Book Exploring Aqueducts of 19 Roman Cities in Bulgaria to Be Presented in Veliko Tarnovo
Ivan Tsarov’s new book, “The Aqueducts in the Bulgarian Lands, 2nd-4th century AD”, looks at the aqueducts of 19 Roman cities in today’s Bulgaria. Photo: Veliko Tarnovo Regional Museum of History
“The Aqueducts in Bulgaria’s Lands, 2nd-4th century AD”, a new book exploring the aqueducts of a total of 19 Ancient Roman cities, including that of major city of Nicopolis ad Istrum, is to presented in the northern Bulgarian city of Veliko Tarnovo.
The book is authored by archaeologist Ivan Tsarov, who is the Director of the Regional Museum of History in the city of Veliko Tarnovo (the capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire in the 12th-14th century).
Tsarov is a long-time researcher of Nicopolis ad Istrum, its complex water supply system, and the aqueducts of numerous other Roman cities located on the territory of today’s Bulgaria.
The publication of his book on Roman aqueducts in Bulgaria was already announced back in March 2018.
The book explores in detail the “exceptional” bridge of the Nicopolis ad Istrum aqueduct, which was 3 kilometers (appr. 2 miles) long and 20 meters (65 feet) tall.
“The Aqueducts in Bulgaria’s Lands, 2nd-4th century AD” is a bilingual edition, in Bulgarian and English, and features 216 illustrations, both photographs and blueprints depicting the ruins and the design of the main Roman aqueducts in Bulgaria.
The book explores the aqueducts of a total of 19 of the dozens of Ancient Roman cities in the country. It features some 470 bibliography titles. The actual writing took the archaeologist two years but he has been researching the aqueducts in Bulgaria since 1997.
The Roman aqueduct in Bulgaria which has been researched in greatest detail is precisely the 20 km (12.4 mile) long aqueduct of the major city of Nicopolis ad Istrum
The public presentation of Tsarov’s book is scheduled for 5:30 pm on June 27, 2018, at the Lapidarium of the Archaeology Museum which is part of the Regional Museum of History in Veliko Tarnovo, the museum has announced.
The book is to be presented by archaeologist Assoc. Prof. Pavlina Vladkova, another expert on Roman archaeology from the Veliko Tarnovo Museum.
“The book is a tale about the needs and ways of supplying water to the cities of the Roman Empire at the time when it was prosperous, about the construction and maintenance of aqueducts,” the Museum comments.
The new book on Roman aqueducts in Bulgaria by Ivan Tsarov also features the emblematic treatises of Roman architects, “On Architecture” (De architectura) by Vitruvius and “On Aqueducts” (De aquaeductu) by Frontinus, as well as catalog of the aqueducts’ architectural details, an index of the mentioned archaeological sites in Bulgaria, and a glossary of the relevant terms.
Tsarov first started studying Roman aqueducts in 1997 for the start of the second Bulgarian – British project for archaeological research of Nicopolis ad Istrum when he had to research the water supply of the ancient city.
Tsarov’s book focuses on the Roman water pipelines outside the urban areas – from the water sources to the main urban water distribution reservoir.
A special section in the book is dedicated to the impressive aqueduct of Nicopolis ad Istrum.
The ruins of Nicopolis ad Istrum, whose name means “Victory City on the Danube River”, are located near today’s town of Nikyup, Veliko Tarnovo Municipality, 18 km northwest of the city of Veliko Tarnovo.
The major city was founded by Roman Emperor Trajan (Marcus Ulpius Traianus) (r. 98-117 AD) to honor his victories over the Dacian tribes between 101 and 106 AD (most probably in 102 AD) north of the Danube.
Nicopolis ad Istrum stood at the intersection of the two main roads of the Danubian Roman provinces – the road from Odessus (Odessos) on the Black Sea (today’s Varna) to the western parts of the Balkan Peninsula, and the road from the Roman military camp Novae (today’s Svishtov) on the Danube to the southern parts of the Balkan Peninsula.
Nicopolis ad Istrum is sometimes described as the birthplace of Germanic literary tradition because in the 4th century AD Gothic bishop Ulfilas (Wulfila) (ca. 311-383 AD) received permission from Roman Emperor Constantius II (r. 324-361 AD) to settle with his flock of Christian converts near Nicopolis ad Istrum in the province of Moesia, in 347-8 AD. There Ulfilas invented the Gothic alphabet and translated the Bible from Greek into Gothic.
The Ancient Roman city was destroyed in 447 AD by the barbarian forces of Attila the Hun, even though it might have been abandoned by its residents even before that. It was partly rebuilt as a fortified post of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) in the 6th century AD which in turn was destroyed at the end of the 6th century AD by an Avar invasion. Later, it was settled as a medieval city in the Bulgarian Empire between the 10th and the 14th century.
The archaeological exploration of Nicopolis ad Istrum first started in 1900, while the presently ongoing excavation efforts were restarted in 2007.
The formal invitation to the book presentation. Photo: Veliko Tarnovo Museum
In 2017, archaeologist Kalin Chakarov from the Pavlikeni Museum of History initiated the first ever archaeological exploration of the water catchment reservoir which fed water to the 20-kilometer-long (12.4 miles) aqueduct of the large Ancient Roman city of Nicopolis ad Istrum
The 2nd century AD water catchment reservoir of Nicopolis ad Istrum is located near the town of Musina, Pavlikeni Municipality, to the west of the important city in the Roman Empire.
It used to catch the water coming from the karst springs inside the Musina Cave, feeding it to the western aqueduct of Nicopolis ad Istrum.
