Roses and Thracian treasures in Kazanluk

Date: 09-12-2006

There have been numerous traces of human existence in those lands, but the most impressive and enduring among them date back to the times of the Thracian civilization. Evidence of this is the famous Thracian tomb in Kazanluk from the 4th-3rd c. BC., which was in fact the first Bulgarian site included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Thracian tomb in Kazanluk was discovered accidentally in 1944. It owes its world fame to the murals in the corridor and the vault chamber, as they rank among the best-preserved examples of early Hellenistic painting. A special facility housing an air-conditioning device that maintains fixed air temperature and humidity was built next to the tomb. A unique find was the female body laid there, which is very untypical of Thracian rituals and beliefs.

Specialists maintain that the tomb belongs to the third stage of the development of Thracian architecture. The first one was marked by the use of stone plates and dates prior to the 8th c. BC. Exemplary of this period is the megalith near Buzovgrad, a village on the outskirts of Kazanluk. During the second period the ancient Thracian builders used hewn stone blocks. It lasted until the end of the 4th c. BC. From then on the Thracians experienced the Hellenistic influence and began using bricks in their constructions two centuries ahead of Rome.