Valley of the Thracian Rulers

The Valley of the Thracian Rulers (Bulgarian: Долина на тракийските владетели, romanized: Dolina na trakiĭskite vladeteli) is a name which was made popular by the archaeologist Georgi Kitov and describes the extremely high concentration and variety of monuments of the Thracian culture in the Kazanlak Valley in Bulgaria.

The 60s also marked the research of Thracian tombs from the Roman era in the regions of the villages of Tulovo and Dabovo, made by Prof. L. Getov.

As a result of their activity over 200 mounds, which represent funeral practices of the Thracians during the Iron and Roman Eras in the Kazanlak Valley, were studied.

The wall is 2 meter thick with a fundament of crushed stones, while the superstructure was made of adobe leveled by wooden beams.

The two gates were located to the North-West and South-West and represented a starting point of the main streets which crossed each other under right angle at the square (the “Agora” Greek άγορά).

It had a wide antechamber, probably with a colonnade, behind which there was a big hall of rendering, colored in the so-called “structural style”, and residence sectors.

The monument in Golyama Kosmatka[2] mound was found in the autumn of 2004 during regular archaeological excavations, performed by TEMP-expedition led by Georgi Kitov.

The inventory is exceptionally rich, presenting personal and grave goods made of gold, silver, bronze, alabaster, glass, clay, leather.

The scheme, construction, style and technique of the wall paintings, as well as the objects found nearby date the Kazanlak Tomb back to the first half of 3rd century BC.

The common concept between the architecture and the wall paintings, the painters’ unique style and workmanship have turned the Kazanlak Tomb into one of the masterpieces of Thracian art and the antique cultural heritage.

On the triangular section above the funeral chamber's entrance one can see images of arms objects – a quiver with a bow and arrows which has a freely falling mantle from its upper end.

The first period dates back to the middle of the 4th century BC when a monolithic chamber with a funeral bed and roof paintings was mounted over a stereobat of huge stone plates.

The central circle was covered with golden foil, while the rest of the sections were painted with scenes of human and animal images as well as plant and geometrical ornaments.

Its raid took place in the 4th century AD and it was probably at that time when most of the wall paintings were destroyed with the South-Western chamber remaining the only one to be intact.

Individual archaeological materials, which were found there – golden, bronze and iron objects – date the funeral back to the middle or the second half of the 4th century BC.

A non-raided Thracian tomb was found in the mound on 24 August 1995 during regular archaeological excavations under Senior Research Assistant Georgi Kitov, PhD.

The walls and the roof were built from well processed white, black, red and green limestone and granite blocks.

The plan and the space formation are proofs of a combination of various construction traditions while the archaeological materials allow the chamber funeral to be dated back to the first half of the 2nd century BC.

The tomb was found on 27 September 1995 during regular archaeological excavations under Senior Research Assistant Georgi Kitov, Ph.

The tomb was discovered on 28 July 1996 during regular archaeological excavations led by Senior Research Associate Georgi Kitov, Ph.

The Dromos (Greek Δρόμος) was built from different-sized crushed and processed stones based on mud soldering and contacts with the façade by a joint.

They have a common spatial solution and uniform construction - large, well-processed blocks, soldered with lead inundated iron clamps.

The walls are covered with thick lime plaster - an imitation of stone construction by means of deep horizontal and vertical grooves.

The tomb was discovered on 18.08.1996 during regular archaeological excavations led by Senior Research Associate Georgi Kitov, PhD.

The façade is facing to the South-East, its lateral edges are hidden by additional clinging of the corridor's sides, which shows two construction periods.

Bones from six animals were found during the archaeological excavations on the premise's floor – four horses and two dogs which are believed to have been sacrificed during the funeral ceremony.

A masonry grave was discovered in the mound on 19 August 2004, in which a funeral of a representative of the Thracian aristocracy from the second half of the 5th century BC had taken place.

Some of the skeleton bones were found in the tomb in anatomical order, but others were missing, which makes researchers assume that the buried person had been a follower of Orpheus.

As burial gifts one had placed a silver cup, a bronze hydria, two, probably made in Athens, dishes with red figures, two clay amphorae.

It was made of a solid 673-g gold plate with individual features - thick hair, beard and mustache, the eyes half-closed.