Ohrid, Macedonia

The town of Ohrid ( known as Lichnidos ) has been in existence for about 2500 years. Since the ancient times, here in the area of the town of Ohrid civilization achievements have been changing, with its ups and downs. The successor of Lichnidos, the town of Ohrid, has survived all this and has been preserved with this name until today. The legend says that the founder of the ancient town in this area was the Phoenician Cadmo, who founded the dynasty together with the ancient Enchelians. If the existence of Lichnidos had become settled in the myth, then undoubtedly one can say that during the whole ancient period, this town had been a strong source of this civilization. The testimony of that time is: The Classical Theatre, which is considered to be built in the 4 th century B.C. and after more than two millenniums has been uncovered, reconstructed and used; The Fortress which was named after Samuel the very first Macedonian-Slav emperor from the 10 th century proves that the town of Ohrid even in the ancient time was a fortified one. Some Roman historians wrote about this as well. The Princes tombs from the 7 th to the 3 rd century B.C. from the Trebenishte region where the burial masks were discovered. They also tell us that a lot of people chosen by birth considered the town as theirs eternal place. Within this context the last discovery has been the golden mask, the bracelet and the golden ring, discovered by Mr. Pasko Kuzman in 2002 during the excavation done within the old part of the town; finally about a dozen early Christian basilicas, prove the thesis that the town of Ohrid was a spiritual and bishopric center even during the late ancient time. For the first time the Lichnidos bishopric was mentioned in the acts of the church synod in Serdica in 343, where among the other signatures the Dionysius de Macedonia de Lyhnido signature was found. The town was built on the main Roman road Via Egnatia that used to connect the western and the eastern Empire. Two mile-stone signs were found near the town of Ohrid to witness this. During the Roman Republic the old town was a free one whose citizens were libera gens. Lichnidos for the last time was mentioned during the Justinianius reign. Than the earthquake struck Lichnidos in 526 and ruined the town completely. Where Lichnidos used to stand the medieval town of Ohrid reached its glory. The first Slav University was founded by Clement and Naum and opened in the area called Plaosnik , where 3500 well chosen pupils were educated. The Ohrid literary school reached all Slav countries including Russia. Clement became the patron saint and protector of Ohrid. In the 10 th century the town of Ohrid became the capital of the very first Macedonian-Slav Empire ruled by Czar Samuel. With the Popes permission the church at that time, was given a status of a Patriarchate, so until 1767 the town of Ohrid was the seat of the Ohrid Archbishopric. The spiritual center used to have more than 300 churches where a lot of work was done, leaving many traces within the Byzantine art and the Renaissance in many domains like: the literature, the icon painting, the fresco painting, the architecture, the music etc. The fresco painting dominates in many churches being a priceless treasure. The fresco painting by Michael and Eutyches who used to work in the church of St. Mary Perivleptos ( Sveta Bogorodica Perivlepta ) in 1295 has been exceptionally wonderful. Undoubtedly they had been the leaders in the Renaissance in Macedonia. The testimony from that time is the richest and the most valuable collection of about 30 icons, which are kept in the town of Ohrid. The work, which had been done within the interval of 9 th centuries, followed the painting continuity from the 11 th to the 20 th century. The modern town of Ohrid, is nowadays a spiritual, cultural and tourist center in Macedonia. Reading about this town one feels like going through the whole history of this biblical country of Macedonia. In 1980 the town of Ohrid entered the UNESCO list of heritage due to its priceless riches.

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