2012, the archaeological complex was renovated as part of the project BG 0041 "Ancient Stadium of Phili Poppol - Conservation, Rehabilitation, and Urban Renewal" with support from the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism.

Roman culture borrowed heavily from Hellenism, particularly in its educational ideals. Thus, in the 1st century BC, plays, which were an essential part of Greek literature (see Theatre of Ancient Greece), became increasingly popular in the Roman sphere of influence. The first theatre performances in Rome took place as early as 364 BC at public games (ludi publici) in honour of the gods. Because of their originally religious character, the plays were held in the immediate vicinity of a temple of the gods. The reason for the theatre performances had been a previous plague, and the games were now intended to be a sacrifice to the gods. This new form of entertainment quickly became very popular with the Romans and was soon able to establish itself. In 240 BC, Greek tragedies and comedies were translated into Latin for the first time (and adapted to the tastes of the Roman audience).

The Colosseum (ancient name: Amphitheatrum Novum or Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian: Colosseo, Anfiteatro Flavio) is the largest of the amphitheatres built in ancient Rome, the largest enclosed building of Roman antiquity, and still the largest amphitheatre ever built in the world. Built between 72 and 80 AD, the Colosseum served as the venue for mostly extremely cruel and brutal events organized by members of the imperial family for the entertainment and amusement of the free residents of Rome and the Roman Empire, with admission free of charge. Today, the ruins of the building are one of the city's landmarks and a testament to the sophisticated architecture of the Romans in ancient times.

The Roman Theater in Plovdiv is one of the best preserved ancient theaters in Bulgaria and an important venue for cultural events and sightseeing. These ancient Roman structures in Plovdiv are not only historical relics but also significant symbols of the cultural and architectural development of the region during the Roman era.

The Roman Theatre in Plovdiv is a semi-circular theatre that was used for theatrical performances and musical events. It is constructed in such a way that the audience has a clear view of the stage from the rows of seats. The architecture of the theatre is designed to improve the acoustics to carry the actors' voices without technical amplification.