This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.
This web site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
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History of Religions
History of the 3 Monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) and of the main different Christianity confessions (Roman Catholicism, Eastern Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism and Protestantism)
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Pedagogical Approaches
New pedagogical approaches to teach history of religion
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Role of Religions in Civilization
How to didactically promote among students of different confessions, the capacity of a critical analysis and understanding of the role played by religions in the history of mankind
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Interreligious Students’ Competences
Set of teaching contents, to be used by teachers to highlight and valorize the universal values of tolerance and universalisms that all Monotheistic religions and religious texts contain to promote and sustain mutual understanding among students
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Managing Multi-Religious Classes
Teaching Sources to help teachers dealing with multicultural and multi-religious classes
Map
An interactive didactical map interactive didactical map giving access to sites with a religious relevance.-
Introduction
A comparative review of the liturgical celebrations, ceremonies and dietary rules existing in the different religions.
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Celebrations
Description and comparative analysis of the celebrations of different religions and confessions
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Ceremonies
Description and comparative analysis of the ceremonies of different religions and confessions
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Dietary Rules
Description and comparative analysis of the dietary rules of different religions and confessions
Events
The Pathway through Religions project has been promoted trough conferences and articles.
Conferences
The Pathway through Religions project was presented in a number of events in order to report about the activities carried out and the results achieved
Press Review
The Pathway through Religions project partnership made contacts with web sites focusing on the fields of educationPartnership
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Contractual Partners
From this section it is possible to access to a description of each contractual partner of the Pathway through Religions project.
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Schools
From this section it is possible to access to the information about the schools involved in the Pathway through Religions Project in the European countries involved.
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Associated Partners
As a result of the exploitation activity a number of associated partners officially joined the project in order to contribute to the improvement of the project impact on their target groups and to ensure the project sustainability by continuing using the project deliverables in the next years.
This section of the Pathway through Religions portal provides administrative information for the project contractual partners and for the European Commission and it is password protected.
Map
Homepage > ReligiousSite Map > Map
An interactive didactical map interactive didactical map giving access to sites with a religious relevance.
Back to the Religious Sites List
The Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
near the town of Kazanlak in central Bulgaria
RELIGIONS Paganism
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELIGIOUS SITE
DESCRIPTION
The Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak (Bulgarian: Казанлъшка гробница, Kazanlǎška grobnica) is a vaulted-brickwork "beehive" (tholos) tomb near the town of Kazanlak in central Bulgaria.
The tomb is part of a large royal Thracian necropolis in the Valley of the Thracian Rulers near their ancient capital of Seuthopolis in a region where more than a thousand tombs of kings and members of the Thracian aristocracy can be found.
It comprises a narrow corridor and a round burial chamber, both decorated with murals representing a Thracian couple at a ritual funeral feast. The monument dates back to the 4th century BCE and has been on the UNESCO protected World Heritage Site list since 1979. The murals are memorable for the splendid horses and for a gesture of farewell, in which the seated couple grasp each other's wrists in a moment of tenderness and equality (according to Lyudmila Zhivkova—a view that is not shared by all specialists). The paintings are Bulgaria's best-preserved artistic masterpieces from the Hellenistic period.
HISTORICAL RELEVANCE
An original Thracian tomb from 4th – 3rd century BC is situated in the Tyulbeto park. It is known as the Kazanlak Tomb. It is under a special storage regime. Its duplicate, constructed in scale 1:1, which presents the architecture, the archaeological materials and the wall-paintings of the Kazanlak Tomb, is situated next to it. This Tomb is one of the most significant monuments of the Thracian culture in the Bulgarian lands, included in the list of the global cultural inheritance of UNESCO in 1979.
INTER-RELIGIOUS RELEVANCE
The tomb was accidentally found in 1944 in the north-east region of Kazanlak, and it is a significant monument of the Thracian art from the early Hellenistic age.
Based on its architectural outlook, it belongs to the dome tombs, typical for the Thracian funeral architecture from the end of the 5th and the beginning of the 3rd century BC.
It is situated in the south part of a sepulchral mound and consists of three premises: a rectangular anteroom, a narrow brick corridor (dromos) and a brick sepulchral chamber with a round plan and a bell-shaped dome.
