ANCIENT THRACE: MYTH AND REALITY

THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIRTEENTH

INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF THRACOLOGY
KAZANLAK, SEPTEMBER 3 – 7, 2017

VOLUME ONE

Sofia, 2022
St. Kliment Ohridski University Press
 1

Ancient Thrace: Myth and Reality

The Proceedings of the Thirteenth

International Congress of Thracology

Volume One
 2

Софийски университет „Св. Климент Охридски“

Национален археологически институт с музей, БАН
Институт за балканистика с център по тракология, БАН
Исторически музей „Искра“, Казанлък

ДРЕВНА ТРАКИЯ: МИТ И РЕАЛНОСТ

МАТЕРИАЛИ ОТ ТРИНАДЕСЕТИЯ МЕЖДУНАРОДЕН

КОНГРЕС ПО ТРАКОЛОГИЯ
КАЗАНЛЪК, 3 – 7 СЕПТЕМВРИ 2017 г.

ПЪРВИ ТОМ
под редакцията на Петър Делев, Тотко Стоянов,
Светлана Янакиева, Христо Попов, Анелия Божкова,
Майя Василева, Юлия Цветкова, Маргарит Дамянов,
Петя Илиева, Юлий Емилов

СОФИЯ 2022
Университетско издателство „Св. Климент Охридски“
3

St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia

National Archaeological Institute and Museum, BAS
Institute of Balkan Studies and Center of Thracology, BAS
Museum of History Iskra, Kazanlak

ANCIENT THRACE: MYTH AND REALITY

THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIRTEENTH

INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF THRACOLOGY
KAZANLAK, SEPTEMBER 3 – 7, 2017

VOLUME ONE
еdited by Peter Delev, Totko Stoyanov, Svetlana Yanakieva,
Hristo Popov, Anelia Bozkova, Maya Vassileva, Julia Tzvetkova,
Margarit Damyanov, Petya Ilieva, Juliy Emilov

SOFIA, 2022
St. Kliment Ohridski University Press
The four organizing institutions of the 13th International Congress of Thracology in 2017 have each celebrated important
anniversaries thereafter:
• 130 years since the foundation of the National Museum in Sofia (1892) [now the National Archaeological Museum
affiliated to the National Archaeological Institute];
• 120 years since the foundation of the Museum Iskra in Kazanlak (1901);
• 100 years since the establishment of the Department of Archaeology at the St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia
(1920);
• 100 years since the foundation of the Bulgarian Archaeological Institute (1921);
• 100 years since the establishment of the Department of Classical Philology at the St. Kliment Ohridski University of
Sofia (1922);
• 50 years since the foundation of the Institute of Thracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (1972) [now a Center
of Thracology affiliated to the Institute of Balkan Studies].
The editors dedicate the publication of the congress proceedings to the commemoration of these six events.

The printing of the proceedings of the 13th International Congress of Thracology has been sponsored financially by:

National Archaeological Institute of Balkan Studies with

Institute and Museum, BAS Center of Thracology “Prof. A. Fol”, BAS
St. Kliment Ohridski
University of Sofia

Iskra Historical Kazanlak

Museum, Kazanlak Municipality

St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia

National Archaeological Instotute and Museum, BAS
Institute of Balkan Studies and Center of Thracology “Prof. A. Fol”, BAS
Museum of History Iskra, Kazanlak
ANCIENT THRACE: MYTH AND REALITY. THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIRTEENTH INTERNATIONAL CON-
GRESS OF THRACOLOGY, KAZANLAK, SEPTEMBER 3 – 7, 2017. VOLUME ONE
edited by Peter Delev, Totko Stoyanov, Svetlana Yanakieva, Hristo Popov, Anelia Bozkova, Maya Vassileva, Julia Tzvetkova,
Margarit Damyanov, Petya Ilieva, Juliy Emilov

© the editors and the respective authors, unless where otherwise indicated
© 2022 NICE AN LTD, Sofia (prepress and graphic design)
© 2022 St. Kliment Ohridski University Press

ISBN 978-954-07-5621-9 (printed edition) ISBN 978-954-07-5623-3 (E-book, pdf)

