The Treasures of the Preslav Region Exhibition

4.05.2007 - 31.10.2007
On May 4, 2007, the Veliki Preslav Archaeological Museum opened the exhibit “The Treasures of the Preslav Region.” The exposition includes objects from the Preslav Gold Treasure and new finds from Preslav and the region. Displayed for the first time anywhere are unique Gothic adornments from the Late Ancient/Late Roman Epoch, found near the village of Khan Krum (about 12 km from Preslav) and grave finds from the post-capital era in Preslav.

Celebrating 1120 Years of Cyrillic Heritage! Velika Moravia-Veliki Preslav Shared Exhibition

16.05.2006-30.09.2006
This year marks 1120 years since Knyaz Boris welcomed St. Clement, Naum, & Angelare, students and preservers of the legacy of Ss. Cyril & Methodius, to Bulgaria. Fleeing from persecution in Moravia, Clement, Naum, and Angelare came to Pliska in 886 and under Boris' protection were able to protect and develop Bulgaria's place in the history of Slavic languages and the Cyrillic alphabet. As of 893, V. Preslav's new position as the capital of Bulgaria secured its connection with Moravia as it became a literary, religious, and administrative center. To honor V. Preslav's & Moravia's ancient association, the Veliki Preslav National Historical-Archaeological Museum and Reserve will host an exhibit from the Great Moravia Archaeological Museum until September 30, 2006.

New epigraphic monument of Veliki Preslav

The aim of the present announcement is to present  a new epigraphic monument recently found in the neighbourhood of Manastircheto (The Little Monastery), only 2,5km southward from the Outer fortress of Preslav. In 1999 while searching the church nave, fragments from an amphora of scorched reddish-brown clay were rescued. Due to belated transport and lack of water in the region, it was not until the end of the season that it became evident that a tiny fragment of inscription was preserved on a very small part on the amphora.The letters "æ" and "ú" helped to define the inscription as Cyrillic alphabet. However, our efforts were aimed not only at deciphering the inscription , but also at finding other fragments with letters. Two years later, while excavating a mound left by treasure hunters, we were extremely lucky to add some more letters to the beginning and end of the inscription. All 22 preserved signs had correct proportions: 3-7mm in height and 1,5-4mm in width. They all had the characteristics of many Cyrillic epigraphic monuments from the 10th c.to the beginning of 11th c. The triangle parts of "a", "ú" and "â" were very distinguishable, as were the long middle stroke of "å", and the angle-shaped ends of "o" and "e". The letters "í","ê","ë","è","ä" and "ì" were almost square in comparison.

The inscription must have been made with a very thin nib after the container had been scorched. The letters were in a horizontal line right below the neck of the amphora. After the additions from the last excavation season, the inscription reads: ...îëîâ[ú]íèêúäà æåí(ú)îóêð[ú|].àò[è] ì.......[à].......ñòà........

Though precisely engraved, the letters on the first two fragments are very well preserved and readable, except for the fifth and the nineteenth signs which are on cracks. The letters "ò","ì","ñ","ò" and "à" in the last passage are easily distinguishable. The rest of the signs are badly blotted out, almost erased, because of cracks and the crumbling of the amphora surface in these parts.

Because of the fragmentation and the above-mentioned reasons, the inscription is difficult to read. That is why, the following restoration is only an attempt to interpret it. The suffix "èêú" or "[ú]íèêú" in the first preserved passage means that there should be a noun in the masculine gender. If we add the previous letters to it, the word, or the the preserved part of it, will read: îëîâ[ú]íèêú. Such an active or inactive noun is not familiar in the old-Bulgarian language. However, the mentioned word is reminiscent of the name of a fortress on the Danube river - Õîëúâíèê. We find the name of the fortress mentioned in an inscription from 1397/98, regarding its reconstruction. Speculating upon the etimology of this name, Iv.Galabov wrote in a publication of his that actually, the name should be a derivative from the noun õîëåâà, õàëÿâà, õîëÿâà; a noun that was widely used in Slavonic languages. In English, the meaning of the words "óñòà","ãúðëî" would be "mouth" and "throat" respectively.

