2024-04-09 08:12:41
Tourists will peek under the waters of the Koprinka Dam without getting wet
Many know that under the waters of today’s Koprinka dam near Kazanlak are the remains of the former Thracian capital Sevtopolis. And what did she look like?
The remains were discovered during the construction of the dam in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and although they were very valuable, the inevitable happened – after being studied by archaeologists, they were submerged forever by the waters of the dam in the name of industrialization of the country – the most important task at that time.
At the beginning of this century, during the time of the mayor of Kazanlak, Stefan Damyanov, there was talk of a project in which the once flooded capital of the Thracians would be reclaimed from the water and shown to the people. And the archaeological remains had to be reached by boat. Alas, this project proved too ambitious and expensive to carry out. And yet
tourists will soon be able to see a reconstruction of the submerged Seutopolis
on a scale of 1:10, the model on an area of ​​800 square meters is one of the attractions in the tourist complex “The World of the Thracians”, which the municipality of Kazanlak is building with European funds near the town of Shipka. It is not far from the Thracian tombs of Golyama Kosmatka, Helvetia, Shushmanets and the Griffins.
After seeing Sevtopolis in all its splendor on the model, with the help of special glasses and 3D virtual reality, guests will ride a time machine that will momentarily transport them through the millennia to the IV century BC in the throne room of the Thracian king Sevtus III.
There they will get to know the power of the warriors of that time and the power of priestly rituals. After that, a performance about the sweet-voiced Orpheus will calm the passions, and wine from the hand of a Thracian cupbearer will restore them to the bliss of modern times.
A special exhibition will present to visitors models of 13 of the most significant finds from the Valley of the Thracian Kings, as the area around Kazanlak is known. Among them are the bronze head of the ruler Sevt the Third and the golden wreath from the Golyama Kosmatka mound.
Four thematic wax figures – of a Thracian king, a Thracian queen, a cupbearer and a warrior, will complete the picture. Their images are according to the images of the preserved wall paintings in the famous Kazanlak Thracian tomb, discovered as early as 1944.
In addition to designated areas with modern means of presenting information and areas for demonstrations, the complex also has 5 houses for accommodation, a cafe, a restaurant and an information center.
The goal is to achieve a modern, attractive and interactive presentation of the cultural heritage of the Thracians, in which the visitor not only gets to know, but also experiences the history.
The project is worth a little over BGN 8.6 million
and is implemented under the Operational Program “Regions in Growth 2014-2020”. The money from Europe for him is BGN 5.7 million. It also includes the already built bicycle path from Kren to the town of Shipka with a length of 6841 meters, thanks to which it will be possible to reach by bicycle from the main tourist sites in Kazanlak: the museums of the rose and the historical “Iskra”, the home of Chudomir, and the Ethnographic Complex to the Thracian tombs in the territory of the city of Shipka.
The construction of a new defensive structure for the Thracian tomb of Ostrusha is also part of this project, as well as the rescue archaeological excavations of the Neolithic dwellings recently discovered near the tomb.
The project is expected to open and welcome the first guests on April 9 – about 2 and a half years behind schedule.
How did you come up with the idea for “The Thracian World”? The municipality of Kazanlak has an extremely rich spiritual and material cultural and historical heritage.
There are 123 immovable monuments of material culture on its territory. Thracian tombs, mounds and the ancient city of Seutopolis from the 4th century BC even gave the area the name Valley of the Thracian Kings.
Each of the Thracian tombs individually has significant historical value,
but only through the complete presentation of these tombs can their full potential as a cultural-tourist attraction be unfolded and the civilization of the ancient Thracians can be shown to the fullest, the municipality is convinced.
Therefore, already in 2005, she began to implement the Program for the socialization of Thracian tombs and conservation of archaeological finds in the Valley of the Thracian Kings.
Over the years, several similar projects have been implemented. This is how the idea of ​​creating a cultural center – an attraction that would be a starting point for visits to the entire valley and unite the potential of all Thracian tombs – was reached.
After several public discussions were held and the idea was fully formed, investment projects were developed, with which the municipality applied in order to receive financing for the large-scale project.
The “World of Thracians” project was approved, which aims to restore and preserve for future generations one of the cultural monuments of national importance – the Ostrusha tomb, to ensure accessibility to the Thracian heritage for tourists, as well as to supplement and achieve in – a high degree of completion of the tourist product with the construction of the complex in the area of ​​the town of Shipka.
The implementation of the project provides the previously missing prerequisites for turning the numerous Thracian tombs in the Kazanlak region and the Kazanlak Thracian tomb, which was discovered in 1944 and was the first to be studied, into a competitive tourist product.
Thus, they all create an integrated system of socialized cultural monuments, say experts.
The main goal of the “World of Thracians” is the development of competitive and year-round tourism in the municipality of Kazanlak, as well as to improve access to historical artifacts.
It is expected that the project will achieve positive social effects and contribute to the improvement of the socio-economic characteristics of the area, including through the creation of new jobs. The objects will be popularized and socialized, and access to the cultural heritage will be ensured for people with disabilities.
Kazanlak municipality is among the first in our country in terms of cultural and historical tourism,
and from now on, we will also work on the idea of ​​a more comprehensive presentation of things on a national scale, commented archaeologist Prof. Nikolay Ovcharov, who works in the region.
Moreover, the “World of the Thracians” is only part of the municipality’s strategy for the development of cultural and historical tourism in the region. Once the individual objects are ready, it is now important to combine them into different destinations, as is the world experience.
In the future, the work will be aimed at making the tourist flow that passes through the region also to other historical monuments, and it is quite natural to realize, for example, a direct bridge between Kazanlak and Perperikon, which will show the complete history of the Thracians – from the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age to the time of King Seutus the Third a thousand years later.
The distance between Kazanlak and Kardzhali is about 150 km, and on this route tourists will also visit Haskovo and Stara Zagora with their sights.