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface ......................................................................................................................................... 9
Congress programme ................................................................................................................... 11
Sorin-Cristian Ailincăi, Laurent Carozza and Alexandra Ţârlea
Once again on the Early Iron Age chronology at the Lower Danube. New radiocarbon
data from Babadag ...................................................................................................................... 21
Zeki Mete Aksan
Reinvestigation of Vize A tumulus in Southeastern Thrace ........................................................... 29
Amalia Avramidou and Despoina Tsiafaki
Preliminary results of the research project Attic pottery in Thrace .............................................. 35
Maguelone Bastide
Thracian sanctuaries’ myths and realities .................................................................................... 45
Dimitar Bayrakov
Clay portable hearths from the Chepino Valley (Northwestern Rhodopes)
with “Tsepina type” decoration .................................................................................................... 53
Ioan Bejinariu and Horea Pop
Recent research concerning the end of the First Iron Age – beginning of the
La Tène in the upper Tisa area ..................................................................................................... 61
Jan G. de Boer
A small world and middle grounds in ancient Thrace ................................................................. 73
Anelia Bozkova
Towards a chronology of the fourth century B.C. ........................................................................ 83
Margarit Damyanov
Hand-made pottery in the Greek colonies in the Black Sea: the case of Apollonia Pontica ......... 89
Zdravko Dimitrov
The Thracian sanctuary near the village of Angel Voyvoda, the Eastern Rhodopes ..................... 99
Diana Dimitrova
Fifth-fourth century BC Odrysian burial rites at the big Tundhza River curve ............................ 107
Dimitar Draganov
The silver coinage of Apollonia Pontica (5th – 4th century BC): iconography............................... 116
Zeynep Koçel Erdem
Cult studies in Turkish Thrace: understanding the Thracian religion – new approaches ............. 123
El-Sayed Gad
Thrace and the Thracians in the speeches of Demosthenes .......................................................... 129
William Greenwalt
Macedonian and Thracian relations through early 334 B.C. ....................................................... 137
6 Table of contents

Hristomir S. Hristov
The “Griffins” tumulus. On the structure and function of Thracian mound
facilities in the Classical and Hellenistic Age .............................................................................. 145
Rositsa Hristova Hristova
Technological changes and craft-specialization of the ceramic production
on the territory between Upper Thracian Plain and Burgas Lowland
from the Late Bronze Age to the Archaic Period .......................................................................... 153
Ekaterina Ilieva
Pottery on the move – geographical distribution of the Late Iron Age Tsepina pottery ................ 167
Hristina Ivanova-Anaplioti
Apollonia of Pontus and Thrace and the allocation of its weight standards ................................. 177
Miroslav Iliev Izdimirski
Deported Paeonians in the Achaemenid Empire as kurtaš – workers .......................................... 185
Hazar Kaba
Comparing the metal vessel acquisition patterns and trends
of the Thracian and Cypriot elite during the Classical Period .................................................... 191
Slavtcho Kirov
Le passé thraco-phrygien à la lumière de l’inscription RIMA, 2, A.0.100.5, 115B-127 ............... 207
Jeffrey D. Lerner
Skudrā and Kūšiya under Xerxes I ............................................................................................... 213
Kalin Madzharov
Trading post at Ruse? The evidence of the amphora stamps ....................................................... 221
Dragoş Măndescu
Where did they put the akinakes? On the Late Hallstatt Ferigile warriors’
panoply starting from the recent discoveries in the necropolis at Valea Stânii ............................. 231
Consuelo Manetta and Daniela Stoyanova
Architecture and decoration of the propylon at Seuthopolis ......................................................... 241
Philip Mihaylov and Borislava Galabova
The 11th – 4th century BC Dren – Delyan necropolis.
Cultural and physical anthropological analyses. Preliminary data.............................................. 261
Philip Mihaylov and Nikoleta Tzankova
Glass beads from Dren – Delyan necropolis (archaeological and archaeometric study) ............ 271
Petar Minkov
A Middle Bronze Age Ceramic Jug from Tell Russe ..................................................................... 279
Kabalan Moukarzel and Miroslav Izdimirski
On Skudrians in the Akkadian versions of the Achaemenid royal
inscriptions and some Late Babylonian texts................................................................................ 287
Kate Mower
Thracians as σύμμαχοι to the Greek settlements along the West Pontic coast ............................. 297
Yana Mutafchieva
Bronze biconical oinochoai from Thrace: morphology and chronology ....................................... 301
Nerantzis Nerantzis and Stratis Papadopoulos
Mining in the Thracian world: the case of Lekani Mountains in Northern Greece ..................... 313
 Table of contents 7

