Abritus

Roman ruins at Abritus

Roman ruins at Abritus

Coordinates: 43°31′16″N 26°33′06″E / 43.52111°N 26.55167°E Abritus (Abrittus) was a late Roman city near the site of the modern city of Razgrad. Abritus was established at the end of the 1st century AD as a Roman military camp built on the ruins of an ancient Thracian settlement and grew to become one of the biggest urban centres in Moesia Inferior.

In 251 it was the site of the defeat and slaying of Decius at the Battle of Abrittus. It was destroyed by the Avars in the 6th century. Later a Bulgarian medieval settlement was built, which existed until the 10th century.

Archaeological excavations have been conducted at the discovered site of Abritus since 1953.

References

• Teofil Ivanov & Stoyan Stoyanov (1985), ABRITVS - Its History and Archaeology, Razgrad: Cultural and Historical Heritage Directorate.
• A. P. Kazhdan (1991), Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford: Oxford University Press, at 6.
• Teofil Ivanov (1963), Archäologische Forschungen in Abrittus: (1953-1961), Sofia, BAN.

Sources and External links

• D. Adamesteanu: Abrittus (Razgrad) Bulgaria. Information about Abrittus at The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites Stillwell, Richard. MacDonald, William L. McAlister, Marian Holland eds. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1976, Accessed on 1 April 2012.
• Abritus Archaeological Reserve, Razgrad at Bulgariatravel.org (Official Tourism Portal of Bulgaria), Accessed on 21 April 2012.

See also

• Abrytasites, an extinct zoological genus called after the Ancient city