Bulgarian e-Journal of Archaeology | Българско е-Списание за Археология
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Клинове с производствени печати на Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino от корабокрушението в залива Св. Никола, Черноморец, България: Spikes with production stamps of Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino from the Saint Nicholas Bay shipwreck, Chernomorets, Bulgaria
No full textWith this text I am publishing three identical brass spikes with production stamps, from the hull of the Saint Nicholas Bay Shipwreck (SNBS). While identical, the stamps were illegible to the naked eye. By deciphering one of them, we were able to establish that they relay the name of the largest Austro-Hungarian private shipyard of the ‘Long nineteenth century,’ the Technical Establishment of Trieste (Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino, 1857–1929). The production stamps provided the latest terminus post quem for the formation of the archaeological site in Saint Nicholas Bay and a tangible link between the historic ship, as presented in the archaeological record, and the Austro-Hungarian coast of the Adriatic Sea. This paper summarises the archaeology of the SNBS, discusses the fastening system of its wooden hull, analyses the three artefacts and assesses their significance for the interpretation of the underwater archaeological site
Poster exhibition “The panoply of the Thracian warriors” in Tsaribrod/Dimitrovgrad, Serbia
Full text linkBronze Age and Early Iron Age sickles in the evolution of the prehistoric аgricultural toolkit from Bulgaria
Full text linkUse-wear studies have identified a long-lasting system of agricultural practices (harvesting) from the very beginning of the Early Neolithic in Bulgaria. For almost two millennia during the Neolithic and Chalcolithic (6th and 5th millennia BC), the archaeological evidence suggests the use of sickle elements based on blade segments and tools on blades inserted obliquely in a curved handle – the well-known Karanovo type of sickle.
Post-Chalcolithic times are marked by a shift in the harvesting toolkit. This paper focuses on agricultural toolkits from three recently discovered and excavated sites in north Bulgaria: Oreshets near Belogradchik, Rasovo near Montana, and Chavdartsi in Lovech district. The sites are multilayered, the flint assemblages presented here belong to the LBA (Oreshets and Chavdartsi) and LBA/EIA (Rasovo). No structures or features directly associated with the flint artefacts were identified, but the assemblages exhibit most (if not all) of the characteristics of the BA and post-BA agricultural repertoire. This repertoire includes varieties of denticulates (mainly blades) which from the beginning of the BA became diagnostic finds and marked a momentous shift from the preceding style of sickle. During the BA sickle inserts and blades were increasingly shaped through truncation and backing, both of which aided the accommodation of the implements in grooved handles and handheld tool manipulation. As an innovation, the emergence of which is difficult to fix chronologically within the BA, large, curved blades (ca 15 cm) appear in the agricultural toolkit during the LBA, with reminiscent use in the EIA as well
International conference “Textiles and war in Europe and the Mediterranean from Prehistory to Late Antiquity”, 17–19 May 2023, Bucharest, Romania
Full text linkКъснонеолитни кухи антропоморфни фигури от долината на Струма: Late Neolithic hollow anthropomorphic figurines from the Struma River Valley
No full textThe current paper discusses the Late Neolithic anthropomorphic figurines with a hollow body originating from three settlements in the Struma River Valley to the north of the Kresna Gorge: Bersin, Mursalevo – Gerena locality and Kocherinovo – Ganevi Nivi locality.Only upper body fragments are preserved. Three groups are defined based on the typical features of the upper half of the body, the cavity shape and its location. The largest group has been divided to subgroups depending on the way the head and the upper torso around the breasts are shaped, as well as the transition to the abdomen and the bottom. The systematisation takes into account the fragmentary state of the objects.
The first group consists of anthropomorphic figurines with elongated, almost cylindrical, flattened-cylindrical (sometimes widening at the top) or flat head. All of them have arms shaped as horizontally perforated short side knobs. The body is hollow and bell-shaped in the preserved part. This shape suggests that the lower half was a separate piece, and the two would attach to form the body. A fragmented figurine from Kocherinovo, with compactly shaped legs divided by a vertical groove, offers an example for a possible shaping of the lower part.
The other two groups are represented by single examples.