Ion Niculiţă, Aurel Zanoci and Mihail Băţ

Some considerations regarding the formation of the material culture
of the Thracian communities on the territory east of the Prut ..................................................... 323
Meglena Parvin
New observations on the inventory from the southwestern chamber
of the Ostrusha tumulus complex .................................................................................................. 339
Angela Pencheva
Wreaths in funeral context: chronological and typological distribution
in ancient Macedonia, Thrace and the West Pontic Greek apoikiai ............................................ 349
Vyara Petrova
The banquet as depicted on Attic red-figure pottery from the site at “Adzhiyska Vodenitsa” ....... 365
Olivier Picard
La monnaie entre les Thraces et les Grecs à l’époque de la domination perse ............................ 371
Hristo Popov
Ada Tepe – a gold mine or a sanctuary? Between myth and reality ............................................. 381
Kalin Porozhanov
The ancient authors on the Bithynoi, Thynoi and Mariandynoi in Anatolia ................................. 395
Lynn E. Roller
The Gluhite Kamani LiDAR survey and its implications for our understanding
of Thracian cult monuments ........................................................................................................ 401
Mustafa H. Sayar
Thracian tribes in Southeastern Thrace under Roman rule ......................................................... 409
Paola Schirripa et Federica Cordano
Rois thraces et rois perses dans la tradition grecque ................................................................... 413
Katarzyna Skowron et Tomasz Bochnak
Les éléments thraces dans le bassin de la Vistule – un nouvel examen......................................... 427
Stephan Steingräber
Figurative representations in Thracian tomb paintings of the 4th and 3rd century BC –
themes, iconography, ideology .................................................................................................... 439
Totko Stoyanov
Urbanization in Early Hellenistic Thrace: The case of the Getic capital Helis
in North-Eastern Thrace ............................................................................................................... 451
Nino Sulava
Alte Kolchis: Mythos und Wirklichkeit (anhand der alten Fibeln)................................................ 461
Gabriel M. Talmaţchi
About possible stages of the significance and role of monetary signs
in the Western Pontic area in the light of recent research (6th century BC) .................................. 467
Nikola Tonkov
Integrated electroresistivity and magnetic prospection of Thracian burial mounds:
the case of tumuli 1 and 2 at the village of Granit, Chirpan Eminences....................................... 475
Eva Tonkova
Black-glazed pottery from the pit fields in Bulgaria ..................................................................... 487
Stavri Topalov
On the attribution of the first realistic portraits on ancient coins
(mid 5th – end of 4th centuries BC) ................................................................................................ 497
8 Table of contents

