Description
The remains of the ancient city of Kabile are located at a distance of 27 km from Sliven. In 1965 the place was declared an archaeological reserve and now it is one of the 100 national tourist sites of Bulgaria.
The archaeological heritage covers an area of more than 600 hectares. Founded at the end of the 2nd millennium BC, it was a major cultural and an important economic centre in southeastern Thrace, although traces indicate that a settlement existed on the site as early as the early Iron Age.
Over the centuries Kabile has been besieged by a coming and going of rulers.
At the top of the plateau is a rocky acropolis, which was a sanctuary of the goddess Cybele.
In the first half of the 3rd century BCE, Kabile was a residence of the Thracian tsars Spartok and Skostok.
At that time Kabile was also the only city in the interior part of Thrace with its own coinage house, whose coins you can still find in the museum.
After its conquest by the Romans, in the early 2nd century AD, Kabile became one of the most important Roman camps in the Thracian province. The city ceased to exist after the Avars destroyed it at the end of the 6th century AD. Unlike other cities of antiquity, no new settlement was built since then on the territory of Kabile.
You can see the finds made in the region on display in the reserve's archaeological museum. Outside you can wander and fantasize among the excavations and the remains of basilicas and churches, fortified walls and former public buildings.