Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak, the UNESCO Tomb of Painted Farewells
The Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak is a brick beehive tomb in the town of Kazanlak in central Bulgaria, painted around 300 BCE and on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1979. Its murals of a funeral banquet and horses are Bulgaria's best-preserved Hellenistic paintings. The original is closed to protect them, but an exact replica stands nearby.
A pair of Thracian nobles clasp wrists in a painting made more than 2,000 years ago, and scholars still argue whether it is a farewell or a sacred marriage.
The history of the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
The Kazanlak Valley, shut in between the Balkan Mountains to the north and the Sredna Gora range to the south, was the heartland of the Odrysian kingdom of the Thracians. Today it holds a vast necropolis of more than a thousand burial mounds, close to the ancient capital Seuthopolis, which was founded by King Seuthes III around 320 BCE. Its ruins now lie on the bed of a reservoir, so the tombs are the best surviving witnesses of the period.
The Kazanlak tomb dates to the late 4th or early 3rd century BCE, commonly given as about 310–290 BCE. It is a tholos tomb, a round chamber with a beehive vault, built of brick on a plan that runs north to south with the entrance on the south. A rectangular antechamber leads to a narrow corridor and then to the round burial room, about 2.65 metres across and 3.25 metres high. Who lay inside is still debated: the tomb is thought to have belonged to a Thracian ruler or noble buried with his wife, and some scholars link the pair to the family of Seuthes III. One account names the ruler as Roigos, taken from inscriptions found in the chamber.
The tomb came to light on 19 April 1944, when soldiers digging a trench on the Tyulbeto mound, in the north-east of Kazanlak, hit a stone wall. The mound was about 7 metres high and 40 metres wide. Curious, they broke through and crept along a low corridor into a round vaulted room. They called in an archaeologist, who confirmed they had found something important. The chamber had already been robbed in antiquity, though the bones of a man, a woman and a horse remained, along with a few small gold ornaments and pottery.
The treasure of the tomb lies on its walls. About 40 square metres of paintings cover the corridor and the dome. In the corridor, two friezes show warriors on foot and on horseback in battle and negotiation. In the dome, a man in a gold laurel wreath and a woman sit at a small table while attendants bring gifts, musicians blow long trumpets, and grooms hold saddled horses. A chariot race circles the top of the dome. A painter's signature, Kozimases, was read among the Greek inscriptions in 2008, and the same name appears in the Aleksandrovo tomb.
The paintings have always needed protection. In 1946 the tomb was set inside a protective building, which was reworked in 1960. A climate-control system followed in 1961, and in 1966 UNESCO called an international commission to examine the paintings. The tomb was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979. A full-size replica, designed by the architect Mladen Panchev and painted by a team of Bulgarian artists, was built nearby in 1973–74 for visitors.
Curious facts about the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
- The tomb was found in 1944 by soldiers digging a trench, and the mound that once covered it was about 7 metres high.
- The seated woman of the dome mural appears on the reverse of the Bulgarian 50-stotinki coin issued in 2005.
- The couple's clasped wrists are read by one scholar as a tender farewell and by others as a sign of a sacred marriage in the afterlife.
- The woman holds a tray of pomegranates, which one interpretation reads as a symbol of marital fidelity.
- Among the small finds were around 140 tiny hemispherical gold buttons, probably once sewn onto the dead couple's clothing.
- The nearby park around the tomb takes its name, Tyulbe, from a 17th-century Turkish türbe (tomb) that once stood next to the mound.
Tours near Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
- The original tomb is closed to the public to preserve its paintings, so visitors see the full-size, exact replica built close by.
- The replica shows the corridor with its battle friezes and the domed chamber with the banquet scene and the chariot race.
- The tomb stands in the Tyulbe park on the north side of Kazanlak, so it is easy to combine with a stroll in the town.
- Check the current opening hours and visiting conditions before you go.
- Other sites of the Valley of the Thracian Rulers lie close by: the Valley of the Thracian Rulers area is about 7 km away, Seuthopolis and the Ostrusha tomb about 8 km, and the tomb of Seuthes III about 10 km.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak is
Photos of Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
Questions
What is the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak?
It is a Thracian beehive (tholos) brick tomb of around 300 BCE in the town of Kazanlak, decorated with frescoes of a funeral banquet and horses. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979.
Can you enter the original Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak?
No. To protect the fragile paintings, the original is closed to the public. A full-size exact replica was built nearby for visitors.
Where is the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak?
It is in the northern part of the town of Kazanlak, in the Kazanlak Valley of central Bulgaria, between the Balkan Mountains and Sredna Gora.
How old is the Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak?
It dates from the late 4th to early 3rd century BCE, often given as about 310–290 BCE, to the Hellenistic period.
Who was buried in the Kazanlak tomb?
A Thracian ruler or nobleman and his wife, but the exact identity is debated. Some scholars link them to the family of King Seuthes III.
What else is worth seeing near Kazanlak?
Seuthopolis and the Ostrusha tomb are about 8 km away, the Valley of the Thracian Rulers about 7 km, and the tomb of Seuthes III about 10 km.
Also nearby
The Valley of the Thracian Rulers
Kazanlak · over 1,500 Thracian burial mounds in the Rose Valley
7.5 km away
Seuthopolis
Kazanlak · Thracian royal city flooded by Koprinka reservoir
7.5 km away
Thracian Tomb Ostrusha
Shipka · six-room Thracian tomb-temple with a painted ceiling
8 km away
Tomb of Seuthes III
Shipka · unrobbed royal Thracian tomb with golden wreath
10 km away