KUN0023 4 GEN 0263 KUWAIT /KUNA-ABN7 CUL-BULGARIA-ARTS-HISTORY Nessebar an ancient Bulgarian city of charm By Mohammad Al-Baqri (with photos) SOFIA, Sept 11 (KUNA) -- The city of Nessebar in Bulgaria, 430 kilometers from the capital Sofia, is one of the most charming ancient European cities on the Black Sea. The city has great historical sites, as it was built on a small island of 850 meters long and 300 meters wide, an area of 250,000 square meters, linked to land by a 400 meter long bridge. The town is the successor of a Thracian fishermen's settlement named Menabryia (meaning literally 'the town of Mena'), the foundation of which dates back to the 2nd century BC. Later it remained the only Doric colony along the Black Sea coast, as the rest were typical Ionic settlements. The Greeks named it Messembria (which was later transformed into Nessabar by the Slavs), and it grew into a big and well-fortified town-state. The town benefited from natural protection from both land and sea. Remains suggest the existence of aqueducts, a sewerage system, fortified walls, an amphitheatre and numerous cult edifices (including an impressive temple of Apollo) at that time. The town became a popular commercial centre as a variety of goods from the Aegean and the Mediterranean regions were traded there and it also minted its own coins in the 5th century BC. Two centuries later, it founded its own colony called Navlohos near Obzor. The whole land between Nessebar and Obzor used to be a granary that supplied the two colonies with food as well as goods of exchange. In the 1st century BC, the town surrendered to Marcus Lukulus' legions and was subjected to Roman domination, during which the construction of a second colony of Messembria began and was finished. The second colony, built to the south of Nessebar, was named Anhialo (present-day Pomorie). In the early Middle Ages the town rebuilt its fortress walls and stayed part of the Byzantine Empire until 812 when the protobulgarian Khan Kroum conquered it, including it in the territory of Bulgaria. During the reign of Ivan Alexander the town went thorough a cultural and economic boom, and occupied substantial territories beyond the stretch of the peninsula. It was around that period when most of the churches of Nessebar, remains of which are to be found in the present-day town, were built. In 1366 the knights of Amadeus of Savoy conquered the town, and then sold it to Byzantium for 15,000 golden ducats. In 1453, shortly after Constantinople fell under Turkish domination the town was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and went through a period of decay. The Liberation found Nessabar as a small fishermen's settlement, with well-developed viticulture on the hills above the town. Nowadays the city is known as one of the most famous touristic sites in Bulgaria, where annually more than one million tourists visit in all seasons. (end) mbq.asa