Rediscovering a forgotten fortress of medieval Thrace

[Ministry of Culture/via InTime News]

The Ministry of Culture has initiated the restoration of the pericentral religion successful the archaeological ιστοσελίδα of Maximianoupolis, a salient Byzantine metropolis successful Thrace’s Rodopi plain.

The €1.5 cardinal project, funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility, targets cardinal structural components – marble iconostasis, northbound and south arcosolia, and the southwest country of the narthex – amid concerns implicit degradation, structural instability, and worldly loss.

The richly adorned church, notable for its uncommon irregular hexagonal shape, dates backmost to the 11th century. Excavations betwixt 1999 and 2008 uncovered extended burials, Byzantine glazed ceramics, and ornate architectural features such arsenic a marble pulpit and synthronon.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni stated, “The humanities value of Maximianoupolis is indisputable, contempt its implicit demolition successful the 13th century.”

Restoration includes conservation of frescoes, flooring, and improved accessibility.

The city, erstwhile a fortified halfway with ecclesiastical prominence, was founded by Emperor Maximian and flourished from the 4th period until its demolition during Tsar Kaloyan’s penetration astatine the onset of the 13th century.