Archeologists find Royal Thracian Mask

[Longshanks]

Bulgarian archaeologist Georgi Kitov shows a 2,500-year-old (400-500 B.C.) golden mask, in the town of Shipka, 200 kilometers east of the capital Sofia.(AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff)


SOFIA (AFP) - A Bulgarian archeological team has discovered a rare mask of massive gold, apparently depicting an ancient Thracian king, the chief of the team said.

The Thracians were a numerous and powerful people who inhabited this region from the fourth millennium BCE, and were famous as goldsmiths. The world's oldest gold hoard was discovered at Varna in northeastern Bulgaria in 1972.


Kitov told AFP Friday the mask, weighing 500 grams (more than one pound) "is without paragon in archeology." Dating from the 5th century BCE, it was probably made for a monarch's funeral, and clearly shows nose, eyes, beard and moustache.


Next to it was found a ring showing a rower.


Several thousand archeological sites remain to be explored in Bulgaria. Since 2,000, researchers have discovered the largest known Thracian sanctuary and the first known royal palace-sanctuary, in the Rhodope mountains.

[Mount Suribachi]

WOW!

That thing is amazing!


The word "priceless" was truly invented for an artifact such as this. Hell if you melted it down the gold alone would be worth $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[Leet Eriksson]

Really nice find, i dunno how someone would wear that mask though looks awkward, and lacks another ear ~:p

[Oaty]

Really nice find, i dunno how someone would wear that mask though looks awkward, and lacks another ear ~:p

It does look nice but considering how old it is and how flexible gold is it is probably warped from being buried under the ground. To me that face does look a bit smashed in

[Leet Eriksson]

It does look nice but considering how old it is and how flexible gold is it is probably warped from being buried under the ground. To me that face does look a bit smashed in

I didn't know gold could be warped under pressure

I have limited knowledge of the thracians in 400 BCE, but IIRC the Thracians were never united, the ones situated around bulgaria where the most powerful i think, there were three or 4 dominant tribes, can't recall the names correctly, one managed to unit them for a brief period of time but they didn't hold it for long.

I was wondering if the gold mask was made to honour this king? that is if gold was of any value at that time..

[discovery1]

I was wondering if the gold mask was made to honour this king? that is if gold was of any value at that time..

Likely. Gold looks nice, well most think it does. That and it doesn't react to much. 02 included, only some rare acids. And I don't know if they occur in nature. It also is very easy to manipulate and can be made thinner than any other metal.

OT, the mask is rather impressive. Didn't Alexander the Great say that if the Thracian tribes ever unted they could conquer the world?

[Mount Suribachi]

I didn't know gold could be warped under pressure

As discovery1 said, it is very malleable and can be hammered very thin - we're talking a few atoms thin. If you look at the windshield on some jet fighters you can see it has a kind of oily sheen. This is a sheet of gold so thin you can see through it, placed between 2 sheets of the canopy glass. An electrical current is then passed through the gold sheet which heats up and de-mists/de-ices the windshield. OT I know, but I think its interesting

[Gregoshi]

Stuff like this is very cool. Each such discovery peels back and reveals another layer of the unknown past. More! More!