Discover the southern air softness and transparency, the soothing caresses of the Thracian sun. Discover the city of the emperors and feel the romance of antiquity, and the ancient sites and ruins that have kept the echoes of the centuries. Discover the healing springs and hear the whispers of the nymphs telling magic stories. Unique natural features, rich cultural and historical heritage, authentic traditions, and healing mineral springs. The town of Hisarya is a favorite place for relaxationfor many Bulgarians and foreigners, due to its unique natural features and rich cultural and historical heritage, combined with the authentic traditions andhospitality of the locals. The healing mineral springs in Hisarya for thousands of years have been a center of attraction for many peoples and civilizations, leaving valuable examples of their culture here. The ancient city is declared an archaeological reserve, where you can see the remains of Roman baths and administrative buildings, basilicas, amphitheater, Roman tomb and others. The city boasts exceptional natural resources, including 22 mineral springs with different compositions and healing properties.
The Gift of Nature
Nature has generously gifted the Hissar region. The favourable climate and warm mineral waters have attracted people’s attention to these places since ancient times. In 293, Emperor Diocletian declared the domain around the Hissar mineral springs a city named Diocletianopolis. The city was laid out according to all the rules of Roman landscaping with the characteristic Hippodamian plan of Roman cities: wide streets intersecting at right angles, a water-supply system for cold drinking water and for cooling the warm mineral water in the Roman baths, symmetrically located architectural ensembles with regular internally proportional solutions, stable strengthening system. In the 5th and 6th centuries, the Roman city of Diocletianopolis was at its peak. Then it grew beyond the fortress walls. In the travel guide of the ancient author Hierocles from 528, it is mentioned that during that period Diocletianopolis was the third largest city in the province of Thrace after the cities of Philippopolis (present-day Plovdiv) and Beroe (present-day Stara Zagora). Thanks to the healing properties of mineral water, early Christianity found a favorable ground for the spread of the new ideology. The healing properties of the mineral springs were attributed to the new healing God – Christ. All the old pagan temples and sanctuaries were destroyed, and new Christian basilicas were erected in their place. A total of 10 early Christian basilicas were discovered in the area of the town of Hissarya. In the diocese lists of the 7th to the 10th centuries, which reflect an earlier period of the life of the late Roman Empire, Diocletianopolis was indicated as one of the episcopal seats subordinate to the Metropolitan of Philippopolis.
The Start of a Development
After the Liberation from the Turkish yoke in 1878, development of new houses, villas and hotels gradually started in the village of Hisaar. This development proved disastrous for
the Roman fortress wall and the ancient buildings. They were turned into a natural quarry for stones and bricks needed for the new construction. For the protection of the unique archaeological heritage of the village of Hissar, in 1933, an archaeological society was created under the chairmanship of the local patriot General Todor Markov.
In 1957, the museum collection grew into a state museum, which in 1967 was specialized as Archaeological. In 1957, the village of Hissar was declared a resort of national importance,
and in 1964 – a city with the official name – Hissarya.
The Fortress Wall
Archaeological excavations carried out in Diocletianopolis show that the town was surrounded by a strong fortress wall that was built during the time of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The fortress wall has the shape of an irregular quadrangle and surrounds a space of 30 hectares. With its fully preserved 2,327-meter-long wall, the Hissar fortress is the best-preserved ancient fortress from the 3rd to the 4th century, not only in Bulgaria, but also in Eastern Europe!
The fortress wall of Diocletianopolis was equipped with 44 battle towers protruding outward from the wall. All towers were rectangular except the southeast one, which was fan-shaped, and the northeast one, which was octagonal on a circular base. The towers had three floors.
The Southern Gate
The southern gate is of the greatest interest. Architecturally, this gate stands closest to the Golden Gate of Constantinople (Istanbul) and the Golden Gate of Diocletian’s Palace in Split. With a complex system of two-level battlements spread over two levels, fortress towers at the top and an inner gallery ensuring rapid manoeuverability of the fighters, the southern gate represents the highest stage in the development of Roman fortification. It is unique in its nature – architecturally, it combines the elements of practical unconquerability and original volumetric plasticity and decoration!
These features are successfully represented by the conservation project implemented in 2023, which gives solidity to the entire architectural ensemble. The natural materials used are in congruity with the ancient Roman construction technology, giving an authentic look to the gate and hiding previous unsuccessful restoration repairs. The new archaeological research on the southern fortress gate of Diocletianopolis has established that, in this form, it was built later than the other three gates.
Nowadays, in its original form, which has reached us after manifold attacks, fires and destruction, the southern gate has become a symbol of the city of Hissarya. Lovingly called by the local people “The Camels”, it is a favourite photo spot for tourists who come here from nearby and distant corners of the world.
The Mineral Springs
In antiquity, as well as today, mineral springs are some of the liveliest places. Many people gather around them, sipping with delight and gratitude from the healing gift. The Roman thermae of Diocletianopolis are the only “working” ancient baths in Bulgaria! This is a magnificent archaeological site from the 2nd century, which clearly shows the path of the mineral water from the springs down the aqueducts and the pools to the drainage canals.
For convenience, the thermae are divided into two parts – eastern and western. The premises discovered in 1935 by Dimitar Tsonchev are in the western part. The eastern part of the complex has been the subject of research since 1993. Several large premises have been revealed: two caldariums with pools, two tepidariums, two vestibules and a large part of the water and sewage system of the thermae.
