The Kosmatka Tomb, Kazanlak
In the summer of 2004 a team of Bulgarian archeologists unearthed a large, intact Thracian mausoleum dating back from the fifth century BC near the central Bulgarian town of Shipka. "This is probably the richest tomb of a Thracian king ever discovered in Bulgaria. Its style and its making are entirely new to us as experts," said Georgy Kitov, the head of the team. "This unique find will broaden our knowledge of the masterful goldsmith skills of the Thracians", he told AFP. According to Kitov, the mausoleum "features an incredible architecture and is laden with golden, silver, bronze and earthenware objects."
The tomb probably dates back from the times of the dynasty founded by Seutus III and includes a 13-meter (40-foot) corridor leading to three rooms, one of them a huge granite block hollowed out to form a death chamber, its floor strewn with more than 70 gold, silver, bronze and clay objects. Inside one of the rooms the team found a golden crown of oak leaves and acorns, the first such object found in a Thracian temple. Also found were a complete bronze body armor adorned with goddesses, a sword with a gold-studded pommel, crafted ceramics and three big wine amphoras. The tomb is equipped with a marble door on the second chamber decorated with a female head and the God Apollo.
