Thracian provinces of the Roman Empire

This is a revised and supplemented edition of a dissertation, defended in 2015 at the Department of Archaeology of the Historical Faculty in Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.

The two-chambered updraught kiln is the most widespread and identifiable variant among the ceramic firing installations throughout the Mediterranean in Antiquity. Its popularity owes to its fine technical properties, as well as the long-established traditions in the manufacture of clay-made artefacts.
The present dissertation explores the development and distribution of the two-chambered ceramic kilns in the territory of modern Bulgaria during the 1st – 6th century. For that purpose, published and unpublished data for ceramic kilns is studied, from the time of their appearance in Thrace in the course of the Late Iron Age until the end of Late Antiquity. The catalogue comprises detailed information for 289 kilns dated to the Roman and Late Antique periods. The acquired data base provides ground for the identification of the construction techniques and materials used in the erection of these structures, and to distinguish those of the former which appeared in today’s Bulgarian lands after the Roman conquest. The developed typology for the two-chambered kilns under discussion is based on the floor plan of the combustion chamber and the type of support for the perforated floor. The last chapter of the dissertation is dedicated to the archaeologically attested production centres and workshops from the 1st – 6th century and includes an attempt for the clarification of the chronological limits of their operation, together with a proposition for a periodisation scheme of ceramic production in the considered time period.
Between the second half of the 1st and the beginning of the 7th century the two-chambered kilns were the most frequently used ceramic firing structures in today’s Bulgarian territory. The number of studied kilns from this chronological period is significantly larger in comparison to those from the previous and the next one – respectively the Late Iron Age and the Middle Ages. This fact could be explained with the considerable demand for fine and coarse wheel-made pottery during the Roman and the Late Antique periods, together with the large-scale urbanisation and fortification activities carried out in that time, which required a great amount of ceramic building material. The two-chambered updraught kilns were the optimal – and sometimes the only – variant for the firing of both types of goods.
The influences on the development and organisation of ceramic production in the 1st – 6th century owed to the infiltration of new population, the urbanisation projects carried out by central authorities, and, in general, to the incorporation of this craft in the Empire’s economy. Being intrinsic part of it, the manufacture of ceramic goods also experienced the negative effects of the multiple military conflicts in the studied time period, some of which may serve as chronological limits for certain phases of its development.

This paper discusses a few aspects of the hoard of Roman Republican denarii from Guljancy (RRCH 377) in Northern Bulgaria, now kept in the Czech National Museum in Prague. It is a large hoard of denarii comprising more than 464 coins. Of primary importance is the presence of two so called ‘Dacian’ imitations, two hybrid copies and six cast coins within the hoard. All ‘irregular’ coins are listed and briefly discussed in this paper. These coins made the hoard very stimulating for study since there are hardly any similar to it. A table of composition of the entire hoard complements the paper.

Този доклад е продължение (втора част) на лекцията озаглавена “Причерноморието – люлка на европейската цивилизация и Тракия като арийска сърцевина”, изнесена пред Международната научна конференция “Древна Тракия – сакрално и профанно. България, Балканите и Черноморската област”, Пловдив, 2019. Докато в първата част вниманието е фокусирано върху аргументи в полза на тезата за депресията, която днес е леглото на Черно море, като не само подслон за преживяване, но и “люлка” за създаване на генетичен резервоар благоприятстващ развитие на подслонената общност, втората част разглежда доказателствата за твърдението, че тук се развива бъдещата хронологически първа за човечеството цивилизация – тази на Арите (Арийците), които по-късно биват наричани също и Пеласги, Траки, Кимери, Илири и пр. Представени са няколко образци на урбанизирани общности на средна възраст около 7000 години, тоест, предхождащи всички други известни на човечеството. Представени са и оцелели във времето образци на протописменост, разпръснати преимуществено из Арийския континуум на Блаканите, тоест в ареала на Траките. В заключение е публикуван апел към всички – в научните среди, както и в кръговете на местния патриотизъм, за употреба на точна терминология, без ограниченията на политическата коректност и каквито и да е други съображения отвъд обективната реалност, за да се спрат спекулациите с нашето историческо и културно наследство.

Bu çalışmanın odağında tarihi Trakya ve onun günümüz Türkiye’si içerisinde kalan küçük bir bölümünü teşkil eden “Bizim Trakya’da” yaşayan, pek çok açıdan bu coğrafyayla özdeşleşmiş peripatetik  kökenli bir toplum olan Romanlar var. On yılı aşan öz-bilinçli bir temas ve 35 yıllık ömrümün izin verdiği doğal birliktelik süreçlerinin sonucunda zihnimde kalanları kullanarak Trakya Romanları ile ilgili mekân ve çalışma ilişkilerini temel alan genel bir profil çizmeye gayret gösterdim. Okuyacağınız metnin Trakya Romanları ile ilgili her şeyi kuşatan eksiksiz bir sonsöz değil, olsa olsa alanla yeni tanışan okur için daha derinlikli okuma ve temas imkanlarını kolaylaştıracak bir girizgâh olduğuna inanıyorum.

Актуализирана и обогатена версия на доклада, четен от автора пред ХХІІ Международен конгрес по византийски проучвания, София, 2011 г.) Въведение Както всеки обект от времето на Римската Империя, така и крепостта над Белчин предостави изобилен монетен материал и интересни нумизматични находки. Досега от археологическите проучвания (2008-2012 г.) на крепостта "Цари мали град" са известни над 600 (шестстотин) 2 броя римски и ранновизантийски монети, както и 4-5 тегловни мерки за тежест (екзагии).

This article summarizes the beginning and the earliest phase of the provincial coinage of the city Ulpia Pautalia in Western Thrace. As pointed out in previous numismatic studies (cf. Ruzicka 1932/33, 8; Grigorova 1998; RPC IV Online; Varbanov 2005), Pautalian coinage started in the reign of Antoninus Pius. More precisely – this happened in AD 155-158 during the term of Lucius (vel Aulus) Pompeius Vopiscus, as provincial governor of Thrace. The main reverse types of Pautalia struck under Antoninus Pius are listed above and illustrated on plate 1.
A special attention is given to both types of exceptionally rare medallions of Ulpia Pautalia struck under Pius. The first type is known so far in two specimens (Figs. 1-2) – one in the ANS collection in New York, published by Margaret Thompson (Thompson 1977, 29-36). She described it as “a remarkable example of medallic art”, and “perhaps the finest of known Greek Imperial medallions”. The medallion features a rare scene of Heracles presented with its club, a long torch and lion’s skin, drawn and pushed by two winged Erotes, behind them – a tall column surmounted by statue of Demeter holding torch and corn-ears.
The second medallion type under Pius is known in a single specimen - from the former collection of Thomas O. Mabbott (1898-1968) sold at Schulman sale in June 1969 (Fig. 3). Its reverse type is even more striking and complicated: two figures, one with sceptre (Dionysus
and Apollo?) standing in biga drawn by panthers to right, lead by Heracles; behind, a procession to right: consisting of torch-bearer, flute player, thyrsus-bearer and three other attendants.
Both types of Pautalian medallions demonstrate an exquisite style and fine craftsmanship which seriously defers from the typical provincial coinage production. This leads to the assumption they both were most probably made by a very experienced coin engraver, working in Rome or elsewhere.

