Seuthopolis

Seuthopolis was the capital of the Odrysian Kingdom, founded by Thracian king Seuthes III around 325-315 BC. The city featured Greek-style Hippodamian urban planning with pentagon-shaped walls spanning 890 meters, a two-story royal palace, and housed approximately 50 aristocratic families. Over 2,000 coins were recovered, including 800 of Seuthes III, making him the first Thracian ruler to mint his own coinage. Discovered in 1948 during dam construction, the site was fully excavated by 1953 but then submerged under 20 meters of water in the Koprinka Reservoir. A 2005 proposal to build a protective circular dike remains under consideration.