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August 25, 2007, 7:32 PM BG, 4:32 PM GMT

History and Religion

Published on August 07, 2007 at 6:59 AM BG
Updated on August 10, 2007 at 4:12 PM BG

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National Museum of History displays Archeological Summer 2007 finds

Finds from three archeological expeditions were on display at the National Museum of History in Sofia. The earliest one comprises several gold spirals dated 5 thousand years back. A few years ago a tractor-driver working in a field near the village of Dabene, in the Karlovo valley, Southern Bulgaria, found gold beads that he later used to make a necklace for his wife. Luckily however archeologists once saw the ancient jewel on her neck, the local museum bought it and started digs. In the summer of 2005 a team lead by Martin Hristov found 15,000 tiny gold objects there dated to 3^rd millennium BC. The Dabene Treasure became a world sensation. Now following three years of research the number of objects found by his team is 25,000.

“In Dabene Hristov dug a field of small mounds that we named ‘sacred’”, National Museum of History Director Bojidar Dimitrov explains. “Under the mounds there are small holes where ancient people left pots, jars and female jewels. They offered them as sacrifice to the great Mother Goddess. Women probably left the gifts praying for a good husband, more children or a rich harvest. Across Europe finds from that era include only small parts of gold jewels – like the five tiny spirals presumably used to adorn ancient hairstyles. In contrast the finds in Dabene over the recent years are much more generous – intact necklaces and other objects, already 25,000. Gold objects have very sophisticated design suggesting that the ancient locals used subtle technologies, quite incompatible with our knowledge of their time. About many of the details jewelers argue that they would be able to make them if only they use magnifying glass. Some of the details are sized half a millimeter. Obviously a highly developed civilization center thrived in the Karlovo valley.”

The second earliest find was dug out during the expedition lead by Dr. Bony Petrunova from the Bulgarian Academy of Science Archeological Institute, in the early Byzantine stronghold of St. Petka in the vicinity of the town of Peshtera, Southern Bulgaria. The find includes gold coins from the reigns of Byzantine emperors Justinian the Great and Justin.

”They intended to restore the Roman Empire and sent their troops to Italy and Africa. As to the Balkans they planned to defend the region from the invasion of Avars, Slavs and Bulgarians,” Bojidar Dimitrov goes on to say. “The Byzantines had special tactics – building fortresses in less accessible places such as hills and plateaus. However those tactics failed. Recurrent attacks virtually ate up the defense system in 6 and 7 c. Working in the region Bony Petrunova dug out layers from 6 c. when the stronghold was most probably seized after a major raid. The coins she found are dated to the end-6 c. and look freshly cut. It seems that the soldiers who defended the fortress from Avars raids had just been paid their salaries.”

Adornments and household items made of bronze, glass and iron have been found in another stronghold – Rodestitsa near Ivailovgrad, Southern Bulgaria. The team leader of digs there is Ivailo Kanev from the National Museum of History. According to Bojidar Dimitrov, that region was annexed to medieval Bulgaria in 9 c., under Khan Krum:

“In 812 the Bulgarians already lived in the stronghold. It displays columns of either a Roman temple or a public building. However funerals of two Bulgarian women have been dug out too dated to the end-9 and early 10 c. Inscriptions suggest that the Bulgarian-Byzantine border was going right through that place. It is where now the Bulgarian-Greek border goes. The two Bulgarians had the total of 22 bracelets made of bronze and glass. Glass was a very expensive material in that era. Other finds include a sophisticated necklace with plenty of beads, tools and other objects. We attach great importance to such finds, though they are not gold or silver, because they bring along precious information – about the size of Bulgaria in that time, about the Bulgarian-Byzantine border, about the way of life of the border region population and how Bulgarians migrated within the vast medieval state in the early 9 c.,” concludes Bojidar Dimitrov, Director of the National Museum of History in Sofia.

Written by Veneta Pavlova

Translated by Daniela Konstantinova

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