The book attempts to present –for the first time in the international bibliography– a detailed description of the historical life of Abydos (Άβυδος) of Hellespont (Ελλήσποντος, Δαρδανέλλια); the latter was an important ancient and medieval Greek city, situated on the Asiatic shore of Dardanelles, at the once narrowest part of the local Straits (usually named "Stenon of Abydos") and in the surrounding area of the promontory of Nara (an Ottoman and modern Turkish naval base, where free access is prohibited). The monograph also detects the  relations between Abydos and other known settlements in the wider region of northwestern Asia Minor (Troad, Hellespont, Mysia, Hellespontine Phrygia).

Αbydos was founded predominantly as a colony of Miletus (ca. 680-650 BC) and had a continuous historical life that lasted about 2.000 years (mid. 7th c. BC - early 14th c. AD). The prosperous ancient city minted various coins between 6th c. BC - 3rd c. AD. Its lively port was used for centuries as a key point for the passage from Europe to Asia and the cruise from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea (and vice versa) as well as a major customs station ("telonion Abydou" during the Roman imperial years, "demosion teloneion" or "kommerkion" or "dekateuterion Abydou" during the medieval period of the city). Byzantine Abydos was also an important administrative center, a military and naval base and an ecclesiastical seat (bishopric and later metropolis).

However, the long and turbulent history of Abydos and its region is virtually unknown in modern years, despite the fact that the city's reputation was particularly widespread during ancient and medieval times in the Mediterranean world. Moreover, for many reasons noted in the book, the settlement does not exist archaeologically in the last two centuries. In short, Abydos constitutes a very interesting case of a virtually lost city during the modern times.

For various reasons, also described in the book, the importance of Abydos had declined during the 13th c. AD and the city was finally abandoned by its population in the early 14th c. AD., mainly because of the Turkish threat in the area. From mid. 15th c. AD the new city of Çanakkale was established gradually (initially named as Kale-i Sultaniye) 5-6 km to the south of Abydos. The ruins of the abandoned urban area of ​​the latter have been systematically pillaged -mainly for construction and other purposes- between the 14th - early 19th c. AD.

For the reconstruction of  the long historical life of Abydos (mid. 7th c. BC - early 14th c. AD) and an in-depth analysis of its numerous and largely unknown institutions, the study relies though on the information providing by the written (ancient and medieval) texts but also on the scarce and dispersed epigraphic and the much richer numismatic (the city minted coins between 6th c. BC - 3rd c. AD) and sigillographic data and other archaeological findings regarding (or deriving from) the city. It also takes into account all the contemporary related publications.

[VANIAS publications,  Thessaloniki 2017,  752 pages,  ISBN: 978-960-288-342-6,  text in Greek language with an English summary]

This paper aims to challenge our knowledge on the coinage of the enigmatic Mostis, king of south-eastern Thrace in the late second to early first century BC. Important questions about the identity, chronology and localisation of his kingdom will be targeted. An updated die study of the available silver tetradrachms of Mostis (only 20 specimens are known) will be presented together with a particular focus on his bronze coinage. Issues on the provenance and distribution of bronzes with a review of the main types, whose countermarking was hitherto unrecorded, from known collections and new finds will be touched on also. In my view a thorough study on the monograms applied on the coins of Mostis set against the distribution record from Aegean Thrace and the western Black Sea area might allow suggesting a new localisation of the mint for his coinage.

Sundials in Roman and Byzantine Mosaics (1st – 9th Century AD). A scientific monograph. The sundials on ancient mosaics have not been the subject of scientific studies so far. The author has gathered together  in this  publication  the sundials  already known (Torre Anunzaiata, Sarsina, Trier, Saint-Romain-en-Gal, Antioch and Brading; Figs. 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9) and those which have  not  previously  been  identified.  Thanks  to  the author’s  new  identifcations,  the  catalogue  has  been enlarged  by  six  new  sundials (Grand,Tarsus, Antiochia – interpreted by H. Pamir; Figs.  3, 6,  8, and 10. Tayibat al-Imam, Jerusalem and Umm al-Rasas (Sebastis); Figs. 10, 11, 12) and three monumental gnomes-columns with multiple functions that were used as monumental sundials [Madaba (Jerusalem), Umm al-Rasas (Kastron Mefaa) and Rome (Jerusalem); Figs. 13–15]. In addition, recognizing fully John H. Humphrey’s  interpretations,  the  author  enriches  the catalogue  by  eight  ancient  mosaic  representations  of obelisks in  circuses (Lyon, Barcelona, Volubilis, Piazza Armerina - two mosaics, Girona, Carthage and Gafsa; Figs.  16–23).  They  performed the roles of monumental sundials. In this way, the catalogue includes  twenty-three  mosaics with  the representations of sundials. They come from the Western and Eastern Provinces of the Roman Empire. The first mosaic is dated to the beginning of the 1st century AD and the last dates to the 9th century AD. The author, after  a  short  description  of each monument,  summarizes the issue discussing the role of sundials in Roman and Byzantine society, their complex signifcance and symbolic dificult linked with the progress of time on which nature and human life are dependent. See Pdf : https://www.academia.edu/22653583/

This chapter provides a selective review of the numismatic evidence from the Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic periods in Thrace, offering a point of departure for future study. The main denominations and issuing authorities of coins, which appeared in Thrace from the late sixth to late first centuries BCE, are summarized, with emphasis on the hoard evidence. The main historical and socio-cultural issues that have emerged from the nature of the coinage and the mechanisms of its circulation are considered. Thracian royal and tribal coinages are briefly outlined and depicted statistically in tables and charts. A plate with a selection of coins, tables of minting cities and kings in Thrace, and informative stemmata are provided to assist the reader.

In the recent years two bronze coins of king Sadalas II wеre offered at the coin market in Europe. These were the following:
1. AE 13 mm, 2.55 g - Savoca Coins, 19th Blue Auction (20 April 2019), no. 185; Fig. 1.
2. AE 16 mm, 2.97 g - Roma Numismatics E-sale 74 (20 August 2020), no. 26, ex W. M. Stancomb collection; Fig. 2.
Both coins are of the single royal type known for Sadalas II (see Youroukova 1976, 40-41, nos. 149-152; Юрукова 1992, 178-180, nos. 144-146; Peykov 2011, 104, no. C6300). Coins listed above are countermarked on obverse behind the royal head with a small triangular stamp. The countermark itself is a monogram of 3 Greek letters - O, Δ and H. The letter H is inscribed in the larger Δ, and the lowercase O is attached to the top left of the triangle. The second countermark has been earlier interpreted as the letters О and Λ (see W. Stancomb, “Some Countermarked and Overstruck Hellenistic Coins from the Region of the Thracian Bosporos”, Numismatic Chronicle 167, 2007, p. 32), being more unclear and filled with soil and patina.
No doubt, both countermarks applied on Sadalas bronzes (Fig. 3) reveal the abbreviated name of the city of Odessos (today Varna), as it is known from earlier civic issues – the Alexander type tetradrachms struck at Odessos in the 3rd-1st century BC.

