Archaeologists have discovered a fully preserved statue from the ancient city of Odessos.
Archaeologists from the Regional Historical Museum in Varna (Bulgaria’s largest seaside city) announced this afternoon, October 15th, the exceptional discovery made during excavations of the ancient city – a marble sculpture from the Roman era, slightly taller than human height.
It depicts a middle-aged man with a short beard, dressed in a toga (a characteristic garment of ancient Rome) and holding a scroll in his hand. On the front of the pedestal, there is a well-preserved Greek inscription, and from a preliminary reading, the name of the depicted man is clearly visible: G(ai) Marius Hermogenes.
The only part missing is the wrist, and there is some minor damage to the face, so restoration is required before it can be exhibited, Archaeologia Bulgarica stated on its Facebook page.
The statue was discovered by chance during construction work in an area with sandy deposits, outside the walls of the ancient city. It was immediately reported to the museum by construction contractor Georgi Kraychev.
The sculpture is believed to be from the late 2nd and first half of the 3rd century AD. The present-day city of Varna, in northeastern Bulgaria, originated from a settlement named Odessos (Ὀδησσός) founded by Ionian colonists from Miletus around 600–550 BC.
The Greeks founded their colony on the site of an earlier Thracian settlement. In 335 BC, Alexander the Great conquered almost all of ancient Thrace, and Odessos became part of the Macedonian Kingdom. Odessos flourished most significantly during the Hellenistic period (late 4th – 1st century BC), when the city served as a starting point for the troops of Alexander the Great’s successor – King Lysimachus (323–280 BC) who proclaimed himself King of Thrace.
The increase of the Thracian population in the city necessitated the establishment of the temple of Heros Karabasmos and Artemis-Phosphoros, in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC.
In 15 BC, Odessos became part of the Roman Empire, in the province of Moesia (later Lower Moesia) and became its main port on the Black Sea (Euxine Pontus). Huge and elaborate thermae (Roman baths), the fourth largest in Europe, were built on 7,000 square meters of land. It was named Varna by the Ancient Bulgarians after it was conquered by the First Bulgarian Empire in the late 7th century AD.