Helena Domínguez-del Triunfo

A zoomorphic vase handle of the Classical Period in the Kanellopoulos Collection:
rethinking the impact of Achaemenid material culture in the West ............................................. 509
Maya Vassileva
Thracians and Phrygians: state of art and future perspectives ................................................... 517
Yurii A. Vinogradov
Tumulus Baksy near Kerch. Cultural contacts on the Cimmerian Bosporus
in the early 4th c. BC ..................................................................................................................... 523
Kalina Yordanova
Foureés and barbarian imitations of Apollonia Pontica’s coins ......................... ......................... 529
List of authors............................................................................................................................... 537
 Ancient Thrace: Myth and Reality
Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Congress of Thracology, Volume 1
FIFTH-FOURTH CENTURY BC ODRYSIAN BURIAL
RITES AT THE BIG TUNDHZA RIVER CURVE
Diana Dimitrova
In the first decade of the 21st century large-
scale excavations of tumuli began under the di-
rection of Dr. Georgi Kitov in the area of the
present-day municipality of Sliven.1 The goal
of the team was to investigate Thracian burial
customs and practices in this micro region. A
wealthy elite necropolis was identified along the
big Tundhza River curve to the south where its
middle flow starts, in the territories of the vil-
lages of Krushare, Topolchane and Kaloyanovo.
The archaeological investigation revealed
that graves in three tumuli in the Sliven area
(Fig. 1) contained only parts of human bodies –
those of Odrysian kings or higher Odrysian no-
bles of the second half of the 5th and early 4th
century BC. The bodies were purposely dis-
membered in advance. The findings correspond
to the story of the ancient author Conon2 about
the death of Orpheus, who was torn apart by the
Thracian women, because he did not allow them
to take part in the orgies and the sacraments
that he taught their husbands. On certain days
many armed Thracians gathered in one large
and well-made building, set aside especially for
mysteries. Whenever they entered, they would
leave their weapons at the door. The women
stalked this moment and destroyed those they
came across, and Orpheus they tore to pieces
and threw into the sea. As the women were not
punished, the country was devastated by a ter-
rible famine. They received a prophecy that the
evil would go away if they found and buried Or-
pheus’ head. It was found at the mouth of the
river Melet. It was buried under a large mound,
which was surrounded by a sacred courtyard.
For a time, this place was honoured as a heroon,
and later it became a sanctuary. It is worshiped
with sacrifice and whatever else is offered to the
gods, but it is completely inaccessible to women.
1 Китов 2007, 44 сл.; Китов et. al. 2008, 245.
2 Con. 45 after Kern 1926, 115 with a commentary in Фол
1986, 81-82.
Such is the legend according to Conon. Archae-
ological excavations have uncovered a bronze
head from a statue of a man, buried in front of
the facility in the Golyama Kosmatka tumulus.3
The earliest such burial in the Sliven area
had been performed in the Yakimova Tumulus,
near the village of Krushare.4 It is situated about
8 km south of the town of Sliven and about 10
km northwest of Kabyle. A horse skull was dis-
covered in a pit of undiscernible outline, imme-
diately to the southeast of the tumulus center, at
a depth of 3.30 m. No other objects or decayed
bones of the horse skeleton were discovered
next to it. This gives me enough grounds to sug-
gest that the separation of the head and placing
it almost in the center of the mound was a pur-
poseful action, possibly part of a ritual system
and burial customs of the Odrysian nobles along
the Upper Tundzha valley.5
A big stone pile was found 0.40 m below
the horse’s skull, almost at the geometric center
of the Yakimova tumulus.6 It covered a 3,60 х
4,90 m pit, filled in with stones and earth, cov-
ered on top with wooden planks. The bottom of
the pit was lined with quarried slate-like stones.
A Thracian of higher rank was laid down, to-
gether with representative grave goods. Bones
from the skull, from the right hand and pieces of