A comprehensive catalogue of 1,228 ancient coins from the Blagoevgrad Museum collection in Southwestern Bulgaria (region Pirin Macedonia), arranged according to the S[ylloge] N[umorum] G[raecorum] principles.  First time publication and discussion of few important Greek / Hellenistic hoards as:
• IGCH 720 – Skrebatno I 1962 (197 Thasos: 3 drachms and 194 trihemiobols);
• Skrebatno II 1989 (192 Thasos: 13 drachms and 166 trihemiobols);
• Hotovo 1975 (105 Macedonian bronzes: 1 Philip II and 104 Alexander III);
• Gotse Delchev area 1995 (48 tetradrachms – 25 Athens New style and 23 Thasos);
• Bogolin 1989 (285+ Celtic imitations of type ‘Strymon head/trident’);
• CH 6.88 - Gotse Delchev area 1977 (11 Republican denarii),
• Dolna Ribnitsa 1988, Petrich area - 19+ Roman Imperial and provincial bronzes and 2 denarii of Trajan;
• Dobrinishte 1988, Razlog area: 20 tetrobols of Histiaea;
• and few others.
The site find coins from Skaptopara, from Rupite (Heraclea Sintica), the sanctuary at Babyak and other sites (356 in total) in Southwest Bulgaria, complement the new volume.

In March 2021 the coin company Roma Numismatics based in London auctioned in his sale XXI under lot 1428 a very rare Thracian royal coin – drachm of king Rhoemetalces I with Augustus struck at Byzantium about 10 BC, the type being known as RPC I 1775. This is the reason for this paper – a full reassessment of the available data. Here is a list of all known specimens:
1. 3.57 g, 17/18 mm, worn, scratches – Vienna, KHM GR-9479 = Eckhel 1786, p. 82, pl. VIII, 1 = Schönert-Geiss 1972, 1304.2;
2. 3.74 g, 19 mm, 12h – Berlin Münzsammlung, 18211382 (from A. Löbbecke 1906) = Schönert-Geiss 1972, 1302 = RPC I 1775/2;
3. 3.16 g, 16/18.5 mm, 12 h, edge broken – London BM, 1910,0712.1 (from M. Roussos) = Mouchmov 1927, no. 197, pl. 7 = Schönert-Geiss 1972, 1303 = RPC I 1775/1;
4. 3.26 g, 18/19 mm, pierced at 4 h – Hermitage, St. Petersburg, no. N/A = Imhoof-Blumer 1898, 17, no. 11 = Schönert-Geiss 1972, 1304.1;
5. 3.68 g, 19/21 mm, 12h – Odessa Museum, before 1898 = Imhoof-Blumer 1898, 17, no. 10 = Schönert-Geiss 1972, 1305;
6. 3.80 g, 18 mm – Odessa Museum (from Tyras excavation in 1957/8) = Диамант 1982, 114-115, pl. 8, 16;
7. 3.91 g, 18/19 mm – NHM-Sofia, no. 26716, ex Z. D. Demirev collection = Рогалски 1976, 13-14, fig. 4; Йорданов 2016, 49-54, pl. 4.10;
8. 3.42 g, 21 mm – Nova Zagora Museum (Sadievo 1968 hoard) = Youroukova 1976, 56, no. 169, pl. 22 = Youroukova 1992, no. 151.
Seven more specimens appeared on the coin auction market since 2001, as follows:
9. 3.39 g, worn, corroded – CNG 58 (18 September 2001), no. 914 = CNG 60 (22 May 2002), no. 1199;
10. 2.67 g, 20 mm, corroded – Numismatik Lanz 117 (24 November 2003), no. 513;
11. 3.93 g, 12 h, FDC – Per Olav Engeset coll., Oslo, Norway, ex CNG Triton XIII (5 January 2010), no. 308;
12. 3.84 g – Gerhard Hirsch Nachf. 296 (13 February 2014), no. 2076;
13. 3.82 g, 19 mm – Numismatik Lanz 159 (8 December 2014), no. 331 = Mike R. Vospers Coins, Brandon UK, VCoins online sale (2 June 2015); 14. 3.68 g., 18 mm, 12h – from the collection of W. F. Stoecklin, Amrisvil, Switzerland, acquired before 1975 – Nomos AG, obolos 9 (25 March 2018), no. 137; 15. 3.50 g, 17 mm, 12h – Roma Numismatics XXI (24 March 2021), no. 142.
Furthermore, questions about the date of issue, the mint of Byzantium and its historical context are discussed within this paper.

"This paper treats all available coins found in the ancient town of Kabyle in Thrace – dating from the Late Hellenistic period to the time of Trajan. They originated from the site itself – both as stray finds before the start of regular excavations in 1972 as well as afterwards from the controlled digs (altogether 35 coins). The second part of this study deals with the contemporary coins from the hinterland of Kabyle – Yambol and its district (66 coins in all), at present all kept in the Regional Historical Museum at Yambol.
Kabyle in south Thrace was a flourishing Thracian and early Hellenistic town (fig. 1, plan) as early as in the mid-4th century BC (Danoff 1967, col. 39; von Bredow 1999, col. 128; Archibald 2004, 893-894), re-founded as a Macedonian colony under Philip II. During the first half of the 3rd century it has been the seat of the local Thracian rulers Skostoces and Spartocos. During the same period the mint of Kabyle struck intensive series in bronze (Драганов, Попов 1983, 18-39; Draganov 1993) and rare silver tetradrachms of Alexander type (with the civic symbol ‘statue of Artemis Phosphoros’) and in the name of the Celtic chieftain Cavarus (Gerassimov 1958, 273-277; Draganov 1984, 94-109; Price 1991, nos. 882-889; Draganov 1993, 75-86).
What is known about the history of Kabyle before the Romans is very scarce and fragmentary. The town was not in good condition at the arrival of M. Terentius Varro Lucullus’ army in 72 BC (sources: Salust., Hist. frg. 3. 51 and 4. 18; Liv., Per. 97; Florus, 1. 39; App., Illyrica 5. 30;, Festus, Brev., 9. 2-4), Orosius, 6, 3. 4; and Jord., Rom. 221; comments in Жуглев 1966, 245; Велков 1993, 130). Sometime between AD 127 and 136 under Hadrian a military camp (castra) of cohors II Lucensium was established here, well attested in a series of Latin inscriptions (Velkov 1989, 247-250; Велков 1991, 3-17, nos. 4-5, 12-15, 18-19), but the adjacent settlement by the camp indeed had no civic status or territory (Velkov 1978, 433-439; Велков 1991, 17; Боянов 2008, 212–213).
Until now, no coins of the Late Hellenistic or early Principate period are published from Kabyle. The only exception is a single uncial as of Augustus, found along with other late Roman coins in basilica no. 1 (Димитров 1982, 160, no. 10). Nonetheless, the regular archaeological excavations at Kabyle produced a substantial coin assemblage which would greatly expand our knowledge when studied. After a detailed examination and review of the museum holdings in the Yambol museum, the following picture emerged.
A summary list of the Republican issues is given in table 1 (nos. 1-12). One could envisage the following observations: The site of Kabyle produced no less than 12 silver coins of this period: 8 denarii, 3 quinarii and 1 cistophoric tetradrachm (fig. 3, cat. no. 11). So far this is the largest extant numismatic assemblage from a Thracian site of the 2nd–1st century BC. The reasons for the presence of Republican quinarii from Kabyle are considered; and a plausible historical interpretation is offered.
Coins from the early Principate are listed in table 2 (nos. 13-35). Table 3 (nos. 13-17) and the next paragraphs discusses five aes coins (two halved) – asses of Augustus for Asia, struck at Ephesus in ca. 27-23 BC (type RPC I, 2235), all from regular excavations. A possibility that the Augustan coins may reveal a Roman military presence (before Hadrian) on site is considered.
Further, the review of all extant contemporary coins found in the region of Yambol follows – cat. nos. 36-101 (table 4). It includes 9 Republican issues, 1 ‘Dacian’ imitation of Republican denarius, and 52 early Principate issues. A matter of particular numismatic interest is a plated tetrobol of Massalia in Gaul from the period 121–82 BC (cat. no. 40 = Depeyrot 1999, type 47), sadly without known provenance. Stray coins are mapped (fig. 3) so they clearly indicate the settlement pattern along the Tundzha/Tonzos middle course in early Imperial era.
The extant coin evidence of Kabyle from the period under study features a regular and stable coin supply. In fact, it presents a strong proof that life and activities at the site of Kabyle were not interrupted (as some authors argued, contra Попов 2005, 611).""

