Etropole
Etropole
Етрополе | |
|---|---|
 Etropole Town-hall | |
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UTC+3 (EEST) | |
| Postal Code | 2180 |
| Area code | 0720 |
Etropole (
History
The area was first settled by the
The ore ledges brought Saxon miners to the town in the 16th century. They introduced the samokov hammer technology and helped for the area's establishment as a centre of craftsmanship and mining, with gold, copper, silver and iron being extracted in the 16th and 17th centuries. Handicrafts such as iron-, gold- and coppersmithing and cutlery prospered. The economic upsurge of the settlement aided the development of culture and education in the nearby Etropole Monastery in the period, where biblical and liturgical books were copied in a specific original calligraphic style, of which 76 hand-written volumes were preserved.
A monastery school was established in 1613 and a public one (yet still monastery) followed in 1811. One of the first school buildings in Bulgaria was constructed in 1828-1830 by merchants and rich craftsmen from Etropole. A revolutionary committee part of
Etropole Peak on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Etropole.
Places of interest
The clockwork tower of Etropole built in 1710 is one of the oldest in Bulgaria. It originally served as a defensive structure until in 1821 a master builder by the name of Dido reconstructed it as a clock tower. With its height at about 20 metres (66 ft) it stands above most of the buildings in the small town. The clockwork tower is one of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria along with the Monastery of the Holy Trinity and the History museum of Etropole.
The Etropole Monastery, also known as Varovitets, is located 5 km (3 mi) from the town. It is a Bulgarian Orthodox monastery and was founded in the 12th or 13th century.[1] The monastery is also the home of the spectacular Etropole Waterfall “Varovitets”.
To learn more about the history of Etropole you can visit the Historical Museum of Etropole.[2] The History Museum in Etropole launched its first exhibition in 1958. Ten years later, in 1968, the second exhibition of the museum was opened in the restored building of the former Turkish police office. The museum of Etropole is still housed there. The building was constructed in the period 1853 – 1870. This is the second public building in Etropole after the Clock Tower (1710) that has survived to this day. The ten halls of the museum tell about the past of the Etropole Region.
The village of Lopyan (Лопян) is located in the Etropole municipality and is situated at the foot of the northern slopes of the Central Balkan Mountain. It is one of the oldest villages in the region and its story began at the time of the Thracians, when the territory was inhabited by the tribe Luposi from where name of the village most likely origins.[3] Three kilometres from Lopyan are the remains of the Thracian fortress Chertigrad (built in 4th or 3rd centuries BC and probably functioned until the 6th century AD).
Notable people
- Todor Peev (1842–1904) - revolutionary
- Hristo Yasenov (1889–1925) - poet
- Sofi Marinova - singer of Roma descent
International relations
Twin towns — sister cities
Etropole is
Feres, Greece
Mozhaysk, Russia
Bela Palanka, Serbia
Gallery
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Historical Museum (built 1853–1870) -
Courthouse -
Etropole Monastery of the Holy Trinity -
Etropole Monastery Church -
Hristo Botev school -
Varovitets Waterfall
References
- ^ "Etropole Monastery "St. Trinity"- Bulgarian monasteries". www.bulgariamonasteries.com. Archived from the original on 26 April 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- ^ "Etropole History Museum". BulgariaTravel.org. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- ^ "*** Guide Bulgaria *** - Village Lopyan". guide-bulgaria.com. Archived from the original on 30 July 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
External links
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