Discover Olteniţa: Gumelniţa Culture and Danube Nature

A new exhibition space at 6A Argeşului Street houses an exhibition dedicated exclusively to the Gumelniţa Culture; the space is located next to Olteniţa’s Central Park and old water tower.

Culture

The Muzeul Civilizației Gumelnița was founded in 1957 on the basis of a donation of 902 archaeological artifacts. The museum displays materials from the Chalcolithic Gumelniţa Culture, including tools made of stone and antler, pottery, figurines, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic vessels, harpoons, stone axes and sculptures.

Măgura Gumelniţa is a natural erosion remnant of the high Danube terrace and lies in the vicinity east of Olteniţa; the archaeological area covers 3 hectares. In 1924, Măgura Gumelniţa was rediscovered as a prehistoric settlement.

The water tower of Olteniţa was built of reinforced concrete and was the first structure of its kind in Olteniţa. In 1992, it was declared a historic monument and subsequently used for temporary art exhibitions.

The Biserica Catedrală Sfântul Nicolae is the oldest church in Olteniţa and is now an architectural monument; it was founded and built with the support of local residents between 1858 and 1861.

History

The grounds of the Biserica Eroilor include the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Heroes’ Cemetery and the Heroes’ Monument of 1916.

The Monumentul Eroilor from the First World War stands in the city center and was inaugurated on June 29, 1930. It is the work of sculptor Ion Iordanescu. The Monumentul Eroilor bears the names of 166 local soldiers who fell in combat during the First World War.

The Biserica Sfântul Nicolae din Olteniţa Veche was burned down by the Turks during the Russo-Turkish War of 1806 to 1812. It was rebuilt from the ground up and painted on May 28, 1846.

In the vicinity of Olteniţa are the Biserica Ortodoxă Sfântul Gheorghe, the Biserica Ortodoxă Sfântul Nicolae, the Biserica Adventistă Olteniţa and the Biserica Ortodoxă Sfântă Paraschiva.

Nature

The ROSPA0038 Dunăre–Olteniţa bird protection area covers the Danube between river kilometers 451 and 430, including the Căscioarele–Chirnogi–Olteniţa section and the islands of Albina and Georgescu. Approximately 28 protected bird species nest, feed or rest in this bird protection area.

The ROSCI0131 Olteniţa-Mostiștea-Chiciu Natura 2000 site is a site of community importance within Romania’s Natura 2000 network. It includes rivers with muddy banks, natural eutrophic lakes, oligotrophic to mesotrophic standing waters and lowland meadows.

Kosuy is a named island in the vicinity of Olteniţa, while Kalimok is a named island in the area around Olteniţa. Calomfirescu is a named hill in the vicinity, and Dealul Viilor is a named hill in the area around Olteniţa.

Discover more places at Belciugatele, Cuza Voda, Budesti, Ciocănești, Călăraşi and Frăsinetu de Jos.

The tourist port of Olteniţa provided a connection to Bucharest and to important points on Danube cruises.

To the higher-level travel overview: Călăraşi.