So far, the region of Sevlievo in Roman times has not been a subject of separate study. The presence of numerous finds, including epigraphic monuments, data on the presence of settlements and roads, provokes the interest in systemising the known information. Following the analysis, a number of conclusions can be drawn. In this article the lands of modern sites which now, but not so far have belonged to Sevlievo region, are included in spite of a broader survey of the topic (Fig. 1).
It is still a matter of debate whether the region of Sevlievo plain and the upper basin of the Rositsa river belonged to the Thracian strategy system. The hypothesis put forward by M. Tacheva that the region is part of the Ryusike (Pυσική) strategy has rather purely formal phonetic grounds.
Other authors are of the opinion that the Vidima and Rositsa rivers valleys are part of the Usdikesyke (Oὐσδικησική) strategy. The reasons for this are the geographic location of the area after Sardike (Σαρδική) strategy in Claudius Ptolemy, and the CIL VI 32582 inscription from Rome, which reports four Praetorians with Thracian names originating from the village of Agatapara in civitas Usdicensis. The inscription is relatively late for the existence of a Thracian tribal centre without an urban settlement – 3rd c.
Some researchers identify the famous civitas Ausdecensium from the reading of an inscription found near Tropaeum Traiani in Dobruja, which mentions civitas Usdicensis from CIL VI 32582 from Rome, while B. Gerov is of the opinion that the two civitates are different.
According to other authors, the area of Nicopolis ad Istrum is not included in the Thracian strategy system.
It is problematic whether The Sevlievo plain belongs to the administrative territory of the above-mentioned city. According to B. Gerov, the buleuta from the Damyanovo village (ILBulg 406) is related to the civitas Usdicensis, while E. Poulter is of the opinion that the deceased is a member of the city council of Nicopolis ad Istrum. The presence of another buleuta in the region of Sevlievo could serve to support E. Poulter's hypothesis. Probably, the buleutae from Damyanovo (ILBulg 406) and Sevielvo (ILBulg 406) lived in their estates in these areas, serving their administrative position at Nicopolis ad Istrum. The stable presence in Sevlievo of coins minted in Nicopolis ad Istrum, as well as the use of dolomitic limestone for the manufacture of sepulchral monuments, architectural details, votive monuments, monolithic details, etc. and the existence of a quarry for this type of stone (Koevtsi), which has connections with Nicopolis ad Istrum, are indirect evidences of the belonging of the Sevlievo plain and certain parts of the hills surrounding it to the administrative territory of the City of Victory.
In case the Sevlievo plain belongs to the territory of Nicopolis ad Istrum from the second century, it would mean that the region is part of the province of Thrace until 193, similar to the Sostra castrum near Lomets, Troyan region. It is possible for the provincial boundary from 136 to 193 to run along the northern periphery of the Predbalkan mountain range to the watershed between the rivers Lomya (right tributary of Osam River) and Rositsa, then along the Lomya River to curve along the line Butovo (ILBulg 429 ) – Maslarevo (ILBulg 358) – Polski Senovets (ILBulg 390) – Hotnitsa (ILBulg 386) to “fence” the territory of one of the two northernmost cities of the province of Thrace – Nicopolis ad Istrum.
The analysis of the available epigraphic and other data for the middle basin area of the Rositsa River and the other rivers connected with the Sevlievo plain shows that there is no data to link with Early Roman presence during the time of Flavii, as B. Gerov suggests, followed by other researchers. The supposed by the above mentioned author worship of the gens Flavii in ILBulg 399 inscription is hard to prove because here the case is probably for a devotee named Aurelius Flavius. The earliest data from the region is a burial mound grave complex from the village of Ryahovtsite, the date of which is at the end of the 1st c. – the beginning of 2nd c. The four coin hoards from the time of Emperors Trajan (98–117) and Hadrian (117–138) are also approximately of that time. The rest of the other dated materials, such as those originating from settlements and non-contextual ones, date back to the middle of the 2nd century and mainly from the end of the 2nd – the middle of the 3rd century, are evidences the most intense inhabitation in Sevlievo by the Romans. The single coin finds and coin hoards show almost no activity after the Gothic invasions in the middle of the 3rd  century. The latest evidence of the presence during the Roman era is the Sennik-1935 coin hoard, buried probably during the reign of Emperor Aurelian (270–275).
Almost all of the 26 coin hoard are from the 3rd century, with only four of the early 2nd century (eventually from the end of the 1st century). It is noteworthy that during the invasions of Trajan Decius (249–251) most treasures were hidden in the region of Dimcha, Suhindol, Kramolin and Sevlievo, which shows that the valley of the Rositsa River had an important place among the roads of the region.
On the banks of the Rositsa river, it is likely that there is a road passing from Nicopolis ad Istrum to the Sevlievo plain and from there to Rusaliyski pass and Augusta Traiana with branches for Sostra and the Troyan pass along the Vidima valley. It is a problem that the roads in Sevlievo have been traced mainly by the Late antique fortresses, and it is not clear whether the routes are identical to the communications in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, when there were still no fortified settlements or fortified hill sites located on natural heights . To the south, the road is probably entering the Sevlievo plain near the village of Gradnitsa in the valley of the Boazka river, after which it is heading to the town of Sevlievo with many branches.
From Sevlievo the road probably does not continue directly on the river Rositsa, because in the Dardanelli gorge (today in Alexander Stamboliiski Reservoir). The latter is narrow and with vertical rocks and it makes it unsuitable for crossing (Fig. 5.1). On the basis of the submitted data on settlements, collective coin finds and observations of the terrain, it can be assumed that the road passes through the villages of Petko Slaveykov, Gradishte, Agatovo, Kramolin, Koevtsi, and from the last along the Dirmendzhika stream valley (Vodenishka) descends to the valley of the Rositsa River at Suhindol.
Another possible option is to move as the old road along the route of the Alexander Stamboliyski Reservoir from Sevlievo to Suhindol and Pavlikeni through the village of Debeltsovo (Fig. 5), then along Gorsko Kosovo to reach Suhindol on the left bank again of the Rositsa River. The concentration of archaeological sites on the first proposed route (Fig. 1), as well as the presence of a limestone quarry and a workshop for monolithic details, rather testify to its advantage. Both hypothetical routes reach the left bank of the Rositsa River in the city of Suhindol where, if not located the emporium Piretensium, a road station or sanctuary can be expected.
At. Milchev suggested that a road passes from Novae to Augusta Traiana through the village of Dobromirka.
Along the road net in the Sevlievo Field and the nearby heights were inhabited by civilians, some of whom are owners or managers of villas, such as Flavius Gemelius and his agent Herculanus from the vicinity of Kramolin (ILBulg 403). Although there are two epigraphic monuments reporting military presence of active military servants from the First Italic and Seventh Claudian legions, there are still no settled veterans in the area, existence of which can not excluded in future findings.
Of particular importance for the settlement network in the region is its passage character, making the connection between the Danube Plain and the Predbalkan mountain to the Rusaliyski Pass (Fig. 1). Although partly as a result of the state of research, the concentration of Roman era finds and sites is distinctive for the area of Kramolin, Suhindol, Dimcha and Varbovka, that is to say the beginning of the Rositsa valley. The rest that are located in the Sevlievo plain, have a similar topography – along roads and passages at the foot of the hills. The central location of this system is the emporium Piretensium (near Gorsko Kosovo, Suhindol?) and the stone quarry and workshop for monumental details near the village of Koevtsi. An important next point outside of the region is the other trade place along the western limits of the territory of Nicopolis ad Istrum – Discoduraterae near the village of Slaveykovo (known so far as in the lands Gostilitsa), Dryanovo region.