He also gives as examples some local names in the Czech area (i.e.Greece), like Õîëåâàí, Õåëâàí, Õàëâà, as well as the names Îëåâåíè, Õîëåâåí from Bitolja region. Taking into account that the inscription was found where the river Big Kamchia leaves the gorge, a place where Preslavians use the Turkish word "boaza" or "azu" (meaning "throat" and "mouth"), it is possible  that the word might have something to do with the name of a region . Just as a reminder, some scientists identify the familiar fortress Uston with the Stradini fortifications near Preslav (they are only a ten minute walk away from The Little Monastery). Despite all the uncertainty of these suppositions, we might assume that the name in the inscription is somehow connected to the two fortresses which played an important role in the defence system of Preslav as a capital.

In the combination of the next five letters we find the phrase "äà æåí[ú]". Here, we presume the omission of "ú" in the plural form of genitive case (such omission of the last-positioned "ú" has been certified in many Cyrillic epigraphic monuments from that era). Reading the next word from the inscription was the most difficult task. The word is on two neighbouring fragments, but because of the crack, it is illegible. There is a diphthong "îó", along with four other letters - "ê","ð" and "ò" that are easily distinguishable, as well as a carelessly written "ò" which falls under the stroke. Taking all of the above into account, we might also think that the "|.à" is actually the third person singular form - îóêðû|.àòú - of the terminative aspect of the verb - îóêðûòí.

The letters "ì" and "ñ", "ò" and "a", as well as a triangle fragment with a tinted stroke pointed downwards which reminds of the letter "à" - are all at the end of the third fragment and are the only distinguishable letters in the most badly damaged part of the inscription. The letters make us interpret that text passage as follows: (Lc?öà)[à](óãîó)ñòà; and in addition, after the last "à", there is a slightly visible stroke which could be the title of the data.

According to us, the inscription from the area of The Little Monastery greatly resembles the copies in the old-Bulgarian manuscripts. This characteristic is similar to many of the Cyrillic epigraphic monuments in Krepcha, Murfatlar and other places. At the same time, it has the signs of a secret message similar to the inscription of Viargil, recently discovered in Preslav.

 CLOSER TO THE HEART...130 YEARS SINCE THE BIRTH OF JORDAN GOSPODINOV

"As a citizen of Preslav... it is closer to my heart’s desire to know all about the past of my hometown. This desire urges me on in spite of my weakened strength to collect all that is somehow connected to the history of Preslav..." (from a letter by J.Gospodinov to V.Zlatarski)

On January 1, 2001, 130 years have elapsed  since the birth of Jordan Gospodinov. His contemporaries remember him as a modest man "who devoted all his reasonable life to Veliki Preslav". He was only 25 years old in 1897 when V.Zlatarski made the first organized excavations in a place called Sarai eri. At that time, when public attention was drawn to Shkorpil's discoveries in Pliska, Gospodinov was teaching far away from his hometowm. In order to obtain new data for the Second Bulgarian capital architectural features, the Russian Archeological Institute in Konstaninopolus undertook new excavations in October 1905. At that time Jordan Gospodinov had already become a teacher in Preslav. He disagreed with the opinion of professor F.Uspenski - head of the research work - whose official report said that the Preslavian remains had been long before completely devastated and plundered and that "the excavations are of unjustified and unpromising scientific interests".

