Bulgarian Archaeologists Discover 2,400-Year-Old Golden Mask

SOFIA, Bulgaria: Archaeologists have unearthed a 2,400-year-old golden mask in an ancient Thracian tomb in southeastern Bulgaria, scholars announced Monday.

The mask was discovered over the weekend by a team of archaeologists excavating near the village of Topolchane, 290 kilometers (180 miles) east of the capital, Sofia. Its discovery, archaeologists said, indicates a Thracian king was buried in the tomb.

It was found together with a solid gold ring engraved with a Greek inscription and with the design of a bearded man in a timber-lined Thracian grave.

Team leader professor Georgi Kitov said that they also found a silver rhyton, silver and bronze vessels, pottery and funerary gifts.

"These finds confirm the assumption that they are part of the lavish burial of a Thracian king," said professor Margarita Tacheva, who was also on the dig.

"The artifacts belonged to a Thracian ruler from the end of the 4th century B.C. who was buried here," Kitov added.

According to Kitov, the Thracian civilization was at least equal in terms of development to the ancient Greek one.

The Thracians lived in what is now Bulgaria and parts of modern Greece, Romania, Macedonia, and Turkey between 4,000 B.C. and the 8th century A.D., when they were assimilated by the invading Slavs.

In 2004, another 2,400-year-old golden mask was unearthed from a Thracian tomb in the same area.

Dozens of Thracian mounds are spread throughout the central Bulgarian region, which archaeologists have dubbed "the Bulgarian valley of kings" in reference to the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, Egypt, home to the tombs of Egyptian Pharaohs.

The 2400 year old Golden Mask of Thracian king found by Georgi Kitov

BULGARIA’S ancient Thracian heritage was thrust into the spotlight in 2004 with a number of key archaeological discoveries in the so-called Valley of the Thracian Kings. A team of Bulgarian archaeologists, led by Professor Georgi Kitov, discovered a 2400-year old golden mask in the tomb of an ancient Thracian king on August 19. The mask bears the image of a human face and is made of 500 grams of solid gold. The discovery was made near the town of Shipka, in the heart of the Stara Planina Mountain. Dozens of Thracian mounds are spread throughout this region, which archaeologists have called ‘the Bulgarian valley of the kings,’ a reference to the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, which is home to the tombs of Egyptian Pharaohs.

“The unique mask looks even better than the famous image of King Agamemnon, the Greek anti-hero described by Homer in the Iliad,” Kitov said after making the discovery. “This is the first Thracian mask of solid gold ever found,” he said. Previously, archaeologists had only found masks covered with golden foil.

Initially, Kitov suggested that the mask could belong to King Seuthes III, the Thracian king who in the fifth century BCE ruled the territory that now is in today’s Bulgaria. Later however, he and his team changed their view, and said the mask is most probably of King Teres I, father of the famous Thracian ruler Sitalkes, who expanded the Thracian kingdom into a huge empire, uniting for the first time all Thrace south of the river Danube.

Thirty-five Thracian tombs have so far been discovered in Bulgaria and all of them have pre-classical vaults (false vaults) made during the period fifth to the third centuries BCE.

The golden treasures are attracting international attention and there is a push to make the Thracian heritage Bulgaria’s trademark abroad in a bid to boost tourism in the country. Even the local people cannot believe that Bulgaria has managed to unearth kilos of pure gold worth millions.

Top state officials for the first time decided to contribute to the golden treasure fever. In an unprecedented move on October 7, the Government decided to provide money towards the completion of excavations near the town of Shipka, where the unique treasures of the ancient Thracians were uncovered.

The Government’s decision however, was prompted by Kitov’s expedition uncovering another unique gold and silver treasure beneath Golyamata Kosmatka tomb near Shipka.

The treasure was discovered in the largest tomb on Bulgarian territory. It consists of 73 items, including a gold wreath and horse trappings, a visor, gold ornaments of a sword, and gold horse harness. The architecture of the tomb was unique, Kitov said.

The burial probably dates to the late 5th or the early 4th centuries BCE. An exquisitely crafted bronze head of a Thracian ruler was found in a five-metre deep pit in front of Golyamata Kosmatka burial mound on September 22, following the unearthing of a gold death mask in August.

Today, Bulgaria is seen as the geographical cradle of Thracian civilisation, which extended from the Caucasus to South-Western Europe from the fourth millennium BCE to the third century CE.

Since 2000, Bulgarian archaeologists have unearthed the largest Thracian temple, dating from the 5th and 4th centuries BCE, and the first sanctuary-palace of a Thracian king identified so far, both in Southern Bulgaria. But much of the Thracian civilisation remains a mystery despite major discoveries in recent years. About 90 per cent of the 15 000 Thracian burial tombs in Bulgaria have been ravaged and rendered practically useless for archaeologists. President Georgi Purvanov suggested that the Thracian tomb near Shipka be included in the Balkan Cultural Corridors. He promised that in 2005 he would bring to the site foreign heads of state visiting Bulgaria.

Public emotion went as far as the idea of using the new gold treasures to promote Bulgaria under the logo “The Valley of the Thracian Kings”. But can ancient gold change Bulgaria’s image and attract foreign tourists and investment? Historians themselves are not really fond of the idea.

They believe that the real treasures are not the gold objects, but the tombs discovered in the area. About a dozen of these tombs are really interesting and can attract foreign visitors if an adequate infrastructure is developed.

Putting the ancient gold to work is not a new idea for Bulgaria. Three other earlier, and much bigger treasures, are touring Europe, America and Japan under the general title “The Thracian Gold”.

These exhibitions started long back in communist times. The result so far is that they can hardly ever be seen in the country. However, public relations experts admit it is difficult to judge to what extent, if any, these exhibitions have increased interest in Bulgaria abroad.

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