World Heritage Sites
Bulgaria has nine UNESCO-listed World Heritage Sites. The Thracian Kazanluk Tomb, located in the Valley of Roses near the town of Kazanluk, has perfectly preserved murals dating from the fourth century BC. The Sveshtari Tomb is situated in an archaeological reserve near the town of Razgrad; it was built 2300 years ago for a Thracian king. The Madara Horseman, an image carved into a rock of a horseman piercing a lion with his spear dates from the early Middle Ages (eighth century); it is located on the Madara Plateau in the Danube plain. The 13th-century Boyana Church is located at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the Sofia suburb of Boyana and is famous for its murals, which include replicas of icons from Constantinople.
The Ivanovo Rock Monasteries near the city of Ruse stretch for more than 5km (3.1 miles) and consist of cells, churches and chapels dug into the rocks by hermit monks who settled there between the 11th and 14th centuries. Old Nessebur is one of Europe’s oldest towns (for details, see The Black Sea Coast section). The 11th-century Rila Monastery is set on Rila Mountain, 121km (75 miles) from Sofia (for details, see Sofia & The West section). The Sreburna Lake nature reserve is located near the Danube river, 16km (10 miles) west of the town of Silistra. It stretches over an area of 600 hectares (1482 acres) and is listed for its unique fauna and wildlife, including the rare Dalmatian pelican, the cormorant and the ibis. Thanks to swift preventative measures, the park seems to have escaped unscathed from the recent Danube cyanide spill. The Pirin National Park (for details, see National Parks section) is a protected area of 27,400 hectares (67,678 acres).
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