The newly discovered medieval Christian engolpion (reliquary) cross from the Small Fortress near Bulgaria's Voden. Photo: Yambol Regional Museum of History

Christian Reliquary Cross Found in 11th Century Byzantine Fortress in Southeast Bulgaria Destroyed by Crusaders in Third Crusade

A bronze reliquary cross from the High Middle Ages of the engolpion type – i.e. a hollow cross used for keeping holy Christian relics – has been discovered by Bulgarian archaeologists during the excavations of the “Small Kale,” a fortress…

Ancient Bulgar Strap Decorations, Dugouts from Medieval Bulgarian Empire Found in Debnevo Fortress near Troyan

Ancient Bulgar Strap Decorations, Dugouts from Medieval Bulgarian Empire Found in Debnevo Fortress near Troyan

A wide range of archaeological structures and artifacts with a dating range from 5,000 BC until the 14th century AD – including Ancient Bulgar strap decorations and dugouts from the time of the medieval Bulgarian Empire – have been discovered…

Turkish Smuggler Caught with Dozens Byzantine, Persian Gold Coins at Bulgaria-Turkey Border

Turkish Smuggler Caught with Dozens Byzantine, Persian Gold Coins at Bulgaria-Turkey Border

Dozens of gold and silver coins from the Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages minted by states such as the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and the Persian Empire have been seized from a Turkish man at the Bulgaria –…

‘Incredible’ Early Byzantine Fortress with Stone Assembly Letter Clues Unearthed near Bulgaria’s Shirokovo

‘Incredible’ Early Byzantine Fortress with Stone Assembly Letter Clues Unearthed near Bulgaria’s Shirokovo

Archaeologists have excavated for the first time a 5th century AD fortress near Shirokovo in Northeast Bulgaria, which is the early period of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) and is also likely to be the medieval Bulgarian city of Krastovets,…

3 Gold Coins from Byzantine Empire after 1071 Battle of Manzikert Found in Bulgaria’s Lom in Almus, Lomgrad Ruins

3 Gold Coins from Byzantine Empire after 1071 Battle of Manzikert Found in Bulgaria’s Lom in Almus, Lomgrad Ruins

Archaeologists have found a small hoard of gold coins from the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire) minted after the emblematic Battle of Manzikert in 1071 under Emperor Michael VII Ducas during excavations of the Ancient Roman and medieval Byzantine city…

Rare 5th Century AD Late Roman Marble Table Discovered in Petrich Kale Fortress near Bulgaria’s Varna

Rare 5th Century AD Late Roman Marble Table Discovered in Petrich Kale Fortress near Bulgaria’s Varna

Archaeologists have discovered a beautiful white marble table from the 4th – 5th century AD, i.e. the Late Roman and Early Byzantine period, during excavations in one of the towers of the Petrich Kale Fortress near the Black Sea city…

Early Thracian, Roman, Medieval Settlements, Athena Statuette Found in Rescue Digs by Bulgarian Coal Mining Company

Early Thracian, Roman, Medieval Settlements, Athena Statuette Found in Rescue Digs by Bulgarian Coal Mining Company

Three different ancient settlements – an Early Thracian settlement, a town from the time of the Roman Empire, and an Early Byzantine and medieval Bulgarian settlement – have been discovered in rescue excavations in three locations near the town of…

Archaeologists Unearth Burgus (Tower Fort) in Lesser Known Roman Danube Fortress Bulldozed by Treasure Hunters in Northwest Bulgaria

Archaeologists Unearth Burgus (Tower Fort) in Lesser Known Roman Danube Fortress Bulldozed by Treasure Hunters in Northwest Bulgaria

Archaeologists have exposed what was a burgus, a Late Roman Era tower fort, or a centrally located tower inside Pomodiana, a little known but massive Late Roman and Early Byzantine Fortress on the Danube River in today’s Northwest Bulgaria, which,…

Crusaders from Third Crusade Destroyed 11th-Century Byzantine Empire's Fortress in Southeast Bulgaria, Archaeologists Find

Crusaders from Third Crusade Destroyed 11th-Century Byzantine Empire’s Fortress in Southeast Bulgaria, Archaeologists Find

A small but remarkable Byzantine fortress, which existed in the 11th – 12th century in today’s Southeast Bulgaria, was seemingly destroyed by the Western European knights from the Third Crusade in 1189 – 1192 AD, the archaeological research team has…

Skeletons from Medieval Christian Necropolis Found on Top of Ruins of Ancient Marcianopolis in Bulgaria’s Devnya

Skeletons from Medieval Christian Necropolis Found on Top of Ruins of Ancient Marcianopolis in Bulgaria’s Devnya

Three skeletons from what appears to be a medieval necropolis have been discovered during rescue archaeological excavations at the ruins of the major Roman city of Marcianopolis (Marcianople) in today’s town of Devnya in Northeast Bulgaria.

