THE BISHOP’S BASILICA OF PHILIPPOPOLIS
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Located directly on top of an archaeological site that dates to Roman antiquity and extends through the Middle Ages, the Bishop’s Basilica of Philippopolis is a remarkable cultural heritage site that reveals a multi-layered history of continuity and change. The America for Bulgaria Foundation commissioned SKOLNICK to develop an interpretive strategy and lead the exhibit design for the Basilica’s Visitor Center. The experience invites a diversity of visitors from local citizens to international tourists and professional academics to school children to uncover the Basilica’s mysteries and connect to Bulgaria’s heritage.
Services
Architectural Design review
Interpretive Planning
Exhibition Design + Creative Direction
Graphic Design
Size
74,500 sf
Awards
2021 Bulgarian Building of the Year Award
Urban Development Category
UNESCO SITE
Colorful and well-preserved Roman mosaics cover approximately 2,000 square feet of the site in two layers and depict vivid imagery of flora and fauna, Christian iconography, intricate geometric patterns, and the Basilica’s signature peacock. Due to this exceptional mosaic heritage, the Basilica has been included by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on Bulgaria’s Tentative List of significant cultural and natural sites.
INSPIRING FUTURE STEWARDS
To make the site's complex story accessible, relevant, and exciting to children, the Discovery Zone gallery invites young visitors and their families to follow in the footsteps of a team of heritage experts and solve a series of mysteries about the site. A variety of activity stations, each inspired by the work of a singular expert probes a child-friendly question such as: What did people eat 1,000 years ago? What secrets do skeletons hold? What ancient messages are hidden in stone?
“This project, in conjunction with the status of Plovdiv being named a European Capital of Culture, will bring the world’s attention to this beautiful, historic, and culturally important city.
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RELATED PROJECTS
MUZEIKO - AMERICA FOR BULGARIA CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
BATSTO HISTORIC VILLAGE VISITOR CENTER
THE MURTOGH D. GUINNESS COLLECTION