Mezek Thracian Tomb

from Katerina in Get to know Bulgaria! Visits 60

The Thracian dome tomb of Mezek is located on the outskirts of the village of Mezek, next to Svilengrad, Bulgaria. It is one of the largest and most impressive Thracian dome tombs in Bulgaria. It has been completely preserved in its original form and its total length is about 30 meters. In 1968, it was declared a "monument of national importance".

In 1903, before the tomb itself was discovered, a bronze statue of a boar was discovered in the Meltepe mound. She weighs 177 kg in actual size, and she even had precious stones in her eyes. After the people start to clean her up, they find that behind one of her ears is a depicted wound with a few drops of blood. The statue is now housed in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, as this area was still within the borders of Turkey at the time of its discovery. There is a plaster cast of the original in the museum in Haskovo.

The tomb itself was discovered by accident in 1931. A large number of bronze, ceramic, gold, glass and iron objects were found in it, which can be seen today in the museums in Haskovo and Sofia. The tomb is entered through a corridor about 20 meters long, and as you walk through it you will have the opportunity to view 3D holographic images of the objects that were found inside. Holograms are a form of imaging that allows the recording and reproduction of three-dimensional images using a laser. I admit I was pretty impressed by the images and looked behind a few to make sure they were indeed images and not objects.

After the long corridor, one enters successively two rectangular vestibules, and after them a circular burial chamber. It contains a stone sarcophagus and two stone urns. The tomb is thought to have been used for religious rituals and probably served as the family tomb of a Thracian aristocrat.

The place has a parking lot. You can buy a combined ticket to visit the tomb and the Medieval fortress near the village of Mezek (Neutzikon). And as you walk towards the tomb, on the asphalt road you will step on three-dimensional street art images that depict Thracian-themed scenes on the road. They create the optical illusion of a three-dimensional picture, and you only need to stand at a precisely defined angle to have the desired effect.