Gold Rush Reminding of Ancient Thracian Treasures Draws Hundreds to Bulgaria’s Rivers – AFP
Not unlike hundreds of other gold artifacts, these gold earrings from the Mogilanska Mound Treasure, ca. 350 BC, Vratsa Regional Museum of History, are representative of the sophistication of the Ancient Thracian gold treasures. Photo: Bulgaria’s Ministry of Culture
Bulgaria is experiencing a gold rush 2,000 years after the civilization of Ancient Thrace created their gold treasures, writes AFP in a report about modern-day gold panners along the Bulgarian rivers where once the Ancient Thracians mined their gold.
Here is the full text of the AFP report:
AFP: Lure of gold draws hundreds to Bulgaria’s rivers
More than 2,000 years after the ancient Thracians crafted their exquisite jewelry from gold deposits in Bulgaria, hundreds are combing its rivers again in the hope of striking it rich in the EU’s poorest country.
Around a dozen men and a woman stand knee-deep in the waters of the Tundzha river in central Bulgaria. Bent over their green pans, they diligently wash the gravel looking for specks of the precious metal.
“This site must be rich if the Thracians chose it as their capital,” 59-year-old Milka Ganeva said, while sorting through stones with her husband near the Koprinka dam.
Submerged under the waters of the gigantic reservoir, built during the communist era, are the ruins of Seuthopolis – the ancient capital of the Thracian civilisation, famous for its gold jewelry and other elaborate objects fashioned from the plentiful deposits in the rivers.
A legal pastime since 2009, an estimated 1,500 Bulgarians are currently practising gold panning and even have their own association.
“The gold has always been there. It is not by chance that the region that is now Bulgaria was the cradle of Thracian civilisation,” association chief Kiril Stamenov, 52, told AFP,
He said the “the glitter of gold” now “attracts people, especially in a poor country,” from all walks of life.
Options for indulging in the passion appear unlimited in the country – “almost all Bulgarian rivers are gold-bearing”, according to a government report published in August.
Although not abundant enough to merit mining on an industrial scale, the eroding quartz veins in the rocks regularly release gold specs into the rivers.
“We come once a week and have only found eight grams (0.7 ounces) in two years. When we collect 20 grams we will make good luck amulets for our grandchildren,” said Ganeva who has practised panning with her husband for two years now.
The pair even made their own equipment — a dredge with a sluice box powered by a car battery.
‘Indescribable’ rush
Some people have turned panning into a full-time occupation as they try to make a living in the European Union’s poorest member state.
“It’s been two years since we got passionate about it and we haven’t stopped doing it, all year round,” said Nikolay Kostadinov, 31, who graduated from a mining school and is now “a full-time panner.”
His 28-year-old partner Hristo Mavrudov gave up his tourism studies at university to devote more time to his hobby.
“The gold fever is indescribable: you feel a rush of adrenaline when you see something glittering at the bottom of the pan,” he said.
The pair said they had collected around 70 grams of gold after combing a number of mountainous rivers across Bulgaria over the past year.
River gold usually has a lower purity of 20 to 22 karats, with jewellers and banks paying 50-52 leva (25-26 euro, $29-30) per gram.
“Panners are largely enthusiasts. Those who start doing it with a view to get rich quit very soon. There are no rich panners,” Stamenov said.
Patience required
The painstaking process involves hours of wading through rivers, digging and panning to find “a spot”, he explained.
“Gold is 19 times heavier than water and harder to move along the curves of the river so we seek in the gravel along the turns, near tree roots, under big stones or inside cracks in the rocks,” Stamenov explained.
“We examine the specks under a magnifying glass: if they are rounded it means that the river has dragged them many kilometres, if they are sharper, the vein must be nearer,” he added.
If from one cubic metre of gravel – corresponding to 400 spadefuls or 100 buckets – panners get 0.5 to 1.0 grams of gold, the vein is worth being explored.
For 50-year-old electrician Hristo Atanasov, the search matters more than getting lucky.
“It is tiring if you put your mind to finding gold at any cost but if you think about it as something that will help you forget the daily worries, it is a priceless pastime,” he said, sipping a beer.
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Also check out our stories about Bulgaria’s Ancient Thracian exhibit in the Louvre Museum in Paris which was entitled “Thracian Kings’ Epic. Archaeological Discoveries in Bulgaria” (also translated as “The Saga of the Thracian Kings”; in French: L’Épopée des rois thraces Découvertes archéologiques en Bulgarie):
Bulgaria’s Ancient Thrace Exhibition in Paris Enjoying ‘Enormous Success’, Louvre Director Says
Louvre Museum Extends Advertising Campaign in Paris Metro for Bulgaria’s Ancient Thracian Exhibit
Bulgaria, France Open Long-Awaited Ancient Thrace Exhibit in Louvre Museum in Paris
Bulgaria Anticipates Opening of Ancient Thracian Treasures Exhibit in Louvre Museum in Paris
Louvre to Showcase Bulgaria’s Top Archaeology Treasures from Ancient Thrace
