ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS IN NOVAE (Pavlina Vladkova – pavlina_v@yahoo.com) Tower No. 3 was explored to the northwest of the building extra muros. The tower is situated at 75 m from tower No. 2 and probably, there were two more towers in between. Tower No. 3 measures 4.20 m by 7.60 m. Its walls are 1 m wide and are preserved up to 4.20 m in height. They were built of ashlars, while the courses were leveled with stone slabs. A pool, situated in the center of the peristyle yard of the building extra muros, was discovered. The floor of the pool was constructed of rectangular bricks in opus spicatum. There were three steps in the southeastern corner of the pool. There was a drain for effluvients and a lead water conduit, 10 cm in diameter, for filling the pool, both located on the western wall. The pool had two construction periods. During the second period, after the floor was raised, the lead water conduit was cut and closed with plaster. Three construction periods were documented in Room D. Room No. 1 of the first construction period was explored. It was part of the adjoining rooms arranged in a line. During the second construction period, two reconstructions of the hypocausts were carried out. The small columns of the hypocaust were constructed of bricks, which measure 19 cm by 19 cm by 8 – 9 cm and were bonded with mortar. The columns stepped over a floor of trampled clay. An inner wall, which divided the room and was built of one row of bricks, measuring 19 cm by 19 cm by 8 – 9 cm, was explored. A praefurnium, 1.90 m by 1.20 m in size, was discovered. A stone altar with an inscription that reads MINERVAE was found. The altar is 1.20 m high and dates to the end of the 2nd – first half of the 3rd century AD. During the third construction period, the room had a floor of mortar and color mortar plasters on the walls, which were built of mud bricks over a stone socle.