Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

Ancient Thracian sanctuary on St. Thomas island astonishes archaeologists

БНР Новини
Photo: historymuseum.org

Archaeologists from the National Museum of History discovered a grand sanctuary on the island of Sveti Toma (St. Thomas) near Sozopol on the Black Sea.

On the western side of the island they found two ritual pits from the Late Iron Age though there are probably more. The pits were used by the Thracians in the 5th century BC, as suggested by fragments of Greek amphorae found there. The finds show that there once was a roadside sea sanctuary on St. Thomas island. The location was not randomly selected – the sanctuary was built next to the ancient Sozopol-Constantinople road.

The first official expedition to the island, organized in 1955, discovered the foundations of a small church and several outbuildings. Archaeologists say they are the remains of a single-nave church. On the peak of the island the archaeologists form the National Museum of History have found a medieval monastery.




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Orthodox Christians honor the memory of deceased relatives

On Saturday before Mesni Zagovezni or Meat Shrovetide Orthodox Bulgarians commemorate the dead. It is one of the three All Souls' Day that Orthodox Christians mark each year. The very name " Zadushnitsa " means a day for..

published on 3/9/24 5:00 AM
Carol Popp de Szathmari, 1870

The liberation of Bulgaria through the lens of Carol Szathmari

The founder of Romanian photography, the artist Carol Popp de Szathmari  was a contemporary of the Bulgarian National Revival period. He had the opportunity to take photographs of and leave as documentary images famous personalities and events from the..

published on 3/3/24 10:38 AM
Crossing of the Russian army over the Danube at Svishtov, artist: Nikolai Dmitriev-Orenburgsky 1883

Six generations of Bulgarians keep alive the memory of those who died in the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878)

Monuments keep alive the memory of important events of the past. Most of them tell of human sacrifices, of the land drenched in the blood of heroes who defended the homeland. Chroniclers collect these historical fragments and place them in the broader..

published on 3/3/24 6:35 AM