DANUBE DELTA
nature, history, civilization

Cultural itinerary

History of Tulcea

Dating from the VII-th century B.C., the town of Tulcea is mentioned for the first time by Diodor of Sicily (III-d century B.C.) under the name of Aegyssus ; this name comes from his founder the Get Carpyus Aegyssus mentioned himself by Ovidus in 2 episodes of "Ex Ponto". During the I-II-nd century A.C., Aegyssus served as a base for the Roman fleet, defending the Roman boarders.

The history of Tulcea county is determined by its geographical position and strategic one-Danube being in fact the gate to the whole world and a bridge to other lands-All that granted a special dynamism to the istro-pontic region and to the Danube mouth area. The archaeological sources, as well as the epigraphic and cartographic ones, mention that the Tulcea area was a stable community habitat which evolved from prehistory until today.

This settlement played an important role before the roman presence here being a citadel of the Geto-dacian world as Ovidiu mentioned in his works.

After the fights from 12-15 B.C., the Romans conquered the town. They rebuilt it after their plans, their technique and architectural vision, reorganizing it. The existing ruined walls and defending towers serve as a testimony of this. Also an inscription found at the Tulcea Museum of Archaeology mwntions the name Aegyssus for the town. The Aegyssus fortified town is mentioned also by other documents until the X-nth century: Notitia Episcopatum in political geography "De Thematicus".

Tulcea name appears in documents later.