Roman Greece

The National Archaeological Museum presents "Hadrian and Athens: Conversing with an Ideal World," an exhibition marking 1,900 years since the beginning of Hadrian's Principate in AD 117. The show aims at highlighting the Roman emperor's immense enduring legacy in Greece, but also how he contributed to forging many of the cornerstones of Western culture.

Emperor, philhellene, globe-trotter and superstar, a fan of the arts who nonetheless liked to live modestly, spending a lot of time with his soldiers, Hadrian (AD 76-138) was without doubt a restless spirit and a multifaceted personality who is seen as an instrumental factor in the osmosis between the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations.

A newly-discovered sign reads that the Ancient Theatre in Plovdiv was built in the 90's of the 1st century AD and not as previously thought between 116 and 117 AD, announced the Mayor of Plovdiv Ivan Totev and archaeologists Maya Martinova and Nikolay Sharankov, who read the sign.

This year’s excavations have recently started in the 2,500-year-old ancient city of Kyzikos in the northwestern province of Balıkesir’s Erdek district. The works will focus on finding the Hadrian relief, which is expected to shed light on history.