Plovdiv

The Regional Archaeological Museum is one of the oldest cultural institutions in Bulgaria, founded in 1882. Seven temporary collections are exposed in the museum: Prehistoric Art, The Panagyurishte Gold Treasure (Thracian Art), Ancient Greek Art, Roman Art, Medieval Art, Bulgarian Revival Art and a Numismatic Collection. The Antiquity Department of the Museum displays more than 5,000 artefacts illustrating the Thracian-Roman Arts. Diverse collection of over 60,000 coins dated VI c. B. C. - XX c. A. D. can be seen in the museum's Numismatic Department.

The exposition of Unification of Bulgaria - 1885 has been arranged in the building of the Province assembly (the Parliament) of Eastern Rumelia, designed by the architect Pierre Montani. The museum exposition was opened in 1985 on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Unification of Principality of Bulgaria and East Rumelia. It represents the period beginning with the Treaty of Berlin (1878), till the Serbo-Bulgarian War of 1885. Original items (personal belongings, award tokens, cold steel and firearms), photos and documents belonging to the participants in the Unification and the Serbo-Bulgarian War are displayed in five exhibition halls on area of 900 sq.m.

The Bulgarian National Revival Exposition is displayed in the House of Dimitar Georgiadi in the Old Town, which is a cultural monument of national importance. The house was built in 1848 on commission of the wealthy Bulgarian craftsman Georgi Kendindenoglou and represents the so-called Symmetric Revival house. The exposition traces back the history of Plovdiv in the period XV-XIX century on the area of ten halls and two salons of the house. The halls on the first floor display the ethnic diversity and economic development of Plovdiv during the Ottoman rule. On the second and third floor there is exposition representing the struggle for independent church and education.

The exposition of the Bulgarian book publishing took place in the house of the founder of the modern Bulgarian book publishing Hristo Gruev Danov in 1975. The house was erected in the mid-19th century and is a typical example of a symmetric house from the Revival period. The transition from the ceiling to walls is painted with alternating 12 medallions, four of them depicting Johann Gutenberg. The section of the exposition holds more than 5000 volumes of books, unique publications, geographic maps and school pictures and aids, items of everyday life, personal belongings and correspondence of Hristo Danov and his publisher’s house.

The exposition is housed in the building of the Young Girls’ College, designed and built in 1881, under the guidance of the architect Joseph Schnitter. The collection presents the most diverse artistic works from the early development of Bulgarian art, with over 200 original pieces of artwork. It is arranged chronologically on two floors. The works of our great Revival artists before and in the first years after the Liberation are displayed. At present the City Art Gallery of Plovdiv holds 7210 works, of which 2310 – paintings, 2549 – graphic works, 545 – sculptures and applied arts works, 574 – icons and 1234 – works of Mexican art.

The exhibition spaces are housed in a building with a typical urban architecture from the beginning of the 20th century. In the halls on both floors there are presented temporary exhibitions relating to the anniversaries of outstanding Bulgarian artists, as well as the historical events, as well as the cultural life of Bulgaria. Exhibitions by foreign artists, such as one’s by children, are also presented here.

On display are the best examples of icons wealth funds from the gallery's collection of Plovdiv Bishopric, representing the Eastern Christian art from the Plovdiv region and throughout South Bulgaria by the end of the fifteenth century to the late nineteenth century. Extremely valuable are eight icons from Nessebar - works of masters from the Post-Byzantine Cretan School. Seventeenth century is also presented with a number of icons from Rakitovo. The path of Bulgarian pilgrims who visited the holy places like Jerusalem, Sinai Monastery St. Catherine and the Holy Mountain Athon can be followed by the Eruslimii and the church plate presented. Thematic exhibitions are temporarily displayed, presenting various aspects of symbolic of the Christian art.

The Skobeleva house is a Revival house in Plovdiv, built in 1860 by Kostadin Kaftandzhiyata, a prominent Bulgarian from Stara Zagora. After the liberation the mother of gen. Mihail Skobelev, Olga Skobeleva (1823-1880), lived here until her death. She is known for her charity for helping the bulgarian victims of the Turkish rout in southern Bulgaria during the April Uprising and the Liberation War. At her place of death near Tsarigradsko shose Blvd. stands a memorial park. In 2003 in the Skobeleva house is arranged a constant exposition, devoted to the work of the famous Plovdiv artist Georgi Bozhilov - The Elephant (1935- 2001). On the northern side there could be seen a picturesque panel and a mosaic of another famous painter - Dimitar Kirov, which he dedicates to his friend. The turbot of the house from the side of Saborna Str. is decorated with memorial mural, a painting and a mosaic, designed by Dimitar Kirov, engraved in Georgi Bozhilov’s memory.

Trakart Research Center is a center for cultural tourism and researches on social interactions, providing international experience and opportunities for carrying out meetings, conferences and discussions. The expositions are arranged on 4 levels and trace the evolutional development of the former cultures - from palaeolithic fossils to contemporary artefacts. The expositions feature moveable artefacts gathered in two private collections - the one of Trakart-2000 Foundation, as well as the one of 'Videvi''. Trakart Research Center is part of a complex that also includes Cultural Center Trakart in the Archaeological Underpass, where the ruins of Ancient Residential Building 'Eirene' can be explored.

Union of Plovdiv aritst was established in 1990 with the purpose of promoting the works of its members. It is a successor of the Group of Plovdiv Artists and currently is integrating about 400 artists. Its members are occupied in the field of various visual arts: painting, graphics, sculptures, applied arts, alternative forms, currator projects. Union of Plovdiv Artists is the biggest artistic association not only in Plovdiv, bu generally outside the capital. The exhibition hall of 32, Gladton Str. is a venue of the Union's activities. For the last years there have taken place a number of important events, such as the Inernational workshop in painting, the International workshop in lithography, Symposiums in sculpture, International Art Collage Symposium and periodical exhiitions of artists from Southern Bulgaria.

The Museum of Aviation in the village of Krumovo was established in 1991. Since 2005 it has been a branch of the National Museum of Military History –Sofia. The indoor and outdoor expositions display collections of aircraft, aviation engines and equipment, photos, decorations, flags and others. There are two collections devoted to space flights, including the equipment of the first Bulgarian astronaut Georgi Ivanov, as well as photo material of taking off of Sojuz - TM-5 in 1988.