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Top 5 unique historical places in Bulgaria

The buildings, which are a national treasure of Bulgaria, the pride of its citizens and the object of attention of tourists from all over the world. On March 3d - National Holiday we decided to pay attention to the historical heritage of the country.

March 3rd is the Day of the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman dominance.

Bulgaria - one of the most picturesque countries in Europe and is interesting for its architecture. A typical image had been creating for centuries under the influence of the different nationalities living on its territory.
 

The architect Borislav Ignatov
the chairman of Chamber of architects in Bulgaria
"Bulgarian style is not so clearly defined, as a national, but rather as a regional. One of the main advantages of Bulgaria, is that the country has always been on the intersection of the Balkans, and so many different cultures have left their traces here. Speaking about the Bulgarian architecture, many buildings have common features with the objects in other countries of the same time period. This is a gorgeous feature of the Balkan heritage. "
 

1. The most original

(by shape and form)


Plovdiv



foto: astera-tour.ru

Bright saturated colors, elegant decorative elements as if they made of gold, as well as a variety of shapes of lines - all this is characteristic of the Kuyumdzhioglu House - one of the most beautiful in the region.

Built in 1847, nowadays it is the Ethnographic Museum.

The building is a brilliant example of the Bulgarian Baroque.

Generally, the city of Plovdiv has 200 objects protected by the state law as they make up the architectural reserve - "Old Plovdiv".


2. The most beautiful

(with gold elements)
 

Sofia



foto: static.bgstay.com


foto: static.bgstay.com, inyourpocket.com

Sofia as the capital of the country may be proud to have one of the most luxurious and richly decorated buildings in Bulgaria-  Ivan Vazov National Theatre
 The theatre's Neoclassical building, designed by famous Viennese theatre architects Hermann Helmer and Ferdinand Fellner, was finished in 1906.

The facades of the theater are painted paints containing rubber, which makes them resistant to adverse weather conditions.

The building was extensively damaged several times but then completely reconstructed.

In 2007 the building was renovated inside and out. Decorative elements gold again covered with gold leaf.
 

The architect Borislav Ignatov
the chairman of Chamber of architects in Bulgaria
"There is an interesting phenomenon of the influence of Western European countries in big cities. Sofia, Varna, Rousse, Plovdiv -  are the places where you can see pieces of Vienna, German, French school. Some of these buildings are designed by European architects, but others created by Bulgarians themselves, who learnt skills from Western European masters. Despite the fact that they brought foreign tradition, it is very valuable, because it had a great influence on the development of Bulgarian architecture. "
 


3. The oldest building

(with pitchers in the walls for better acoustic)
 

Nessebar



foto: planetofhotels.com, vicamilleri.com

The original idea belongs to the masters of old Nessebar and approximately dated by the 10th century - there are clay pitchers embedded in the wall of the temple. And up to now, having a walk next to St. John the Baptist Church, we can hear and enjoy the incredible acoustics of the building.

The temple is quite small - only 10 by 12 meters, built of river stones and rubble (clay-and-straw bricks). The most interesting elements of decoration - frescoes dated approximately XIV century and a portrait of an unknown local resident, who could be a patron or a benefactor of this church.

In the olden days, it was probably smoothly the plastered, but the traces of it disappeared under the cover of times.

Today, inside the church is a small art gallery.

4. The most symbolic

(On the occasion of March 3rd)

Varna



foto: planetofhotels.com

Another temple - the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin in the sea capital - Varna.
 
We could not leave this building on the side and we will explain why is the special place - it was officially opened in 1886, is dedicated to the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman dominance.

This was the project of architect Ivan Maas from Odessa and the building was designed by architect P. Kupka from Varna was created following the example of the Cathedral of Sts Peter and Pavel in the Peterhof Palace of the Russian emperors in St Petersburg.

Its copper domes with golden glitter can be seen from different points of the Bulgarian sea capital.  Finally, the church was painted only in 1949 of the last century, and in the 60s were installed stained glass windows. In 2002, the temple was renovated and in excellent condition today takes, both believers and tourists.

5. The most curious

(by the construction process)

Bansko

 

foto: banskocity.bg

foto: banskocity.bg, snaklab.info

Small but very popular ski resort of Bansko is rich in monuments of architecture in the style of the Bulgarian Revival. He is rightly proud of the Holy Trinity Church.

The construction was completed in 1835. During the time of construction (it was still Ottoman yoke), Bulgarians were forced to show the wonders of diplomacy and ingenuity to let this church be.

At the times it was built the place was a part of the Ottoman Empire and wealthy citizens decided to pay to Turkish officials to allow the construction of a Christian church;
however, there was another law -  a church can be built on the place or instead of the previous one, so people had to secretly bury an icon and a cross at the desired location.

At the entrance can be seen an unusual combination of symbols on the stone - the Christian cross and the Turkish crescent can be seen by its main entrance, close to each other.  More likely it was also another necessary step or condition that would save the temple from destruction, but some modern tourists see it as symbolic of our time a sign of religious tolerance and mutual respect.

Another curious fact - in 1855 four bells were cast for the bell tower. In order to save same from being desired by Turkish people figured out another diplomatic move - they put the names of Turkish sultan on the bells.
 

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