The very following year, together with his close friend K.Shkorpilov and a team of prominent Preslavian citizens, Gospodinov established "Ticha" Archeological Association and got down to hard work. There were organized quests for remains in the old part of the town and its periphery, where architectural pieces were found scattered in fields, and collected from houses all around Preslav. There were also different stories told of the past, and the aims and work of the archeological association were explained in detail. That was also the time when museum work was established in Preslav. Jordan Gospodinov donated his own collection of various findings at an archeological assembly in the city hall. From 1909 to 1911, the Archeological Association launched excavations in the area of Patleina, not very far from Preslav. Their meager resources were collected mostly from donations, membership fees, and aid  from the state and the municipality. Under the directions of Jordan Gospodinov, they discovered a monastery housing-site with a cross-domed church, dwelling premises, and workshops for the production of the as yet unfamiliar Preslavian white clay painted ceramics. In one of the premises near the tower, northwest direction from the church, was found an icon of St.Theodor - a record of historical national and universal significance; a striking example of the old Bulgarian mastership and perfection.

In the period from 1912 to 1919, Gospodinov worked in the Archeological Museum in Sofia together with scientists like G.Katzarov, P.Mutafchiev, N.Mushmov, and B.Filov. However, his fellow-citizens begged him ardently to go back to Preslav. He could not refuse them. After WWI he continued his work as an archeologist, regional expert, and fervent researcher of Preslavian remains. As a prominent and socially active figure, he never missed a favourable opportunity to protect and fight in favour of Preslavian monuments.

In 1925 there was a new bridge built over Kamchia river. This was achieved through state funding, and due to the initiative of "Ticha"AD (which was, actually, for the best part Gospodinov's initiative). Thus, access to the ruins in Patleina was made possible. What is more, the bridge was close enough to the foundations of the so-called old Bulgarian "Bridge of Omurtag"; foundations which Gospodinov established as early as 1911. Two years later, coinciding with the commemoration of one thousand years since the death of tsar Simeon, "Ticha"AD, guided by Jordan Gospodinov and supported by the Bulgarian Relics Association, new excavations were started in the Sarai eri region (King's Palaces).

"On August 1st of this same year, I started excavations on a hill which was about three hundred metres southwards from the Palace. I heard about those remains from my father. He said that Turks dug the best and finest beautifully speckled marble stones and slabs and then crushed them into pieces turning them into slaked lime...", Gospodinov wrote in his works.

It was exactly the place where Gospodinov discovered an exceptional and unique monument characterising Preslavian architecture, namely, Simeon's Round (Golden Church). In 1934, Jordan Gospodinov became the mayor of Preslav by the insistence of all Preslavian citizens. It was then that he concentrated his efforts and strength toward making the town a center for history and tourism.

However, his attempts to provide funds from the state budget failed and he left his post as a sign of protest and retired in 1938. During the last decade of his life, in his declining years, Gospodinov managed to realize a succession of researches: he examined workshops and installations for painted ceramics manufacturing, all of which were located right under the Round Church and around Patleina;he excavated a number of churches (around Bjal Brjag and Tuzlaluka), as well as the public building in Gaidarova Mogila;he also worked in the Inner Town together with B.Mavrodinova, N.Mavrodinov and I.Zhandova - archeologist from the Archeological Museum in Sofia. In 1949 he helped with the removal of all the items from the city-hall, Patleina and the Golden Church to a building meant for a monastery in Borova Gora (Pine Woods). Right there, in November, a large museum was built in order to gather all historic elements in one place.

Two months before he died, Gospodinov was said to be glaring with happiness (or at least that was what professor St.Stanchev said - the discoverer of the item), at an inscription from the grave of an eminent dignitary called Churgubulia Mostich. He was said to be a contemporary of tsar Simeon and tsar Petar. Unfortunately, Gospodinov's archives and writings are almost all lost and unfamiliar to present day researchers and the public. Not very long ago, the Archeological Museum acquired 35 letters of his personal correspondence, and 10 notebooks with stenographical notes (still to be translated). About half a century after J.Gospodinov died, researchers continued to discover new monuments characterising the Bulgarian Golden Age.

As his heirs, we are obliged to treat them with the expected care and love in the way he would have willed. Jordan Gospodinov - an extraordinary man and scientist who discovered Veliki Preslav and made it a part of the unlimited scientific knowledge.