Tatul
| Tatul (Татул) | |||||
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| Basic data | |||||
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| State : |
 Bulgaria
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| Oblast : | Kardzhali | ||||
| Residents : | 189 (Sep 2005) | ||||
| Coordinates : | 41 ° 33 ' N , 25 ° 33' E | ||||
| Height : | 319 m | ||||
| Postal code : | 6835 | ||||
| Telephone code : | (+359) 03636 | ||||
| License plate : | K | ||||
Tatul ( Bulgarian Татул ) is a village in southern Bulgaria , in Kardzhali Oblast , in the Momchilgrad municipality . Tatul is located 20 southeast of Kardzhali and 15 kilometers east of Momchilgrad, in the foothills of the Eastern Rhodopes . The area is overgrown by not very dense deciduous forest. Most of the houses in the village are built from cut stone blocks.
The village of Tatul is administered by the mayor of the neighboring village of Rawen (370 inhabitants), which is four kilometers to the west.
history
One kilometer from the village there is a Thracian rock tomb, which is believed to be the alleged grave of the Thracian singer Orpheus . However, it is not even clear whether Orpheus is a real person or just a mythical figure.
The Orpheus sanctuary is only part of the much larger megalithic complex at Tatul with cultic significance. To the north of the sanctuary there are other rock tombs and rock niches with cultic significance. Pagan and later Christian rituals were carried out here.
Stone sculptures and graves from different eras have been discovered in the area, as well as ancient and medieval inscriptions.
With its size, the complex near Tatul in the Eastern Rhodopes ranks second - after the rock sanctuary Perperikon , which is about 40 kilometers further north.
The place has been namesake for Tatul Island in Antarctica since 2008 .
Excavation history
Bulgarian archaeologists discovered a Thracian surface grave and a sanctuary in the immediate vicinity of the village in 2000. The archaeologist and excavation director Nikolai Ovcharow identified the sanctuary as a religious center that was important for the entire region. Due to recent archaeological finds, the first settlement was on 4000 BC. Dated. According to Ovcharov, the place was the sanctuary and tomb of an influential Thracian ruler who was idolized here after his death. Ovcharow also sees a connection to the Orpheus cult.
In contrast to a burial in a barrow , ancient sources extremely rarely describe the above-ground burial ritual on a mountain top. Only two leaders are described who were buried in this way: Orpheus and the Thracian king Rhesus , who fought on the side of the Trojans in the Iliad .
Archaeologists have around 30 clay altars dating from the 19th to 18th centuries BC. BC, as well as an idol depicting a naked male figure from the Iron Age . For the archaeologists, these finds are an indication that the sanctuary was used without interruption during this time. In 2004 a root of a vine was found in the rock grave, the age of which was determined to be 3000 years.
Between the 4th and the 1st century BC A stone wall was built around the hill. Shortly thereafter, a temple was built. So the religious complex gradually expanded and the religious activities, the worship of the ruler buried here in Tatul, shifted to the temple.
Various other buildings were erected in the 2nd and 4th centuries AD. The Christianization of the Rhodope Mountains in the late 4th and early 5th centuries led to the conversion of the complex into the possession of a local ruler, who had a defense tower built here. Two earthquakes, in the 12th and 14th centuries, damaged the complex.
tourism
Shortly after the excavation began, the preservation of the sites and the development as a tourist object began. The infrastructure was renewed for this purpose.
