Pitesti, city in south central Romania, capital of Arges County. Pitesti is located on the Arges River about 110 km (about 70 mi) northwest of Bucharest, the country's captial. Pitesti has one of Romania's largest auto-assembly plants, which in 1968 began assembling the Dacia, the country's leading make of automobile. Pitesti also has one of Romania's largest petrochemical complexes. Other industries manufacture footwear and wood products. The city is an important rail junction. Attractions here include an art museum, a history museum, and a church built in the 1600s. Excavations in Pitesti, conducted in the 1970s during the construction of new housing, revealed tools and ornaments of the Neolithic period (between 7000 and 2000 BC) as well as ancient Dacian and Roman coins. Pitesti was first documented in 1388 as a trading center. Population (1997 estimate) 187,181.
