The city also produces a large quantity of Macedonian Bianco Sivec pure. Tobacco is one of Prilep's traditional cash crops and prospers in the Macedonian climate. Many of the world's largest cigarette makers, such as , and use Prilep's tobacco in their cigarettes after it is processed in local factories such as. A Tobacco Institute is established in the city in order to produce new types of tobacco and it was the first example of applying genetics to agriculture in the. Styberra, though razed by the in 268, remained partly inhabited. The town was first mentioned as Prilap in 1014, as the place where Bulgarian allegedly had a heart attack upon seeing thousands of his soldiers had been blinded by the Byzantines after the. Prilep was acquired in 1334 by King and after 1365 the town belonged to King , co-ruler of Dušan's son, Tzar. After the death of Vukašin in 1371, Prilep was ruled by his son. In 1395 it was incorporated into the , of which it remained a part of until 1913, when it entered into the. Prilep was a major center of the in Western in the 19th century. One of the largest annual in Macedonia was held in Prilep in the middle of the 19th century. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Prilep was part of the of the Ottoman Empire. It was occupied by Bulgaria between 17 November 1915 and 25 September 1918 during. In 1918 Prilep became part of the , and from 1929 to 1941 it was part of the of the. On 8 April 1941, just two days after the start of the , Prilep was occupied by the , and on 26 April 1941 by the. Together with most of , Prilep was annexed by the from 1941 to 1944. On 9 September 1944 Prilep was taken for a short time by the , but the German Army soon seized control of the town again. Prilep was definitively taken by communist partisans on 3 November 1944. From 1944 to 1991 the town belonged to the , as part of its constituent. Since 1991 the town has been part of the Republic of Macedonia. The colony was founded in 1957 by the archaeologist Prof. Boško Babić, but organized by the initiative of Prof. Babić and the academic painter Prof. Risto Lozanovski, making it perhaps one of the oldest colonies in southeastern Europe and the oldest one on the Balkans, for sure. It hosts painters and sculptors working in marble, metal and wood every year and, periodically, it hosts workshops and symposia for vitrage glass design , mosaics, photography, graphics and clay, from countries around the world. The collection of sculptures carved in wood was acknowledged as a cultural heritage by the most relevant criticizers and opinion makers. There are international popular music acts performing nightly on the main stage in the square as well as at the various clubs around town. Pivofest features a growing number of foreign and domestic beers as well as an opportunity for Prilep to showcase its famous barbecue considered the best in Macedonia. Despite the new official name, the festival is still known as Prochka by the locals and is called Prochka in the official tourist guide. The highlight of the festival is the mask parade which runs through the centre of the town and hosts participants from multiple European countries. There is a prize given for the best costume and many of the costumes are very elaborate. There are also concerts, parties, and lots of traditional food during the festival which is held in February. The dialect of Prilep, in the heart of the plain, forms the basis for the standard Macedonian language spoken today. When the was created in Yugoslavia in 1944 and the language nationally recognised the following year, Prilep, together with , was chosen as the centre for the language because of their central position on the map. The reconstruction of the square began in 2005 and it was completed in 2006. The reconstruction cost 700. During the reconstruction the monument of Alexander the Great was erected, among the other things. Several ancient sites grace Prilep including one at , St. Uspenie church in Bogorodica, St. Preobrazenie church and the Tomb of the Unconquered, and a memorial in honour of the victims of fascism located in Prilep's central park. A large Roman necropolis is known there and parts of numerous walls have been found; the settlement was probably the ancient Ceramiae mentioned in the. Roman remains can also be found near the Varosh monastery, built on the steep slopes of the hill, which was later inhabited by a medieval community. A large number of early Roman funeral monuments, some with sculpted reliefs of the deceased or of the Thracian Rider and other inscribed monuments of an official nature, are in the courtyard of the church below the southern slope of Varosh. Some of the larger of those monuments were built into the walls of the church. The most important ancient monument is the old city of Styberra situated on Bedem hill near Čepigovo, in the central region of Pelagonia. As early as the time of the Roman—Macedonian wars, this city was known as a base from which the Macedonian king set out to conquer the Penestian cities. An important site in the area is , 6 km 4 mi west of Styberra, where the town of was probably located. It was a stronghold of the Macedonian kings after it was rebuilt in the early Roman period and was at the Pelagonian entrance to a pass leading to. Part of the city wall, a gate, and a few buildings of the Roman period were uncovered here in excavations. All recent finds from these sites are in the Museum of the City of Prilep. The , built in the 12th century in the mountains about 10 km 6 mi north of Prilep under Zlatovrv peak, at the edge of a small upland plain 1100 meters. Prilep has frescoes from the 14th and 15th centuries and is probably the site of the early Roman town of Kolobaise. The name of the early town is recorded on a long inscription on stone which deals with a local cult of Ephesian Artemis. The inscription was reused as a base for a cross on top of one of the church domes. Other inscriptions at Treskavec include several 1st century Roman dedications to. The old fortress was used by the Romans, and later the Byzantines. After all, even Tsar Samuil came here after the defeat at in 1014. During the Middle Ages, after 1371, Prince Marko rebuilt the citadel extensively, making it an important military stronghold. Retrieved 15 September 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2017. The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest. Archived from on 22 February 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
