Wednesday, 22 May 2013



Ohrid, Macedonia: Archaeologists Discover Significant Gold Artefacts from Hellenistic Period



BalkanTravellers.com   

20 July 2009 | This Saturday, archeologists in Ohrid unearthed exceptionally valuable finds dating to the fifth century BC.

On the road between the Upper Gate and the St. Bogorodica Perivlepta Church were discoevered 17 tombs from the Hellenistic Period, Pasko Kuzman, head of the Macedonian Department for Cultural Heritage told the Dnevnik daily newspaper.

In one of the tombs was buried a 15-year-old girl, which most likely belonged to the nobility.

“There is something here which, from a scientific point of view, is more important even than the golden mask [discovered in Ohrid earlier], since the personality buried in this tomb had a golden object in the shape of eye glasses, a rhomboid-shaped golden plate on the mouth and a golden plate with a sun with 16 rays in the area of the heart,” Kuzman stated.

“The two objects that were placed on the eyes and the mouth mean the dead person was masked. This kind of combination of masking was unique on the Balkans. Until now, separate golden plates were discovered, especially in the Aegean, but this kind of combination was unknown until now,” the archaeologist explained.

The other valuable artefacts discovered on Saturday include a 40-centimetre-long golden belt, amphorae-shaped golden pendants for a necklace, bronze and silver gloves and golden object with a conical shape which are quite rare for this part of the world.

Also found were objects from amber, a material which – as Kuzman explained, was not found in these lands but was transported from the Baltic area when there was a strong trade connection between North ad South.

“We should be proud of this priceless treasure being discovered [in Macedonia] and thankful to all the archaeologists who have invested all their energy and knowledge,” Macedonian Minister of Culture Elizabeta Kanchevska-Milevska told the publication.

The state and the Ministry will continue working with the same speed and intensity towards the protection of cultural heritage and the exploration of a large number of sites, Kanchevska-Milevska added.

Ohrid is the leader in Macedonia in terms of the golden ornaments discovered in the area, numbering 450 objects so far, Kuzman stated. This, according to him, has to do with the city’s location, near the ancient Via Egnatia road which connected Rome to Byzantium (later Constantinople, now Istanbul).

Excavations at the site, according to the publication, will continue in the fall and an exhibition of all the golden artefacts discovered so far will be organised by the end of the year.

Read more about Ohrid on BalkanTravellers.com
Read more about
Macedonia BalkanTravellers.com
Use BalkanTravellers.com's tips to organize your trip to Macedonia
 

Epicure


Macedonia
Italian Artists Makes Macedonia Salad as Performance in Skopje

2 September 2009 | The performance “Macedonia!” by Italian artist Silvio Palladino will be held at Skopje’s Stone Bridge on Wednesday evening, starting at 7:16 pm. Full Story



Curiosity Chest


Balkans
Balkan Museums Stay Open Late for Global Celebration

18 May 2010 | Museums across the Balkans kept their doors open into the wee hours of Saturday as they celebrated "The Night of Museums", an event held throughout Europe to celebrate International Museum Day. Full Story



Useful Reads


Balkans
Through Another Europe (2009) | Edited by Andrew Hammond

When Henry Blount journeyed through Bosnia in the 1630s, two things struck him: the purity of the water and the great height of the Bosnians, which, he noted, “made me suppose them the offspring of those old Germans noted by Tacitus and Caesar for their huge size.”
Full Story




Music


Macedonia
Macedonia: Esma Redžepova's Passion for Humanity

"A Gypsy from the city of Skopje", as she calls herself, Esma Redžepova has more than 40 years of singing and humanitarian efforts under her belt. Full Story