spinal vertebrae were discovered in the grave,
as well as a few teeth (Fig. 2). No remains of
the lower limbs or pelvic bones of the deceased
were found. This fact suggests that the body had
initially been dismembered and only part of it
was buried in the Yakimova Tumulus. A similar
situation was discovered in 2004 in a stone tomb
from the Svetitsa mound in the municipality of
Shipka, almost in the geometric center of the
3 Kitov 2005а, 69, fig. 100; Dimitrova 2015a, 119-127, fig. 91,
93.
4 Excavations directed by Diana Dimitrova in 2008.
5 Димитрова 2008а, 221 сл.; Dimitrova 2012, 77.
6 Димитрова 2008а, обр. 2; Dimitrova 2015b, 39.
108
Valley. The grave housed only part of the skel-
eton of the deceased – pieces of the legs that had
been cut off with a sharp object (an ax?) while
the soft tissues were still not rotted, and from
the lower jaw, which had been dumped in the
northwest corner of the chamber.7 The missing
head of the Thracian king buried in the Svetit-
sa mound was replaced with a massive golden
mask-phiale with an image of an individual hu-
man face.8
Two objects in the grave identified the de-
ceased as a Thracian ruler: a gold pectoral and a
gold signet-ring.9
The pectoral was placed on the chest, de-
liberately folded twice.10 Both its sides were
originally arch-shaped, the upper one being in-
terrupted by three semi-ellipsoid projections.11
The decoration is not of fine manufacture. The
pectoral was most probably produced in a hurry,
especially for the funeral and was not used dur-
ing the life-time of the deceased. It is a unique
find, a piece of Thracian art of high value. A
vague resemblance can be found to the pecto-
ral from the Big Tumulus at Duvanlii,12 dated to
the mid-5th century BC. Gold pectorals were not
common grave goods in Thracian burials and
were rather reserved for rulers. Bearing in mind
that the gold had a sacred meaning in Antiquity
as a mediator between the worlds of the living
and the dead,13 one can assume with a great cer-
tainty that the buried in the Yakimova Tumulus
was of royal rank.
The second object that suggests his higher
social standing is a golden signet-ring. It bears a
scarab-shaped carnelian gem. A musician play-
ing a lyre is depicted on it with a wreath on his
head.14 A ring of similar shape was discovered
in inland Thrace, at Chernozem near Kaloyano-
vo.15 This type of rings was common during the
entire 5th century BC and after the end of the
century it disappeared.16 An option might be that
the buried Thracian in the Yakimova Tumulus
had received the ring as a gift or as a winner’s
prize in a competition.
7 Kitov 2005b, 24, fig. 5; Димитрова 2011, 44.
8 Kitov 2005b, 26, fig. 11; Dimitrova 2015a, 158, fig. 127.
9 Димитрова 2008а, 222.
10 Димитрова 2008а, 222; Dimitrova 2012, 77, fig. 3.
11 Димитрова, Сираков 2009, 291, обр. 2.
12 Венедиков, Герасимов 1973, обр. 215.
13 Маразов 1994, 9.
14 Димитрова 2008а, 223, обр. 5; Dimitrova 2012, 79.
15 Kisyov 2005, 51 сл.
16 Kisyov 2005, 54.
Diana Dimitrova
Silver and bronze vessels were also found
among the grave goods in the Yakimova
Tumulus,17 some of them cut into pieces or ritu-
ally “killed” as evidenced by holes in their bod-
ies. A bimetal breast plate, made of bronze and
iron, was intentionally folded; an iron bridle and
an open-work bronze frontlet were also set in
the grave. According to the style and the tech-
nology used the objects should be dated to the
mid-5th century BC. The frontlet is an exception,
belonging to an earlier type so far unknown in
Thrace. According to the material and the style
it is dated to the late 6th – early 5th century BC.
The remaining pieces of the horse trappings set
were missing.
Three black-figured lekythoi similar to
objects from the necropolis of Apolonia18 with
bands of floral and geometric decoration on a
white background date the grave to the mid-5th
century BC. They belong to the most common
type used in this century and usually called cy-
lindrical. The style is black figures on white
ground.19 Most probably they were made for fu-
neral use20 and were not used in every-day life.
In inland Thrace, such items are rare to find. The
closest parallel in form, execution and decora-
tion is an Athenian black-figure lekythos from
the collection of the University of Heidelberg,21
