Ptuj has the status of a museum town and his population is 11,300. The oldest Slovene town, it obtained town rights in distant 977. Its monuments testify at every step the far past, traces from Roman Poetovio and the periods which followed. The might 9th century castle above the river was once destroyed by the forerunners of the Hungarians, but is today well renovated. It houses a museum with major collections of musical instruments, tapestry, weapons and other historical treasures. One of the most beautiful monuments is in the town centre: Orpheus’ monument, a Roman tombstone from the 2nd century AD. It was used as a penitents’ stone and, since 1830, has been the centre of Ptuj’s lapidary.
