Description of the attraction
The ancient settlement "Akve Kalide" (translated from Latin means "hot water") is an archaeological site, which in ancient times was a fortified Thracian settlement on the territory of the modern port city of Burgas, in the area that is now called Banevo. In medieval times, it is referred to in the annals as "Terma" and "Thermopolis". It is known for certain that these mineral baths were often visited by many rulers in different historical eras - from Philip II of Macedon and Justinian I of Byzantine to the Bulgarian Khan Tervel and Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
According to research based on archaeological finds, the healing properties of hot waters became known to the inhabitants of this area in the Neolithic era. At the same time (VI-V centuries BC) three settlements were created here. The Thracians also erected the Temple of the Three Nymphs, which attracted pilgrims for several centuries during the Roman era.
The first baths in the sanctuary of the Three Nymphs near Burgas were built during the period when the Thracian lands were conquered by the Romans - in the middle of the 1st century BC. During the reign of the Ottoman Empire, this area was burned, but Sultan Suleiman I in 1562 ordered to rebuild new baths on the site of the destroyed Roman ones.
After the liberation of Bulgaria, the bath rooms were renamed into Aytos Baths, as they were located on the territory of the city of Aytos. Mostly refugees from Eastern Thrace lived here. Since 1950, the area has been called Banevo, and since February 2009, Banevo has become part of Burgas.
The first archaeological research at Aqua Kalide was carried out by Bogdan Filov in 1910. Extensive archaeological excavations of the former settlement have been carried out here since 2008. By 2010, ancient baths, the remains of the northern gate and five-meter-thick walls were discovered on an area of 3800 square meters. Since July 2011, Aqua Kalide has been recognized as an archaeological reserve. Since 2012, a new stage of excavation, conservation and restoration of the ancient settlement has been underway. Presumably, all artifacts found here will be transferred to the new Ethnographic Museum.