The analysis of the results of the archaeological studies of the thermae established three stages of their construction. Their construction probably began in the middle of the 2nd century. Since then, they have also performed the function of a nimpheum (sanctuary of the nymphs). Within a short period, in the second half of the 2nd century, the thermae were expanded in the eastern direction. Then the three adjacent premises were built, one of which functioned as a caldarium, with three pools in it. This extension necessitated an alteration of the entrances to the originally built caldarium No. 1, the eastern entrance having been completely walled up.
In the 4th century, the thermae were also expanded to the west, being supplied with hot water from two other mineral springs spouting in this place. At the same time, the thermaе were also expanded in a southern direction, where parts of the walls of a large, still unexplored premise were uncovered.
Thus, in the 4th century, the thermal complex of the Roman city of Diocletianopolis already covered an area of about 0.3 ha. The mineral water in the thermae was used very effectively, both for treatment and hygiene, as well as for heating. The findings – beautiful marble cornices with acanthus leaves, votive plaques of graces or dancing nymphs, altars with consecratory
inscriptions and lights, also provide information about the presence of a sanctuary of nymphs in the bath.
Historic Discoveries
During the clearing of some sectors of the thermae over the years, the following were found: a marble lion’s head for a fountain, part of a marble step, a marble votive plaque of the three nymphs and several bronze coins.
The lion’s head is made very precisely. On its front, the characteristic features of the lion are presented in detail. The mouth is shaped like an opening with an almost rectangular section through which the water passed. Probably, the head was installed at the outlet of the aqueduct that led the mineral water to the pool in one of the caldariums of the thermae.
The two votive plaques of the three nymphs and the numismatic material discovered during the excavations are of essential importance for the dating of the thermae. One votive plaque has a well-preserved dedicatory inscription in Greek. On it, the nymphs are represented naked (gracias) and are mentioned as patrons of trees (dryads): ”To the nymphs, patrons of trees, Severus, son of Ammonius, dedicated a gift of thanksgiving”. The palaeographic features of the inscription give reason to date the votive plaque in the second half of the 2nd century.
The second votive plaque of the nymphs, found again during the excavations of the Roman thermae, dates from the first half of the 2nd century. On it, the deities are represented dressed, holding hands (dancing nymphs) with the text: ”Flavia Chione, daughter of Menemachus, (consecrated) tribute to the Mistresses Nymphs”. It can be assumed that the sanctuary of the nymphs was located in the premise with the pools, in which the healing water procedures were carried out, as a result of which people were cured of their ailments, and as a sign of gratitude to the health-giving deities and nymphs, they left various votive gifts.
During the implementation of the project “The ancient city of Diocletianopolis – the pearl of the province of Thrace for balneotherapy in the Roman Empire”, funded under Operational Program “Regions in growth” 2014-2020 of the Hissarya Municipality for conservation and restoration works and exposure of the Roman thermae, rescue archaeological excavations were carried out, and two water supply galleries were discovered in the northern part of the thermae.
One of these, which also served as a drainage canal, collected the water outside the thermae, passed under the northern end wall and, through drainage clay pipes, carried the rainwater from the vaulted roof into the sewer. The second gallery, to be found for the first time in such structures, used to be a mineral water aqueduct that carried the water from the spring to the pool rooms.
In front of the outer western façade of the building, a rectangular marble plinth was discovered, on which a plaque with an inscription in Greek was mounted. From the preserved text it can be assumed that it was a dedication to the nymphs by a grateful man who had returned from afar to his homeland. The inscription dates from the middle of the 2nd century and, in combination with the building to which it belongs, shows that it had a cult purpose and preceded the construction of the thermae.
In the space on the west side of the thermae, a huge rectangular room and a pool, lined with marble, were discovered. A massive marble slab with an inscription in Greek was found in the northern part of the pool. The text of the inscription reveals that the construction of the thermae was completed in 153, when the governor of the province of Thrace was Gaius Gallonius Fronton, who ruled the province at the time of Emperor Antoninus Pius.
The newly discovered archaeological structures in the Roman thermae have a high scientific and exhibition value. For the first time, a Sanctuary of the nymphs was recorded, built immediately next to the catchment of the mineral spring and it preceded the construction of the thermae. For the first time, a completely preserved water supply gallery for transmission of the
mineral water from the spring to the premises was discovered. On the western side, a previously unknown room was revealed, which in its original form shone with its marble lining. The significance of these discoveries is further enhanced by the epigraphical monuments found at the site. They are a huge contribution from the development of the Roman settlement at the
Hissarya mineral springs from the 2nd century, when it was declared animperial possession even before it became a city.
Hisarya – the heart of Bulgarian Spa and Wellness tourism
Hisarya – the heart of Bulgarian spa and wellness tourism, is a place where the ancient healing power of mineral springs meets the comfort of modern luxury. The city’s modern spa and wellness hotels offer a real escape from the stress of everyday life – with elegant design, relaxation areas and a wide variety of body and shower treatments. Mineral pools, Finnish saunas, aromatic steam baths and therapies with natural oils create a feeling of harmony and restoration. Hisarya is the ideal destination for anyone who is looking not just for relaxation, but for an experience for the senses and new energy for the body.
Let´s explore Hisarya!
The City of Emperors and Springs. Where the Roman spirit still whispers among the warm springs.