Traces of First Ancient Greek Colonists in 7th Century BC Found under Byzantine City at Bulgaria’s Chernomorets on Black Sea Coast

Traces of First Ancient Greek Colonists in 7th Century BC Found under Byzantine City at Bulgaria’s Chernomorets on Black Sea Coast

Archaeological layers with remains from the earliest Ancient Greek colonists, or settlers, on today’s Bulgarian Black Sea coast dating back to the Archaic period in the 7th – 6th century BC have been surprisingly found by archaeologists excavating an Early…

5th Century AD Byzantine Thermae (Public Baths) Discovered in Downtown of Bulgarian Black Sea City Varna

5th Century AD Byzantine Thermae (Public Baths) Discovered in Downtown of Bulgarian Black Sea City Varna

The ruins of a building of thermae (public baths) from the 5th century AD, the time of the early Eastern Roman Empire, today more commonly known as Byzantium, have been discovered in the downtown of the Bulgarian Black Sea city…

First Ever Synagogue from Medieval Bulgarian Empire Discovered in Trapesitsa Fortress in Old Capital Veliko Tarnovo

First Ever Synagogue from Medieval Bulgarian Empire Discovered in Trapesitsa Fortress in Old Capital Veliko Tarnovo

The first known synagogue from the times of the medieval Bulgarian Empire has been discovered by archaeologists excavating the Trapesitsa Fortress in the city of Veliko Tarnovo, the successor of Tarnovgrad, which was capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire in…

Hoard of Byzantine Gold Coins Hidden during Hun Invasion Discovered in Ancient Marcianopolis in Bulgaria’s Devnya

Hoard of Byzantine Gold Coins Hidden during Hun Invasion Discovered in Ancient Marcianopolis in Bulgaria’s Devnya

A Byzantine gold treasure from the 5th century BC, i.e. the early period of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium), consisting of a hoard of gold coins of Emperor Theodosius II which were probably hidden when the major Roman city of…

2nd Century BC Lion Statue from Hellenistic Era, Byzantine Oven Found in Ancient Assos in Turkey

2nd Century BC Lion Statue from Hellenistic Era, Byzantine Oven Found in Ancient Assos in Turkey

A 2,200-year-old statue of a lion from the Hellenistic Age and an Early Byzantine oven have been discovered in Turkey during archaeological excavations in the Ancient Greek city of Assos on Anatolia’s Aegean coast.

Slavs, Avars Burned Down Byzantine City Chrisosotira in Early 7th Century, Digs on Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast Reveal

Slavs, Avars Burned Down Byzantine City Chrisosotira in Early 7th Century, Digs on Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast Reveal

The Early Byzantine city of Chrisosotira on Cape Chervenka on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast was most likely sacked by the Slavs and Avars during their invasions of the Byzantine Empire in the first half of the 7th century AD, archaeologists…

Decline of Bulgarian, Byzantine Empires before Ottoman Conquest Revealed by Tatar Plunder Treasure Pot from Black Sea Fortress Kaliakra

Decline of Bulgarian, Byzantine Empires before Ottoman Conquest Revealed by Tatar Plunder Treasure Pot from Black Sea Fortress Kaliakra

The contents of the gold and silver treasure pot of plunder of a Tatar (Mongol) leader from ca. 1400, which has recently been discovered in Bulgaria’s Kaliakara Cape Fortress on the Black Sea coast, is a true testimony to the…

Gold, Silver Treasure Pot with Tatar Leader’s Plunder Discovered in Kaliakra Fortress on Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast

Gold, Silver Treasure Pot with Tatar Leader’s Plunder Discovered in Kaliakra Fortress on Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast

A clay treasure pot containing almost 1,000 gold and silver archaeological artifacts believed to have been looted by a Tatar (Mongol) leader, whose horde was eventually subjugated by the Ottomans ca. 1400, has been discovered during excavations in the Kaliakra…

Latest Finds from Nebet Tepe Fortress in Bulgaria’s Plovdiv: Roman Fortress Tower, Bronze Horse Harness Appliques, 2,000-Year-Old Wheat Barrel

Latest Finds from Nebet Tepe Fortress in Bulgaria’s Plovdiv: Roman Fortress Tower, Bronze Horse Harness Appliques, 2,000-Year-Old Wheat Barrel

A number of intriguing archaeological structures and artifacts have been found during the 2017 excavations of the Ancient Thracian and Ancient Roman Nebet Tepe Fortress in the southern Bulgarian city of Plovdiv, including a previously unknown Roman fortress tower, a…

Hoard of Byzantine Gold Coins Showcased Where Found, in Ancient Spa Resort Aquae Calidae – Thermopolis in Bulgaria’s Black Sea City Burgas

Hoard of Byzantine Gold Coins Showcased Where Found, in Ancient Spa Resort Aquae Calidae – Thermopolis in Bulgaria’s Black Sea City Burgas

A small hoard of Byzantine gold coins, which was discovered back in 2012 during the excavations of the ancient spa resort Aquae Calidae (called Thermopolis in the Middle Ages) in  Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Burgas, have now been showcased…

Archaeology in Bulgaria. and Beyond