Treasure hunters busted bulldozing Thracian burial mound

Bulgarian police officers from the southern town of Nova Zagora have caught red-handed two treasure hunters while they were bulldozing an Ancient Thracian burial mound (tumuli) near the town of Sadiysko Pole.

Ancient Thracian burial mounds (tumuli) potentially hiding marvelous 
treasures are a common sight in much of Bulgaria 
[Credit: Edal Anton Lefterov/WikiCommons]

The two men aged 33 and 47 were just opening up the Thracian tumulus with an excavator when the police arrived after they had been alerted about the crime by local residents, reports Darik Sliven.

The mound attacked by the treasure hunters is known as “Golata Mogila”, i.e. the Bare Mound.

The two men arrested by the Nova Zagora police have admitted that they were excavating the mound in question in search for archaeological artifacts.

The landscape in the valleys and plains in Southern Bulgaria (such as the Valley of Thracian Kings near Kazanlak or the Upper Thracian Plain near Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, or Yambol) is dotted with Ancient Thracian burial mounds.

Despite the best efforts of the Bulgarian archaeologists, the vast majority of the Thracian mounds have not been researched yet.

Author: Ivan Dikov | Source: Archaeology in Bulgaria [October 19, 2015]