This study presents an analysis about the rain-making ritual from Romania, called Paparuda, performed in the spring and in times of severe drought. The ritual is common also in the Slavic folklore, with the same structure. In this study, I will try to demonstrate that the origin of the rain-making ritual Paparuda/Dodola is Thracian, and South Slavic tribes from Balkans adopted the ritual from the Thracians. The ritual is present almost in the entire Balkan Peninsula, especially in the area inhabited by Slavs, which was Thracian before the Slavic migration from 6th century.

Thrace had the potential to field huge numbers of troops, and the Thracian way of warfare had a huge influence on Classical Greek and Hellenistic warfare. Many examples of weapons and armour have been found in Thracian sites.. After Thrace was conquered by the Romans, the Thracians provided a ready source of tough auxiliaries to the Roman army.

This book gives an overview of Thracian history and culture, but focuses predominantly on their warfare and weapons. The latest archaeological finds are used to give the most detailed and accurate picture yet of their arms, armour and costume. He identifies and differentiates the many different tribes, showing that their weapons and tactics varied. The resulting study is of interest to anyone interested in the archaeology and history of the region or in classical warfare as a whole.

CONTENTS
------------------

PREFACE
INTRODUCTION
THE SOURCES

HISTORICAL OUTLINE
The Sixth Century
The 5th Century
The 4th Century
The 3rd and 2nd Centuries BC: The Beginning of the Roman era
The 2nd and 1st centuries: the end of Thracian independence.The End of the Thracians

THRACIAN COSTUME
Classical and Archaic Thracians
Thracian costume of the Hellenistic and Roman eras

ARMOUR
Helmets
Body Armour
North Thracian Armour
Greaves
Shields
New Shields

WEAPONS
Swords & Knives
The Bronze Age and earlier
Knives
Swords
The Iron Age
Long Swords
The Akinakes
The Machaira, or kopis, and other Thracian curved swords
The Sica - sword or rhomphaia?
The Rhomphaia
Spears & Javelins
Axes
Catapaults
Bows and Arrows
Slings and Staff Slings
Clubs
Unconventional weapons – Carts and spiked axles - The defence of the Shipka Pass

THE THRACIAN ARMY
Thracian Armies – size and composition
The Bronze Age
Chariots
Cavalry
Early Thracian cavalry
Heavy Cavalry
Light Cavalry
Light Cavalry Shields
Thracian Horses
Later cavalry developments
Spurs
Lances
Saddles and Saddle Cloths
Cavalry Shields, swords, and the shift back to javelins
Hamippoi
Infantry
Slingers
Archers
Javelinmen
Peltasts
Long Spears
Later Infantry Developments
The Peltast in the Fourth Century
The Iphicratean reforms
Thureophoroi
Thorakitai
The Thracian army in Britain
Cohors I Thracvm Cohors II Thracvm
Cohors VII Thracvm Alae Primae Thracvm

MILITARY ORGANISATION
Thracian Formations
The navy “Thrace, the Final Frontier” – The Military Geography of Thrace

FORTIFICATIONS

BATTLES AND TACTICS
Sitalces’ invasion of Macedonia, 429 BC (Thucydides 2.100)
The 10,000 in Thrace -Seuthes' rebellion, 400 BC (Anabasis 7.3.4 -7.7.57).
The Triballia attack Abdera, 376 BC (Diodorus Siculus XV. 36. 1-5)
Order of battle
Alexander’s invasion, 335 BC (Arrian 1.1.6)
Order of Battle
The Battle of the Lyginus River, 335 BC (Arrian 1.2-1.3)
Order of Battle
The Battle of Raphia 217 BC
The Battle of Cynoscephalae (197 BC) – “Peltasts in the Mist
The Battle of Magnesia (190 BC) and its aftermath.
The prelude to the battle,:
The Thracians in the battle
After the battle of Magnesia: The Thracians ambush the Roman army
Order of Battle
The Thracians attack the Galatians on “Mt Olympus” (Livy 37.21-23)
The Battles of Kallinikos (171 BC) and Pydna (168 BC)
The Battle of Kallinikos, 171 BC (Livy 42.57-60.1)
The Battle of Pydna (168 BC) and the Pydna Monument
Thracian tactics

THRACIAN TRIBES
Bessi
The Bisaltai
Bithynia and the Bithynians
- Chronology
- Introduction
- History
- The Bithynian Army
Dii
Getai
The Moesi/Mysians
Odomanti
Odrysai
Paeonians
The Agrianians
The Thyni
The Triballi

GLOSSARY
Abbreviations used in the Notes
BIBLIOGRAPHY
-Ancient Sources
-Modern Sources
-Other References
-CD-ROM
-Video
INDEX

In 1999 trial excavations were carried out on a fortified hill located in the neighbourhood Tsarkva, the town of Pernik, Western Bulgaria. The site is located on the provincial road Serdica–Pautalia–Stobi and could be interpreted as a small late Roman and early Byzantine fort (fig. 1). It yielded a number of archaeological finds and 14 coins, the subject of this communication. They can be divided by issuing authority as follows:
 
No. Period / issuer Date Number
1. Roman Provincial  2nd-3rd c. AD 5
2. Late Roman 4th c. AD 2
3. Early Byzantine 6th c. AD 6
4. Modern, Bulgaria Early 20th c. 1

All coins are minted of base metal, 13 in bronze and 1 zinc (modern). The Roman provincial coins (cat. nos. 1-5) are issues of the cities in Thrace – 2 Philippopolis (1 Pius and 1 Commodus) and 1 Pautalia (Septimius for Geta), 1 of Nicaea Bithyniae (Severus Alexander), plus one illegible. 
The late Roman coins (cat. nos. 6-7) are two billon nummi of Constantine I and his son Constantine II Caesar, struck at Siscia mint in the 320’s AD. They both were found in stratified context dating the first construction level of the late Roman fort. 
The early Byzantine pieces enumerate 6 coins (cat. nos. 9-13). They are all large copper denominations of 40 and 20 nummi, but one 16 nummi piece of Thessalonika mint. The last two coins of Justinian I are dated respectively to AD 537 and 536/7–542, thus forming a precise terminus of the destruction/abandonment of the fort at Gradishte-Pernik around the middle of the 6th century AD.   
The last coin is a modern 20-stotinki issue of 1917 and is extraneous of the ancient site.

