Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi: the heir to the ancient Tiras.

So here we have the Ukrainian hryvna, nominal - 5. The year of issue of this coin is 2000, mint: National Bank of Ukraine, Kiev. Total circulation – 50,000. The coin is dedicated to the 2500th anniversary of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi city.

Tyras, was an ancient Greek city on the northern coast of the Black Sea. It was founded by colonists from Miletus, probably about 600 BC. The city was situated some 10 km from the mouth of the Tyras River, which is now called the Dniester. The surrounding native tribe was called the Tyragetae. The ruins of Tyras are now located in the modern city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine.

Indeed, the autonomous minting of coins in the city, called by the Romans Alba Julia, lasted from the time of the emperor Domitian (81 AD) up to the end of the reign of the emperor Alexander Severus (235 AD) with few breaks. The coins of Tyras of this period were of copper with the portraits of the members of the Imperial house for the province of the Roman Empire.

Soon after the time of Alexander Severus, it was partially destroyed by the Goths, but archaeological findings show that Romans remained there until the end of the 4th century under Theodosius I. Later the Byzantines renamed the city, destroyed by barbarian invasions, with the new name Maurokastron "black fort".

Its government was in the hands of five archons, a senate, a popular assembly and a registrar. The images on its coins suggest a trade in wheat, wine and fish. Remains of the city are scanty, as its site has been covered by the great medieval fortress called by the Genoese Maurocastro and later Akkerman.