Within the framework of project BG16RFPR002-1.014-0011 "Sustainable Development of the Center for Excellence "Heritage BG," in which Veliko Tarnovo University "St. St. Cyril and Methodius" is a major partner, Assoc. Prof. Gergana Georgieva from the Faculty of History at VTU, in partnership with Dr. Irina Dimitrova from the Specialized Museum of Woodcarving and Iconography in Tryavna, conducted research on some of the water facilities—watermills, fulling mills, and dolap mills – in the area of Tryavna during the 19th century.
The study was carried out within the framework of Work Package 1, Project 1 "The History of Places / Places of History. Cultural and Historical Heritage in the Yantra River Basin – Roads, Settlements, Livelihoods." In it, water facilities are examined as a key factor for the economic development of Renaissance Tryavna, with an emphasis on the role of water energy for the development of craft and proto-industrial production in the region. Based on data from unpublished Ottoman registers from 1845 and 1869, the number, territorial distribution, and profitability of watermills and fulling mills are traced, as well as the social profile of their owners.
The analysis reveals the entrepreneurial thinking of local communities and highlights the importance of water as a sustainable resource and indicator of economic dynamics. The results of the study were presented in the form of a report at the Third National Round Table "The Unknown Balkans" on the topic "First There Was Water," organized by the Institute of Balkan Studies with the Center for Thracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
Assoc. Prof. Gergana Georgieva, R3 researcher
Faculty of History, Veliko Tarnovo University