In the proposed paper are collected and analyzed all of the currently available literary, epigraphical and archaeological evidences about Bessapara in Ancient Thrace (sought near the modern town of Pazardzhik). On this basis some observations on the most important issues from the history of that settlement are formulated, such as etymology of its name, status and localization.

"Unpublished MA-thesis, Sofia University, 1997, 286 pp, 129 plates, 2 maps [in Bulgarian].
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Реших да кача тук тази неиздадена магистърска теза от СУ по няколко причини.
Първо, сантиментални.
Второ, тя показва извършена сериозна изследователска работа, преди вече цели 14 години, в съвсем други информационни условия и тотална липса на научна литература.
Трето, докато я преглеждах тези дни – забелязах с радост (както бе написал и рецензента ми тогава), че тя значително надвишава изискванията за магистърска студентска работа (особено, като знаем добре какви нескопосани и компилирани/преписани докторати се защитиха в България в последните 10-на години!). А на мен докторат по темата и интересите ми в България - не ми бе позволено да напиша/завърша от определени лица. Нищо де, защитих си го с далеч по-големи усилия, време и разходи навън - във Великобритания. 
Четвърто – тези колективни находки на римски монети не са публикувани и досега на български език. Английското издание се осъществи в обогатен вариант в Милано, 2002 г. (вж. пак в Academia, съвместно с И. Прокопов).
Пето и основно – голяма част от включените в тази работа монетни находки с републикански денари от СЗ България вече не съществуват физически. Изобщо. Те липсват завинаги, особено след големия обир (но странно останал "неразкрит") на Врачанския музей през 2002-3 г.
Така че, тази дипломна работа е живо документално свидетелство за тези загубени монетни съкровища, докато още ги имаше физически у нас.
Прочее, приятно четене и преглеждане!"

Pramatarov, K. 2020: The Roman Age in Lovech Region.- In: Archaeological Research in Lovech Region: Past and Present, NAIM-BAS, Sofia, 2020, 152-167.

АРХЕОЛОГИЧЕСКИ проучвания в Ловешко : минало и настояще / Христо Попов ... [и др.] ; ред. Христо Попов ... [и др.] = Archaeological research in Lovech region : past and present / Hristo Popov ... [и др.] ; ed. Hristo Popov ... [и др.] ; transl. Kaloyan Pramatarov ... [и др.]. - София : Нац. археолог. институт с музей БАН, 2020 ([София] : Алианс принт). - 208 с. : с цв. ил. ; 25 см. - (Поредица Национален археологически музей - каталози, ISSN 2367-8860 ; т. 19).

The site known as Lesicheri pillar has focused scientific attention about 200 years. It is situated to the Southeast of the village of Lesicheri. The site lays on an elevated terrain on the Rositsa river valley (Fig. 1). There is a still standing 12.6 m high obelisk, the remains of a second one, a stone built platform and the foundations of a rectangular building (Fig. 2). A big tumulus is situated Southeast of the above mentioned remains and a never dry up spring called Salpenska cheshma is situated not far to the North. A four area Roman 2nd – 4th c. settlement structure lies to the West and North of the pillar.
The freestanding pillar is the highest funeral monument from the Roman Era in Bulgaria with its height of 12.6 m. The foundations of another pillar are located near it (Fig. 2, Fig. 21, Fig. 23). The site is known as Lesicheri Pillar, but is also known as Markov kamak/Markovi kamani, Dikilitaš (“a stone driven in the ground” in Turkish), Stalbo, Salpa. The first name, Lesicherski stalb, has gained currency acceptance.
The first mention of the monument was made by th Bulgarian intellectual Petko Rachev Slaveykov. In a letter to Nikolay Palauzov, dated May 2nd 1895, the author described the ancient ruins near the village of Nikyup and a monument near the village of Yalari (Golyamo Yalare – today Rusalya), surrounded by two or three big mounds. P. Slaveykov wrongly associated the ruins of Nicopolis ad Istrum with the medieval Nikopol – a residence of Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Shishman. He also wrongly interpreted the burial mounds of the Roman city as a military camp of king Sigismund of Luxembourg and the Lesicheri Pillar as a monument for the victory in the Battle of Nikopol in 1396, because of the many bones unearthed by the ploughing of the fields. Of importance is that the author was the first to give the name of the monument – Dikilitaš (“a stone driven in the ground”) and also noted that some called it “Markovi kamanie”.
Six years later (1871) the Austro-Hungarian traveler Felix Kanitz visited the ruins near Nikyup and confirmed that they belong to Nicopolis ad Istrum with the discovery of an inscription, mentioning the name of the city. During this trip F. Kanitz passed by the Lesicheri Pillar in June that year calling it Dikilitaš near the village of Yalare. The author also noted that in the vicinity of the Pillar there were many architectural details, among them the ruins of the second pillar, ruins of a building with reliefs and partially survived two inscriptions, known only from his description, because their location is unknown today. One of the inscriptions mentions that Quintus Julius (according to Karel Skorpil) or Claudius Valens (according to Georgi Mihaylov) built while living and with a healthy mind a monument or a tomb (?) or a temple (?) in his honor and the honor of his parents. It’s clear from the inscriptions that Quintus Julius/Claudius Valens was a member of the boule (city council), most likely of Nicopolis ad Istrum, and a priest, serving the cult of the goddess Roma, personifying the city of Rome. This shows that he held a high rank in the local society. F. Kanitz left also a sketch, two engravings and one water color of the ruins (Fig. 3 – 6).
An author under the pseudonym “Iv. P-v” wrote about Dikilitaš in an article in the “Napredak” newspaper, dated June 5th 1875. He described in short the Pillar, referring it to the village of Rusalya and also wrote about the ruins of the Western aqueduct of Nicopolis ad Istrum. The author was the first to publish the legend of the construction of the Pillar and the aqueduct.
According to the legend there were two heroes, who were in love with the same girl. They were called Krali Marko and Deli-Belyu Kusturyanina. They both wanted to marry her and so they decided to make a competition for her love. Krali Marko had to build a tower to the sky, while Deli-Belyu had to make a watermill near Nikyup, bringing water underground from the Peshter(sk)a river, flowing near the village of Musina.
Krali Marko was working hard and was ahead of his foe. However the girl loved Deli-Belyu more and decided to play a trick on Krali Marko. She invited him to lie on her knees to rest, and he accepted, lied down and fell asleep… Meanwhile his opponent finished the watermill, the water started flowing and Krali Marko woke up suddenly from the noise and unintentionally kicked the tower and destroyed a part of it, leaving only about 25 arsins standing (1 arsin = 68.75 cm).
The site was visited by Tsar Boris III (1894 – 1943) in 1931 during a tour of Northern Bulgaria. Evidence of that are two photographs (owned by Kristiyan Antonov) from March 1931 (Fig. 11, Fig. 12). The Tsar is in the company of his bodyguard Sirko Stanchev and an officer. It’s likely that the photographer is prince Kyril of Preslav.
Descriptions of the site were made by the brothers Karel and Hermann Skorpil (Fig. 9, Fig. 10), the archaeologist Ivan Velkov, the epigraphers Georges Seure and Veselin Beshevliev (Fig. 13), the numismatist Todor Gerasimov and others. The latter interpreted the building next to the pillars as a temple of the Thracian horseman – an interpretation, corrected with the first archaeological excavations (Fig. 14).
The excavations were led by Ivan Tsarov from 1987 until 1990. The foundations of the second pillar were discovered along with a square building, parts of architectural details and parts of marble statues of a lion and the Thracian horseman. The excavations were preceded by a geophysical survey made by Patrick Strange of Nottingham University. I. Tsarov interpreted the pillars as parts of a funeral and cult complex – heroon, in which the remains of deified local nobles were interred.
In the 90-es of the 20th c. an intensive Bulgarian-British field survey and geophysical research was done by A. Poulter and M. Boyd. A lot of information has been collected for the function and the planning of the site (Fig. 18 – 21).
The most detailed research after the primary publication of excavations was made by archaeologists Milena Raycheva and Daniel Delchev (Fig. 23, Fig. 24). According to them the Lesicheri Pillar can be defined as a funeral monument. They list many similar monuments with the most comparable being Dikilitaš in Iznik, Turkey.
The site is an immovable cultural property of national importance, registered in the State Gazette as number 23 in the 69th edition in 1927 as “The tower nearby the village of Yalari”. It is also registered as number 65 in the 78th edition in 1968 as “ruins of an ancient pillar”. Then its location is given in the region of Lesicheri, “Markov stalb” place name, 2 km south. Nowadays the majestic monument is one of the main landmarks in the cultural and historical heritage of Pavlikeni municipality and it deserves proper socialization and preservation for the future generations (Fig. 25 – 31, Ill. 1 – 4).