Late Neolithic hollow anthropomorphic figurines are discovered at sites dated to various phases of the Late Neolithic along the Struma River Valley to the north of the Kresna Gorge. Similar artefacts have been published within the catchment area of the Vardar River
Observations on some finds with religious symbolism from the Early Bronze Age I settlement at Hacılar Büyük Höyük
Full text linkExcavations that started in 2011 at Hacılar Büyük Höyük, which is located 27 km southwest of Burdur, are still in progess. The EBA I settlement at the site consists of a strong defence system, which extends on a south to north axis in the western part of the mound, and some civilian buildings in the area closer to the centre of the settlement. No temple has yet been uncovered here but it is expected that, in the unexcavated central sections of the mound, not only sacred buildings but also some public buildings and a palace or ruler’s residence are likely to be found. Although no specific sacred architectural building in the form of temple has yet been found, some religious symbols have been uncovered in the form of unusual architectural remains and non-portables, such as stelae. In addition to these, some items that seem to symbolise religious beliefs and are thought to have been used in religious ceremonies, including a special purpose juglet, a pedestalled vessel, a pithos fragment with a depiction of a birth scene on it, and idols and pubis models related to belief in the Mother Goddess, were found in situ inside the houses or in areas near the stelae and in the courtyards of the casemates
Aнтични обекти в градската територия на Хераклея Синтика: Ancient sites in the urban territory of Heraclea Sintica
No full textIn 2020, an archaeological monitoring was carried out along the optical cable route between km 110+800–115+200. This route passes through several sites included in the Archaeological Map of Bulgaria. The information about them was updated. Between km 112+050 and km 112+150 we registered cultural layer and coins from the second half of the 1st c. and the first quarter of the 5th c. AD. The remains of two rooms of the Roman period were excavated at km 112+250. They are the part of a settlement falling within the urban territory of Heraclea Sintica. The materials found (pottery sherds, terracotta and coins) indicate that the site was inhabited from the second half of the 1st c. AD to the first quarter of the 5th c. AD. The chronology of the habitation corresponds to the second, third and fourth settlement periods of the development of the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica. At km 112+320 we registered a stratigraphic section with three stages of habitation from the Roman period.
The study of the pottery from the two rooms at km 112+250 shed some light on the human development in southwest Bulgaria in Antiquity, and especially the districts within the urban territory of Heraclea Sintica
Късноантичната баня при минералния каптаж на Сердика: The Late Antique bath at the mineral catchment of Serdica
No full textAbstract: The hot mineral spring in Serdica is of a particular importance for the Roman town. An establishment of a Roman spa complex utilising the mineral spring catchment is suggested for the early stages of the settlement development. However, the archaeological evidence is insufficient and of uncertain date. New parts of the complex, excavated between 2009 and 2015, suggest that the bath should be dated to the second quarter of the 4th c. AD. Several building phases are established during the existence of the building up to the end of the 6th c. AD. An earlier edifice from the 3rd or even late 2nd c. AD is unearthed under the Late Antique complex but its function as a bath remains uncertain. A reconstruction of the plan of the Late Antique bath is proposed based on its currently known components
International Conference “Traceology in St. Petersburg. The 50th anniversary of the founding of the S.A. Semenov Laboratory”, 3–5 October 2023, St. Petersburg, Russia
Full text linkBronze vessels from the Chadar mound near the village of Iskritsa, Galabovo municipality, Stara Zagora district
Full text linkThis article presents the Chadar burial mound near the village of Iskritsa, Stara Zagora district. It is situated on a hill to the northeast of the village in the Kashlaka locality. The mound measures 25.50 m in diameter and is 3.15 m high. During its excavation, several round pits were documented. They should probably be associated with specific funerary and post-funeral practices. A single grave was recorded at Chadar mound. The burial pit is dug into a grey layer comprising soil mixed with sand. The boundaries of the pit cannot be determined since the surrounding terrain has the same characteristics as the grave fill. The funeral rite was inhumation. The burial inventory consisted of a bronze lekane with two wishbone-shaped handles, an aryballoid bronze vessel and an iron spearhead. In addition to introducing this mound in a scientific context, the article pays particular attention to the bronze vessels found in the grave. An attempt is made to attribute them to a specific production centre or workshop using the comparable characteristics of well-known finds, including those fashioned from other materials. The analysis of the bronze vessels suggests a narrow chronological framework. The opinions of other scholars currently dealing with this issue have also been considered