as well as a fragmented one from Mieza near
modern Naousa in Northern Greece.22 The
graves in the village of Golemanite,23 district of
Veliko Turnovo, and the Big24 and the Lozarska25
Tumuli at Duvanlii, district of Plovdiv, yielded
items of similar shape but different decoration.
According to the analysis of the ritual and
the intentionally folded or “killed” objects in the
grave one can suggest that the person buried in
the Yakimova Tumulus was an Orphic adept. It
is possible that this practice of dismembering
was part of the Thracian ritual of immortaliz-
ing26 as known from ancient literary evidence.
Precious metal objects, diverse luxurious ves-
sels and wealthy personal belongings testify to
17 Димитрова 2008а, 224, обр. 6-9; Dimitrova 2012, 79;
Dimitrova 2015b, 39.
18 Иванов 1963, 191 сл.
19 Boardman 1997, 129.
20 Τιβέριος 1996, 18, 45.
21 CVA 1966, taf. 177.7.
22 Ρωμιοπούλου, Τουράτσογλου 2002, 49.
23 Църов 2008, 60.
24 Филов 1934, 104.
25 Филов 1934, 126.
26 Гергова 1996, 78; Georgieva 2003, 317.
 Fifth-fourth century BC Odrysian burial rites at the big Tundhza River curve
his higher social standing. Most probably he was
a higher placed noble, or a king of the Odrysian
dynasty of the third quarter of the 5th century BC
who would remain anonymous to us.
The Dalakova Tumulus27 was situated near
the village of Topolchane, about 10-12 km to the
northeast of the Yakimova Tumulus. An Odry-
sian noble of the first quarter of the 4th century
BC was buried there. The grave was dated ac-
cording to two Thasian amphora stamps rang-
ing between 390 and 379 BC.28 A primitively
constructed tomb under piled stones was dis-
covered in the Dalakova Tumulus. It was lined
and covered with wooden planks.29 It housed the
remains of a “regular”, at first glance, wealthy
inhumation burial of a member of the Odrysian
dynasty and his two horses, placed in a mirror
position around it. The head of the deceased was
severed in advance and placed near the pelvic
area (Fig. 3).30 A gold signet ring was found be-
side one hand, with a phalanx of a finger passing
through it. A profile of a male face was depicted
on the bezel and two Thracian names in Geni-
tive were incised along its periphery: ΣΕΥΣΑ
ΤΗΡΗΤΟΣ.31 The worn-out image on the ring
betrays its long use. As there is no written evi-
dence about a Thracian ruler from the late 5th
or early 4th century BC whose father was called
Teres, the signet-ring most probably belonged
to an unknown paradynast or an Odrysian king
whose name is attested for the first time.32 The
royal body was laid down on five red-figured le-
kanides, bearing painted scenes on their lids.33
They were deliberately set in the grave open,
with the lids turned with their painted tops
facing down, thus the body was symbolically
“served” on the clay bowls. And this was done
after the head had been severed and laid in the
abdomen area where the skull was found.34 We
can only hypothesize that the dismembering of
the diseased was meant to assure his immortal-
ity in the Other world. For this purpose, a spe-
cial gold object with a primitive human face de-
27 Excavations directed by Dr. Georgi Kitov in 2007.
28 Китов 2007, 48; Китов 2008а, 146; Китов 2008b, обр. 483-
484; Tzochev 2009, 56, fig. 1, tab. 1
29 Китов 2007, 45; Китов 2008а, 143; Димитрова 2010, 221;
Dimitrova 2012, 79.
30 Китов 2007, 46; Dimitrova 2012, 79.
31 Китов 2007, 46; Китов 2008а, 146; Kitov, Dimitrov 2008,
26, fig. 6; Dimitrova 2012, 79-80, fig. 5; Dimitrova 2017, 49
32 Kitov, Dimitrov 2008, 26.
33 Китов 2008b, обр. 486-490.
34 Димитрова 2010, 221; Dimitrova 2012, 79-80.
109
picted on it was placed in the grave, tentatively
called by us a “mask”.35 In the royal burials it
denotes the essence of its bearer acquired in this
world during the mysteries of status transforma-
tion36 or the anthropomorphized idea of a dei-
ty.37 Since in the Thracian notions no one but the
ruler could acquire divine status after his death,
it can be claimed with a high degree of probabil-
ity that the buried person is of royal rank.38 The
Dalakova Tumulus mask shows elongated flutes
on the back side typical of Thracian phialai. For
the purpose of the funeral the phiale had been
hammered flat and the weakest spots cracked.
The Thracian artisan did not repair the cracks
but just made two holes for sewing or attaching