This article is an attempt to portray the main problems and numismatic patterns of the two major discoveries of ancient coins (ca. 3,500) from Aquae Calidae in Thrace (today’s Burgaski mineralni bani in Bulgaria), a sacred spring with mineral baths and a sanctuary of the Three Nymphs. The first was made during the modern cleaning of the mineral head in 1910 and besides the initial reports of Bogdan Filow, it remains unpublished. The second find took place in 1994 and is relatively better reported. My current aim is to emphasize on the 1st c. BC – 1st c. AD coins – late Thracian and early Roman issues from both finds, which are available for study and provide valuable insight. At Aquae Calidae as well at other similar sites coins were thrown by people deliberately as an act of piety in gratitude for their healing. Along with the coins were found numerous other small votive objects, such as fibulae, finger-rings, gems and cameos, crosses, bone combs, hair-pins and spoons. The nature and variety of coins of Augustan period reveals the average type of spa visitors – most likely Roman soldiers. Aquae Calidae was visited by local people of Thrace and Moesia but also from Macedonia, Greece, and Asia Minor. Coin evidence strongly suggests that the Roman baths at Aquae Calidae were constructed quickly after the establishment of Thrace as a province, most likely under Nero. After Nero the number of coins drastically decreased when the perforated stone floor of the bath has been laid. My intention is to see Aquae Calidae find in the context of other contemporary – springs and spas of the ancient world. It also aims to remind the scholarly community of the very existence of this rare coin assemblage and the need of its complete publication.

This article is the first systematic attempt for collection and arrangement of the early Roman coin finds from Novae – a large legionary fortress on the Lower Danube excavated without interruption since 1960. It contains a complete identification of all published coins from the site excavations as well as a thorough check of inventory books in Svishtov Museum. No less than 252 coins (total 407 with the suburbia finds) of the Early Principate period (Augustus to Trajan) are catalogued and further analysed. A small hoard of six Claudian and Neronian aes-coins (down to AD 64/5) found in the street sewage by the legion’s Principia is also discussed. A comparative analysis of coin denominations which occur at Novae is applied. Of particular value for the current analysis is the chronological overlapping of small finds (terra sigillata from North Italy and Gaul, imported glass, amphorae, etc.) associated with the Julio-Claudian and Flavian coins excavated in sectors X, XI and XVIII. Paper provides insight for the early phases of habitation and emphasizes on the purely military character of Novae until Hadrian.

Some of the most common images on late Roman imperial coins are the socalled camp gate types that first appeared under Diocletian and which were repeated throughout the fourth and fifth centuries ad. This late imperial iconography also served as the inspiration for coin designs in early medieval Europe. Scholarship on the camp gate images has focused on the places that the gates make reference to. Did they signify a specific fortress, a city, a generic camp, the Castra Praetoria? Instead, this article addresses the origins of the camp gate iconography through the lens of theories on late Roman art. Scholars have remarked on the increased influence of provincial and plebeian forms and styles in late Roman art. As the chronologies and production contexts for coins are well understood, it is possible to trace the introduction of the iconography and its spread. Practical application of theory suggests that imperial die engravers were influenced by regional traditions of city gates that appeared on the coins of the Balkans and northwestern Asia Minor in preceding decades. Practical conditions were responsible for local images becoming late imperial art. The provincial origin of baldachin types with spirally-fluted columns on late imperial coins is also explored.

The article deals with an unpublised relief of the Thracian
Rider, discovered on the territory of the conurbation of Apulum,
presenting also the catalogue of the finds and some important features
related to the cult. Interpreting the cult as part of religious
individuation one can attest the «lived religion» of ancient people in
the context of a Roman province.

This paper traces the appearance, distribution and circulation of the silver ‘cistophori’ in Late Hellenistic and Early Roman Thrace. Altogether it was possible to assemble evidence of only 9 stray coins after meticulous research in the Bulgaria’ museums and collections. Only a single 1st century BC hoard from Thrace had contained cistophoric coins. This is the notorious Belitsa hoard (see IGCH 976 and IRRCHBulg, 2002, p. 7), unpublished since 1956. Reportedly it had included 4 cistophori of unknown type and mint/s, among the remaining 112 coins.
The extant cistophori from Bulgaria are listed below as follows:
1. Tralles, Lydia, c. 145–140 BC (Kleiner – Noe 1977, 66-67, nos. 48-49), kept in the Pazardzhik regional museum, acquired before 1950, no provenance noted, Inv. no. 176. Silver plated copper core, 9.17 g.; 27x28 mm; axis 12 h. Unpublished.
2. Ephesus, Ionia, dated provincial year А = 134/3 BC (Kleiner 1972, 18, no. 2; Kleiner – Noe 1977, pl. XVI/9), formerly in the Archaeological Museum in Plovdiv (missing since 1981). Unpublished, not illustrated.
3. Apameia, Phrygia, c. 88–76 BC (Kleiner- Noe 1977, plate 36.7), once part of the late Dr Haralanov collection, now kept in the Shumen museum, inv. No. 39.1.2. AR, 11.08 g., 24х25 mm. Published by Жекова 2003, no. 39.
4. Ephesus, province of Asia, dated year Л / 30 = 105/4 BC (Kleiner 1972, DCE, no. 34; De Callataÿ, 1997, 160, D1–D4), part of the late Dr. Haralanov collection, now Shumen museum. No. 39.2.2. AR, 12.50 g., 26х27 mm. Unpublished.
5. Pergamum, c. 85–76 BC, Group 3, series 32 (Kleiner 1978, 79-80, pl. XV.32), from the region of Plovdiv, Plovdiv, no. 2062. AR, 8.44 g., 25 mm. Unpublished.
6. Ephesus, province of Asia, dated year NE / 55 = 80/79 BC (Kleiner 1972, DCE, no. 56; De Callataÿ, 1997, 163-164, D90-D91, pl. 41). Unknown provenance, private collection examined in the Sofia National History Museum, 2008 (from a hoard/?/, associated with Republican denarii closing down to 36 BC (Cr. 511/3a), AR, weight not recorded, 23x24 mm. Unpublished.
7. Mark Antony and Octavia, 39 BC, Ephesus (RPC 2201) – from Philippopolis/Plovdiv, now in the Plovdiv Archaeological Museum, acquired 1915, inv. no. 610. AR, 11.81 g., 24 mm. Unpublished.
8. Mark Antony and Octavia, 39 BC, Ephesus (RPC 2201) – from excavation in Kabyle town, 1989. Now in the Jambol museum, inv. No. 5304. AR, 11.60 g., 27.5 mm. Unpublished.
9. Mark Antony and Octavia, 39 BC, Ephesus (RPC 2201) – from Shumen area?, unknown location, now in the Shumen museum, acquired 1920, inv. no. 119. AR, 10.15 g., 25x26 mm. Unpublished.
The total – 13 cistophoric tetradrachms (nine listed above plus four more in the Belitsa hoard) clearly demonstrates cistophorus remained a very scarce denomination at the Thracian markets. They represent only a segment of 0.5% of the entire coin pool for the period (cf. RRCHBulg 2002, 92-94; Prokopov 2009, 247-252). Thrace and the coastal areas had left a periphery of the cistophori circulation zone.
Almost each of the discussed above cistophori are quite worn of prolonged circulation. Apparently, they had penetrated in the east Balkans much later – after the Mithridatic wars of Rome and most probably during the Civil wars of Mark Antony and Octavian.
So far, the territorial distribution of cistophori in Thrace does not show a clear pattern. This is mainly due to their limited quantity.

