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County of Berat

Berat County
Qarku Berat
County
View of the city of Berat and Mount Tomorr
View of the city of Berat and Mount Tomorr
Official seal of Berat County
Seal
Location of Berat County within Albania.
Location of Berat County within Albania.
Coordinates: 40°38′N 20°5′E / 40.633°N 20.083°E / 40.633; 20.083Coordinates: 40°38′N 20°5′E / 40.633°N 20.083°E / 40.633; 20.083
Country  Albania
Municipalities 5
Villages 239
Established 2000
County Seat Berat
Government
 • Council Chairman Fatlli Adilaj
Area
 • Total 1,798 km2 (694 sq mi)
Elevation 455 m (1,493 ft)
Population (2016)
 • Total 139,815
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
NUTS Code AL031
Website Official Website

Berat County (Albanian: Qarku i Beratit) is one of the 12 counties of Albania. The population at the 2011 census was 141,944, in an area of 1798 km². Its capital is the city Berat.

Archaeologists have found artifacts including silver women's earrings and bronze belt-buckles in Bronze Age tumuli in Pëllumbas, one of the villages of Berat. These items are similar to other artifacts found in northern Albania (Kukës and Mat), Kosovo (Gjilane) and northwestern Greece (Pogoni).

Antipatrea (Greek: Αντιπάτρεια) was an ancient Greek polis in the region of Epirus, now Berat. It was founded by Cassander as Antipatreia, who named it after his father Antipater at 314 BC. An ancient Greek fortress and settlement are still visible today.Dassaretae tribe existed in the area, as early as the 6th century BC. It was captured by the Romans in the 2nd century BC. Livy (31.27.2) describes Antipatrea as a strongly fortified city in a narrow pass that the Romans sacked and burned. The city was composed of two fortifications on both banks of the Osum River.

Historical manuscripts such as the 6th century Codex Purpureus Beratinus, discovered in 1868, and the Codex Aureus, a 9th-century Greek language manuscript have revealed much about the history of the region and that Berat had a reputation for producing manuscripts; 76 of the 100 codes protected in the National Archives of Albania are from Berat, indicating its historical importance.


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Wikipedia

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