it to leather clothing or to a shield thus turning
the phiale into a decoration. The phiale-mask
from Dalakova Tumulus, turned into a pectoral,
is made of thick gold sheet and weighs 191 g.
Its final use, to mark the high social status of
the buried Thracian ruler, made it similar to My-
cenaean and Macedonian masks, as well as to
the phiale-mask from the Svetitsa Tumulus near
Shipka, district of Kazanluk.
The deceased was buried with numerous
grave goods meant to preserve his high social
rank after his death. All elements of a heroic
banquet set, known from written sources and
from visual representations on vases and other
monuments, were placed in the grave: two gold
phialai,39 two silver-guilt rhyta,40 a goblet,41
three clay amphorae, a ceramic undecorated hy-
dria produced in a local Thracian workshop, as
well as a bronze oenochoe and a situla. One of
the rhyta is in the shape of a young ram’s head.
On its neck two groups of three individuals each,
three men and three women, are symmetrically
arranged on both sides of a rectangular altar.42
The interpretation of the figures refers to the sto-
ry about the murder of the Trojan king Priam.43
The five fine red-figured lekanides are
among the most attractive grave goods; they
bear representations of scenes from the gynai-
35 Dimitrova 2017, 48.
36 Маразов 2005, 16.
37 Фол 1990, 56.
38 Димитрова 2011, 48.
39 Китов 2008а, обр. 19; Dimitrova 2017, 49.
40 Китов 2007, обр. 3-4.
41 Dimitrova 2017, 51.
42 Димитрова 2010, 222-223, обр. 2, табло XII. 3-4; Dimitrova
2012, 80; Dimitrova 2017, 53-54.
43 Шмид 1995, 196; Маразов 2009a, 17; Маразов 2009b, 27.
110 Diana Dimitrova
keion.44 The drawings on the lids and the deco-
rations of the vessels betray two painters. They
belong to Beazley’s Otchet group, dated in the
late 5th century BC.45
An almost full set of arms and armour
was placed in the Dalakova Tumulus: a silver
helmet,46 an iron breast-plate, spears, bronze ar-
row heads, an iron sword: all these were meant
to project the deceased individual not only as an
Odrysian noble or king but as a warrior as well.
Two bridles with movable bits made of silver
and iron supplement the grave goods, as well as
two sets of gold and silver appliques for horse
trappings. Besides frontlets, nose and cheek
pieces, typical for Thracian rich burials, these
sets contained little gold and silver bells.47 The
situation in the Dalakova tumulus seems to echo
Homer’s words about the Thracian king Rhesos
and his horses “fit for the immortal gods”.48
The neighbouring Taneva Tumulus49 is situ-
ated about 500 m east of the Dalakova Tumulus
within the territory of Topolchane. Two graves
were found there.50 The one is a flat cremation
burial without a pit, covered by a bronze basin.51
The cremation was performed outside the burial
mound. Incompletely burnt bones, which turned
out to be remnants of a skull and vertebrae, were
gathered carefully and buried in a hand-made
clay urn, especially made for the ritual. Three
bronze finger rings with incised images of Arte-
mis Phosphoros,52 Dionysos53 and a sphynx54 are
worth noting. The torch-bearing Artemis can be
considered the patron goddess of near-by Kab-
yle where a Phosphorion was located according
to the Seuthopolis inscription.55 This finger-ring
makes it possible to speculate that the Taneva
Tumulus was part of the northern necropolis of
Kabyle. A bronze trilobate arrowhead marked
the buried noble in grave No. 1 as a warrior. The
grave is dated in the second half of the 4th centu-
ry according to the two fragmented bronze fibu-
lae of Thracian type discovered in the urn. Small
44 Китов 2008b, обр. 486-490.
45 Boardman 1997, 193.
46 Dimitrova 2017, 50.
47 Dimitrova 2017, cat. No 32-39.
48 Hom. Ill. X. 435.
49 Excavations directed by Dr. Georgi Kitov in 2007.
50 Китов 2007, 45.
51 Китов 2008а, 141; Димитрова 2008b, 80, обр. 3, 5;
Dimitrova 2012, 81, fig. 8.
52 Китов 2008а, обр. 7; Димитрова 2008b, 82, обр. 8.
53 Димитрова 2008b, 81, обр. 7.
54 Димитрова 2008b, 81, обр. 6.
55 Велков 1991, 10.
cult objects were placed in the grave: clay beads
of different shape and size, a rhombus, a disc
with pierced decoration, the so-called “Zagreus’
toys”.56 Based on the grave goods the burial is
dated to the middle or the third quarter of the 4th
century BC.
In grave No. 2 of Taneva Tumulus an inhu-