Two burials had been conducted in the sepulchre – of a man and of a woman, by means of corpse lying, which is evident from the preserved bones. According to the archaeologists, the tomb was robbed as early as in antiquity. Two clay askoses (flat round vessel with two handles) and a silver jug were found in the mound. A clay vessel – oynohoe (wine jug) and horse bones were found in the anteroom. A sharp-bottomed amphora, clay rosette with dry gilding, a funeral crown, small parts of golden jewels and pieces of local Thracian ceramics were found in the dome premise.
RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE
The monument owes its global fame to the remarkable wall-paintings in the corridor and the dome premise – one of the best preserved products of the antique painting from the early Hellenistic age. The unknown painter had worked in four basic colors: black, red, yellow and white.
The wall decoration imitates in colors the front wall of a rich construction, coated in marble tiles and ending in architectural details. The warriors presented on the second frieze in the corridor represent a meeting between two enemy troops, and a fight scene is presented on the west wall. The scenes represent a historical event related to the life of the distinguished Thracian ruler buried in the tomb.
Figures of a man and a woman who are sitting by a small table covered in fruits are painted opposite to the entrance, in the dome premise in the center of the main frieze, and around them are presented their servants who are bringing gifts. A scene of a funeral feast with a procession is pictured. The distinguished married couple is crowned with laurel wreaths – a sign of heroisation which was widely popular during the Hellenistic age.
The wall decoration in the upper area of the dome ends with a second small frieze, which pictures three chariots pulled by two horses.
The tomb is a part of the Valley of the Thracian Kings, which also includes the temples and the tombs found in the mounds Golyama Kosmatka, Golyama Arsenalka, Shushmanets, Helvetsia, Gryphons, Svetitsa (Female Saint) and Ostrusha.
HOW TO USE WITH THE STUDENTS
The students have to visit the place to broaden their knowledge.
CONNECTION WITH OTHER RELIGIOUS SITES
Ancient Thracian Sanctuary of Nymphs - near the village of Kasnakovo, Dimitrovgrad municipality, Haskovo Region
Perperikon - 5 Yazovirska street, 6610 Kardzhali
Tatul - 200 m from the village of Tatul in the areas Kara dere and Kaya basi, Kardzhali district
Thracian sanctuary – The gate of the Goddess - south of the village of Buzovgrad
REFERENCE TO THE GUIDELINE
- History and Philosophy of Religions - Religion and the Concept of God
- History and Philosophy of Religions - Christianity
MEDIA RESOURCES
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JPG
THE THRACIAN TOMB OF KAZANLAKFrescoes in Kazanlak Tomb, which is included in the world cultural heritage, are painted by Kodzimases who is Thracian. The tomb itself is ordered by the emperor Poigos, a son of Sevt III. Konstantin Boshnakov noticed a photo, on which there was an inscription on the dome of the tomb, made above the figures of two rulers and in the field of three chariots. The historian began to doubt very seriously as it is a feature of his character as well. He requested a permission to enter in the tomb and to take photos, which assured the presence of letters, which lost their colour. Later, investigations with infra-red and ultra-violet rays were made and eventually the whole title appeared. It is written in Antique Greek language and all letters are not bigger than 12 mm: “Kodzimases painted”. Mr. Boshnakov claims that the letters are original and they couldn’t have been seen by restorers. The profile of Roigos is identical to the image of the only one coin with his name preserved in Bulgaria. In Bulgarian historian’s opinion, Roigos is obviously the inheritor of the founder of Sevtopolis-Sevt III. Mr. Boshnakov affirmed that frescoes dated back to the middle of 3d century B.C. Rather earlier when Kodzimases wasn’t so well-experienced, he painted also the tomb in the village Alexandrovo, Haskovo Area. There graphite with his name was found and next to it the word “Hrestos” was put; one of its meanings is “skillful”. It is believed that this was the art name of the genius painter. It is the only one Thracian Tomb, where a painter has put his name and it is quite unusual for the past time. According to Mr. Boshnakov, the Thracian has worked only with plots, which the best painters were familiar with. There are 32 figures of people and 25 of horses in Kazanlak Tomb.
VIDEOS
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THE THRACIAN TOMB OF KAZANLAK
The videos describe the origin of the frescoes and the tomb itself.
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THE THRACIAN TOMB OF KAZANLAK
THE THRACIAN TOMB OF KAZANLAK
LINKS
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THE THRACIAN TOMB OF KAZANLAK
Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak
