Античност

In the middle of the 1st century this brave Thracian people of spiritual wealth, with their impulse for freedom, independence and power was subjugated for centuries by the strong and well organised Roman empire. At that time Rome was already ruling over Greece, Macedonia, and at the end of the 1st century – also Thracia.
     Assessing the great economic and strategic importance of the Balkan Peninsula, the battles of the empire for its conquest ended in 46 AD under the Roman Emperor Augustus. With their permanent settling the Romans, and later on the Byzantines, over more than six centuries, had a strong influence on the material and spiritual culture of the Thracian ethnicity. The conquest of the Thracians was a blow to their original culture and language. Rome created new towns and strongholds and spread the Roman civilization that was new to the Balkans. The peninsula was divided into 5 provinces, and Vratsa fell within the boundaries of the province Thracia.
     The construction of Roman fortifications developed. The Roman stronghold named Augusta near the village of Harlets at the Danube river is one such facility. The new technique of conducting military operations brought also new armament. In contrast to the long Thracian swords, there appeared short and wide Roman swords. The Roman conqueror brought here the new labour tools for production.
Worth noting is the bronze Roman military diploma which belonged to the veteran of the Praetorian Guards, the Thracian Marcus Aurelius the Great from Serdika, found in the lands of the village of Suhache. It represents two bronze plates coupled by a wire, which is a documented testimony of the Thracian military service in the Roman army during the time of Emperor Maximinus (235-238).
     Volumetric sculpture was also very common in the late antiquity. The exhibits in the glass cases bespeak of the processing of bronze, glass and bone.
Over the years, the Vratsa region has radically changed its appearance. The rich copper mines attracted the attention of the Romans. A Thracian-Roman mining settlement sprang in the area of Zgorigrad and Vratsata. The copper deposits of the Plakalnitsa mine were used. There was a mint for minting coins, although it existed only for a short while.
In the middle of the 3rd century, the economic and cultural flourishing was interrupted by the invasions of the barbarian tribes, which brought about great ethnic changes in the Danube provinces. Dacians, bastrani, alani and other tribes moved to these lands.
     The attacks of the barbarian tribes undermined the foundations of the Roman and later the Byzantine Empire. A powerful Slavic wave flooded the entire Balkan Peninsula and reached as far as Asia Minor. The end of slave oppression came in the 6th century.