This symbol of Bulgarian history should not be missed when visiting the fort.
The Assen Inscription
The Assen Inscription of Tsar Ivan Asen II is an ancient Bulgarian epigraphic monument carved in 1899 on the southwestern marble slope of the Assen Fortress near Stanimaka as a copy of an inscription from 1231. It is arranged in eight lines. The original inscription was first copied and published by the French traveler Paul Lucas, who visited Stanimaka in 1706. In 1864, it appeared in the pages of the newspaper "Gaida" and was later published in the newspaper "Macedonia." In 1881, it was also published in the Plovdiv newspaper "Maritsa." The inscription was erased in 1883 by order of the Greek mayor of Stanimash, Atanas Epitropou, in order to destroy traces of the culture of the Second Bulgarian State in the area. The inscription was re-carved on the same rock in 1899 under the direction of Vasil Zlatarski, based on his original transcriptions. It reads:
IN THE SUMMER OF 6739/1231/
FOURTH ACCUSATION
RAISED BY GOD
/KING/ ASENS OF BULGARIANS, GREEKS, AND OTHER COUNTRIES
ALEXI SEVASTA
AND BUILT THIS CITY