mation was performed in a pit situated high in
the mound filling.57 The lower part of the body
of an adult was laid in it. The archaeological
investigation revealed only pelvic bones and
lower limbs (Fig. 4). Having in view that the
skull is one of the most solid parts of the human
skeleton, it is most probable that, along with the
remaining upper part of the body, this had not
been placed in Grave No. 2 at all.
The grave goods consist mainly of clay
vessels:58 two Thasian amphorae, different
bowls, jugs and mugs typical for the 4th century
BC. The only bronze object was a jug whose
handle had previously been detached from the
body and placed in another clay vessel. This
would not have been accidental as vessels were
set in one another in a number of other cases.59
A clay rhyton in the shape of a rooster’s
body with a horse’s head stands out among the
grave goods.60 A relief image of a frontlet can be
seen on the horse’s forehead. It has the form of a
big labrys. A similar silver labrys-shaped front-
let was found in a rich stone-built grave dated
to the mid-4th century BC in Starosel, district
of Plovdiv.61 This royal insignia of the Odrysae
makes us think that the buried was probably a
member of the Odrysian dynasty.62 The grave is
dated to the middle or the third quarter of the
4th century BC according to the two fragmented
Thasian amphorae in it.
The scarce remains of burned bones in
Grave No. 1 are insufficient for a DNA test in
order to find out whether there was a connection
between the two burials in the Taneva Tumulus.
As such analysis is missing one cannot make
the assumption that the buried man found in the
two graves is one and the same, dismembered
56 Фол 1990, 196; Димитрова 2003, 76; Конова 2005, 150;
Димитрова 2008b, обр. 4; Dimitrova 2012, 81, fig. 9.
57 Китов 2007, 45; Димитрова 2008b, 82, обр. 9-10; Dimitrova
2012, 82, fig. 10.
58 Димитрова 2008b, 83, обр. 12.
59 Димитрова 2008b, 83, обр. 11.
60 Китов 2007, обр. 1; Димитрова 2008b, 83, обр. 13-14;
Dimitrova 2012, 82, fig. 11; Dimitrova 2015b, 40.
61 Китов 2002, 12.
62 Kitov 1999, 6.
 Fifth-fourth century BC Odrysian burial rites at the big Tundhza River curve
in advance and offered to the chthonic and solar
Thracian deities.
One more tumulus belongs to this group of
three; it is situated at the west end of the vil-
lage of Kaloyanovo. In Antiquity the tumuli of
Kaloyanovo and Topolchane formed one ne-
cropolis. А tomb of ashlar masonry was found
in the tumulus excavated in 1963.63 It consisted
of an anteroom and two rectangular chambers.
The burial of a Thracian nobleman accompanied
by his horse was performed in this tomb in the
second quarter of the 4th century BC.64 The horse
was laid down in the anteroom and the man –
in the second rectangular chamber together
with rich grave goods: a gold pectoral,65 gold
appliqués,66 an iron sword of the xiphos type,67
spearheads, a bronze helmet, a bronze situla, a
bronze tripartite lamp, a strainer, clay vessels68
and a Thasian amphora with a stamp depicting
a double-axe, dated to the mid-4th century BC.69
Among the several luxury imported ceramic
vessels ther was70 an arhybaloid lekythos, a red-
figured lekanis, three skyphoi and a pelike with
a depiction of the god Apollo returning from the
land of the Hyperboreans on a swan. The last
item belongs to the Kerch style and may have
been a work of the Apollonia painter.71
As a result of the archaeological excava-
tions of mounds in the Sliven region in recent
years, the geographical area of the Valley of the
Thracian Kings has been expanded in the 5th-4th
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Fifth-fourth century BC Odrysian burial rites at the big Tundhza River curve 113

1. Location
of the elite
necropolis of
the villages
of Krushare,
Topolchane and
Kaloyanovo,
Sliven
municipality.
Author D.
Dimitrova.

2. Location of
bone remains
and grave
goods in situ
in grave No 1
in Yakimova
Tumulus. Author
D. Dimitrova.

3. Human
skeleton in
situ over red-
figured vessels
and other
grave goods
in Dalakova
Tumulus. Author
S. Dimov.
114 Diana Dimitrova

4. Location of bone remains and grave goods

in situ in grave No 2 in Taneva Tumulus.
Author D. Dimitrova.

5. Location of the tumuli in the necropolis near the villages of Krushare, Topolchane and Kaloyanovo.
Author D. Dimitrova.