Thracian Gold

September 5, 2005 9:47 AM

Fascinating video (wmv,08:45) about recent Thracian tomb excavations in Bulgaria. With over 15000 mounds unexplored in the region it is a race against the mafia to uncover the golden treasure.
posted by stbalbach (20 comments total)

Wow. Amazing. Thanks, stbalbach.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 10:01 AM on September 5, 2005

Very impressive.
posted by mert at 10:12 AM on September 5, 2005

Damn, how'd they do that?

Always amazes me that any of this stuff still turns up at all. I mean, with these millenia old come hither targets just asking to be broken into.

Many thanks
posted by IndigoJones at 10:21 AM on September 5, 2005

That is really an amazing development; I had no idea of the archeological history & interest in that nation.

As an aside: the correspondent was wearing one heck of a tie, eh?
posted by abbacat at 10:27 AM on September 5, 2005

Amazing. Ancient Thracian goldsmiths were incredibly sophisticated. I can only guess at the device they used to press those tiny "beads."
posted by Tullius at 10:49 AM on September 5, 2005

Fantastic! Thanks for posting this, stbalbach -- I really enjoyed it.
posted by scody at 10:50 AM on September 5, 2005

it is a race against the mafia to uncover the golden treasure

OK, tell me there isn't a great video game to be made of of this??

Educational content too ..
posted by Relay at 11:12 AM on September 5, 2005

I saw this clip on the news last week – I can't wait to see these when they eventually tour. That wreath...
posted by Katemonkey at 11:15 AM on September 5, 2005

Its sad that theres so much effort to save sites that look unimportant compared to theese. Great post
posted by Suparnova at 11:24 AM on September 5, 2005

Beautiful, thank you.
As an aside, every so often I hear another expert express amazement at how unexpectedly sophisticated our ancestors were. I really don't know why but that gives me the warm tinglies.
Anyone else, just me?
posted by fingerbang at 11:28 AM on September 5, 2005

Why is it always about 'golden treasure'?

Isn't the pursuit of knowledge enough?
posted by spincycle at 12:05 PM on September 5, 2005

Why is it always about 'golden treasure'?
Isn't the pursuit of knowledge enough?

Absolutely, but finding gold helps ensure financing for less glamorous digs. After all, museums know gold draws the eye of the average visitor more easily than equally valuable finds like scrolls and the like. The aggravating thing is always how willing criminals are to loot their own historical heritage for their own gain. After a zillion stories from places like this, Egypt, etc., I should be inured to it but it still makes me sad and angry.
posted by ktoad at 12:56 PM on September 5, 2005

spincycle, pursuit of knowledge does not preclude appreciation of art and beauty. The engineering of 2500 years ago is pretty fascination too. Of course there is greed to consider, there is always greed and the lust for possession.
posted by Cranberry at 1:04 PM on September 5, 2005

er make that fascinating
posted by Cranberry at 1:05 PM on September 5, 2005

It isn't always gold. As discussed here before, sometimes it's paper.
posted by IndigoJones at 1:13 PM on September 5, 2005

this is awesome.
thanks. I hope it gets documented as it gets discovered.

really, awesome
posted by Busithoth at 7:23 PM on September 5, 2005

Simply beautiful. We need more posts like this.
posted by clockworkjoe at 8:20 PM on September 5, 2005

That was a great clip.

Spincycle, ktoad: I would say that it goes beyond economics. The features of gold which grab modern attentions would have done the same for our ancient ancestors. The importance placed on gold insures that it would have played a major role in the artistic and cultural record of ancient civilizations. We can also see that it maintains much of the original craftsmanship where wood and even stone have deteriorated.

Fingerbang: definitely warm tinglies. Is it the prospect of lost knowledge found plus a dash of the paranormal? Anyhow, I think we should both go see a doctor.
posted by Corpus Callosum at 8:49 PM on September 5, 2005

Wonderful thanks stbalbach.
Well I suppose that the pursuit of gold to ancient civilizations is itself a pursuit of knowledge or at least they go hand in hand.
posted by peacay at 10:09 PM on September 5, 2005

Thanks for this, stbalbach.
posted by homunculus at 1:16 PM on September 6, 2005