Three-Day 'Roman Market of Sexaginta Prista' Festival Brings Ancient Rome to Life in Rousse

The festival "Roman Market of Sexaginta Prista" was organized over three days - May 9-11, 2025, at three different locations in Rousse, Bulgaria. On the first day, the emphasis was placed on the educational and research moment, and on the remaining days - on the attractions. On May 9, workshops for working with adolescents opened - on the topics Masks of the Gods, Ancient Board Games, Construction of Ancient Arches, Dressing in History, followed by the presentation of archaeologist Deyan Dragoev, who presented the last Late Roman site studied in the region - Kale Shirokovo. The next day, the Roman market opened, with tents of local producers, craftsmen and artisans. We prepared fascinating stories, beautiful costumes, funny moments, duels, theater, games and reenactments to welcome visitors. A light but prolonged rain repelled visitors. After lunch, the weather cleared up. A "tax agent" toured the market and in rhymes presented the goods and skills of the exhibitors who must pay tax to the treasury. The festival guests had a choice of handmade jewelry, cards, magnets and souvenirs made of natural materials, as well as dairy and bee products, wines and drinks. For the ladies, hairstyles from Roman times were provided, and others could transform into the images of Roman legionaries with adapted sets - mail, helmets and swords. The traditional tasting of fish soup presented millennial practices related to food and nutrition. More than 25 student volunteers were dressed in costumes from antiquity, creating an atmosphere for the event. There were processions around the city - which unite the three venues of the festival, during which random passers-by stopped for photos with the passing "Romans". The next day was sunny and the visitors immersed themselves in the atmosphere of the performances and the market. Traditionally, the First Italian Legion demonstrated the combat techniques with which Roman legionaries defended conquered territories, trained their youth in military art or captured slaves. They were joined by reenactors from Alba Iulia, with whom they carried out commands and made a "turtle". Partners from Sremska Mitrovica also joined the demonstrations.

The Roman market was held at the Roman fortress "Sexaginta Prista" on the banks of the Danube, in the museum's Lapidarium and the nearby "Danube" square.

The created Facebook Event reached 16,000 people in the Ruse region and southern Romania - file - auditoria SPmay25

After the festival, on May 11, the museum's Facebook page registered a Content View of 248,000 people, with 77,000 people reaching the festival theme. This number of informed people was collected with a series of posts – for example, a post about guest legionaries from Alba Iulia collected 17,000 content views, and another post about the Roman market – 18,000. File - 11may2025