The paper above discuss a bronze medallion in the Coin collection of Kunst-Historisches Museum in Vienna, kept under inventory number RÖ 32.345 (Figure 1). It is well known since J. Eckhel’s fundamental work (Eckhel 1798, VIII, 85-86) and ever since discussed and analysed in the numismatic literature (Alföldy 1926, 161-166; Gnecchi 1912, 134, no. 8, pl. 130,6; Toynbee 1944, 220, 232, n.15; RIC VII, 298, etc). However, it remained hitherto unknown for the numismatic and archaeological research of both Bulgaria and Romania.
The reverse of this medallion represents very interesting architectural and commemorative scene – a stone bridge with three arches, whereon the emperor advancing right in military dress, holding transverse spear, shield, preceded by Victory, holding trophy, turning head towards him, in front, a kneeling bearded barbarian; beneath to left, river god Danube resting; in exergue DANVBIVS. 
No doubt, the medallion shows the Roman bridge on the Lower Danube built under Constantine I between Oescus and Securisca. As known from ancient sources, it was opened in person of the emperor on June 5, 328 AD. It was the Austro-Hungarian geographer Felix Kanitz (Kanitz 1882, II, 161-162) who first identified the precise location of the Constantine’s bridge – at the river banks between Gigen and Celei on the Danube. The modern Romanian archaeology has identified the foundations of the northern bridge-head (14.50 х 7 m) and its supporting walls, close to the ruins of fortress Sucidava (near Corabia).

The primary goal of this thesis is to collect, record and interpret the available coin evidence from the territory of modern Bulgaria during the late Hellenistic and early Roman Imperial period, from an archaeological, historical and numismatic perspective. In so doing the work documents the transition and integration of the monetary system of ancient Thrace to that of the Roman world. The evidence examined covers over 250 years, from the establishment of the province of Macedonia in 146 BC down to the reign of Trajan (AD 98-117). Of foremost importance in this process are the introduction, distribution and use of the denarius in the local coin market.
The evidence under study was collected from the area of ancient Moesia and Thrace, an area recognized as a frontier zone in the early Roman Empire. Previously Thrace was never the subject of a comprehensive numismatic study that integrated the existing archaeological and historical record for such a critical period of time. The purposely studied coin finds (both hoards and single coins, over 48,000 pieces) allowed for the application of statistical analysis to the coin data, revealing important military, economic and fiscal tendencies. The results document a culture well accustomed to the use of coins as means of payment long before the arrival of the Roman currency. Given these circumstances, it is no surprise that as denarii were introduced during the 1st century BC, the market quickly adjusted to new economic relations. Tracing the regional use and distribution of coins, the study bears witness to how local communities benefited from their strategic location and native resources.
The main contribution of this work lies in the systematic comparison between the Late Hellenistic, Thracian, Celtic and Roman coinages that circulated together in a region that was of great strategic importance to the Roman Empire. Mechanisms of introduction and acceptance of Roman coins as financial tools have been documented and interpreted both from a chronological and geographical standpoint.
Based on comprehensive analyses, this thesis concludes that the nature of the Thracian and Moesian society and economy, as well as the supply of coins, followed the Imperial and interregional trends as an integral part of the Roman Empire.

Vassil N. Avramoff (1863–1946). A biographic portrait.
(Abstract)

Vassil Avramoff (*1863, Kalofer – † 1946, Sofia) was one of the most eminent numismatist (Fig. 1) and collectors of coins of Bulgaria from the late 19th century to the middle of the 1940’s. In 1912 his ‘first’ collection of 7,095 coins was purchased by the Bulgarian state for the National Archaeological Museum in Sofia for the substantial sum of 60,000 gold Leva (= Swiss or French Francs).  After this major acquisition Vassil Avramov did not stop to collect but until 1945 he gathered a second collection of ancient and medieval coins and small antiquitiеs amounting to some 3,000 coins and many stamps of the Ottoman period. In 1946 when he died, the Avramov’s collection was dispersed and sold out by his children, most likely abroad and to local coin dealers.

Three of life has been a global topic of all cultures since prehistory. My Master of history research paper was planned on tree of life (1980s), and now, when I am reading the work by William Osborne, I am realizing that the interest in this topic in later 20th century was still like a baby in the cradle. I was able to show that one schematic tree of life in the Thracian art was not an accidental motif, but there was a concept of Tree of life in Thracian religion.  At that time I was in professional contacts with I. Marazov , who wrote that most of the Thracian pectorals represented the concept of the Tree of life (as cosmology), so to be with scientific contributions, I even cut this part of my master and limited to the wreath symbolism. However, even the wreath placed on the breasts in the graves functioned as a cosmological symbol related to the tree of life.
W. Osborne's article is  a precious pearl in early 21st century literature on Tree of life. He uses written records and iconography to reveal two aspects of the anthropomorphic symbolism of tree of life. Many prehistorians will find in this article new directions of interpretation of the prehistoric art from the perspectives of the global concept of Tree of life.

ANCIENT SOURCES ABOUT BESSAPARA. In the article are chronologically presented and carefully analyzed the currently available ancient sources about Bessapara. It’s noted that the evidences suggest for settlements with different status: road station (Bessapara, other documented variants: Belsufaro, Bessabara and Basapare), village (Bessopara) and fortress (Bessoupara or Bessupara). Traditionally, due to the scarce evidences, all of them are considered by the modern researchers as one and the same settlement, called Bessapara. Indicated are the insufficient arguments for all of the proposed locations of that settlement. Emphasized is the need for new studies about Bessapara and for a real terrain tracking of the Roman road between Serdica (Sofia) and Philippopolis (Plovdiv).