In 2015, archaeologists discovered the main aqueduct of ancient Odessos (today’s Varna), and in 2016-2017, archaeologists found the earliest aqueduct of ancient Philipopolis (Trimontium) (today’s Plovdiv).
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Relevant Books on Amazon.com:
Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of An Empire
Roman Aqueducts and Water Supply (Duckworth Archaeology)
Guide to the Aqueducts of Ancient Rome
Caves and Speleology in Bulgaria
Karstology: Karsts, Caves and Springs: Elements of Fundamental and Applied Karstology
DK Eyewitness Travel Guide Bulgaria
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Nicopolis ad Istrum (also known as Ulpia Nicopolis ad Istrum) was an Ancient Roman and Early Byzantine city (not to be confused with Nicopolis ad Nestum in today’s Southwest Bulgaria).
Its ruins are located near today’s town of Nikyup, Veliko Tarnovo Municipality, 18 km northwest of the city of Veliko Tarnovo in Central Northern Bulgaria. Its name means “Victory City on the Danube River”. It was founded by Roman Emperor Marcus Ulpius Traianus (r. 98-117 AD) to honor his victories over the Daciantribes between 101 and 106 AD (most probably in 102 AD) on a plateau on the left bank of the Rositsa River. This is where the two main roads of the DanubianRoman provinces intersected – the road from Odessus (Odessos) on the Black Sea (today’s Varna) to the western parts of the Balkan Peninsula, and the road from the Roman military camp Novae (today’s Svishtov) on the Danube to the southern parts of the Balkan Peninsula.
(Ulpia) Nicopolis ad Istrum was first part of the Roman province of Thrace but after 193 AD it was made part of the province of Moesia Inferior. Nicopolis ad Istrum flourished in the 2nd-3rd century, during the Nerva-Antonine Dynasty (96-192 AD) and the Severan Dynasty (193-235 AD). It further developed as major urban center after the reforms of Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305). Its organization was similar to that of Roman cities in Thrace and Asia Minor such as Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon. It was ruled by a council of archons, a city council and an assembly, with local priests worshipping Ancient Roman and Greek deities such as Zeus, Hera, Athena, Asclepius, Dionysus, Mithras. At the time, Nicopolis ad Istrum was inhabited by Thracians, Roman military veterans, and settlers from Asia Minor. Nicopolis ad Istrum is known to have minted 900 different emissions of bronze coins. The city had orthogonal planning, with an agora (city square), a cardo maximus and a decumanus maximus (main streets), a market place, other public buildings and residential areas, limestone-paved streets and underground sewerage, as well as three aqueducts and several water wells, many of which has been unearthed in archaeological excavations.
The fortress walls of Nicopolis ad Istrum were erected only after the city was ransacked by a barbarian attack of the Costoboci, an ancient people possibly linked to the Getae (Gets) inhabiting an area in today’s Western Ukraine. The city square (agora) featured a statue of Roman Emperor Trajan mounted on a horse, a number of other marble statues, a Ionic colonnade, a three-nave basilica, a bouleuterion (a public building housing the boule – council of citizens), a building to the cult of goddess Cybele, a small odeon (theater), thermae (public baths) as well as a building which according to an inscription was a “termoperiatos” which can be likened to a modern-day shopping mall – a heated building with shops and closed space for walks and business meetings. A total of 121 stone and brick tombs and sarcophagi have been found by the Bulgarian archaeologists excavating the city’s necropolis. Some villas and other buildings in the residential parts of Nicopolis ad Istrum have also been excavated.
Nicopolis ad Istrum is sometimes described as the birthplace of Germanic literary tradition because in the 4th century AD Gothic bishop Ulfilas (Wulfila) (ca. 311-383 AD) received permission from Roman Emperor Constantius II (r. 324-361 AD) to settle with his flock of Christian converts near Nicopolis ad Istrum in the province of Moesia, in 347-8 AD. There Ulfilas invented the Gothic alphabet and translated the Bible from Greek into Gothic.
The Ancient Roman city Nicopolis ad Istrum was destroyed in 447 AD by the barbarian forces of Attila the Hun, even though it might have been abandoned by its residents even before that. It was rebuilt as a fortified post of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) in the 6th century AD. The Early Byzantine fort covered about one forth of the Ancient Roman city – 57.5 decares (app. 14.2 acres) out of a total of 215.5 decares (app. 53.2 decares), and was also the center of a bishopric. The Early Byzantine fort was destroyed at the end of the 6th century AD by an Avar invasion. Later, it was settled as a medieval cityin the Bulgarian Empire between the 10th and the 14th century.
Nicopolis ad Istrum was visited in 1871 by Austro-Hungarian geographer and archaeologist Felix Kanitz who found there a statue of the wife of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193-211 AD). The city was first excavated in 1900 by French archaeologist J. Seur whose work, however, was not documented, and in 1906-1909 by Czech archaeologist B. Dobruski. In 1945 and 1966-1968, there were partial excavations led by T. Ivanov from the National Institute and Museum of Archaeology of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. Systematic excavations were started in 1970 and were led again by T. Ivanov.
Between 1985 and 1992, Nicopolis ad Istrum was excavated by a joint Bulgarian-British expedition from the National Institute and Museum of Archaeology in Sofia and a team of the University of Nottingham. The joint Bulgarian-British excavations were resumed in 1996. The Nicopolis ad Istrum archaeological preserve is managed by the Veliko Tarnovo Regional Museum of History. In 1984, the Ancient Roman city Nicopolis ad Istrum was put on the Tentative List for consideration as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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