Archaeologists from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) have uncovered a 2nd century BCE tomb near the Bulgarian village Kapitan Petko Voivoda in the Topolovgrad region, which they are calling the richest-known Hellenistic-era burial found in the country, according to Heritage Daily.
The grave belonged to a high-ranking Thracian warrior, ruler—or both—interred with his war horse and enough precious metal to make a Roman tax collector weep.
The Thracians, an Indo-European people who emerged in the Bronze Age, spent centuries alternately fighting and serving larger empires. By the time of the Macedonian Wars, many were in the pay of Rome, prized for cavalry and light infantry. Service often ended with land grants, which increased the Romanization of these areas.
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This burial, found during works to lay a power cable, contained a silver-gilt wreath (a mark of honor in Thracian culture), silver bracelet, ring, ornate fibula, and a Greek makhaira sword with a gold-inlaid handle set with gemstones. The horse, no less valued in death than in life, was adorned with gold, silver, and bronze medallions depicting mythic scenes, including Hercules wrestling the giant Antaeus—a nod, perhaps, to the owner’s own martial ambitions.
It is the second year in a row that the area has yielded treasures. As one BAS representative put it, the finds are deepening the understanding of Thracian culture, while posing new questions about how local traditions meshed with Roman influence—questions that will keep archaeologists working for years to come.