An unusual park opened doors in the end of summer in the village of Neophyte Rilski, situated near the highway, linking Sofia with the northern segment of the Black Sea coastline. It quickly turned into the most visited attraction in the area. We are talking here on a restoration of a Neolithic and Chalcolithic settlement, recreating the life of our ancestors, who used to live there at the dawn of mankind.

A team of Bulgarian historians, restorers and artists has managed to create a replica of a pre-historic village that brings back to life a distant and quite unknown epoque. The newly born settlement however is only part of a large scale private project with the ambition to get tourists acquainted with the millennia-old history – from pre-history to the fall of Bulgaria under Ottoman rule in the 14^th century. It also envisages a restoration of the Chalcolithic town near Provadia’s salt evaporation ponds, restored Thracian castles, Medieval fortresses etc. The first stage of the project is now a fact. The start is a promising one, as there is already a huge number of tourists, visiting the spot. “The good thing here is that one can see it all, so that the visitor doesn’t have the need to imagine anything – it’s all in front of us!”, CEO of the Historic Park project Ivelin Mihailov explains. What do tourists see, when stepping over the settlement’s threshold?

“There is a restoration of a Neolithic house, recreating the everyday life of ancient people over the 6 – 4^th millennia BC. One can see there the tools, vessels, beds, furs etc. of the ancestors. Tourists view a pre-historic loom, they get acquainted with the way their ancestors weighed wheat. The hunting gear is exhibited, along with a pottery workshop. We have also created a replica of a pile house from the Chalcolithic era with typical everyday life tools presented there. It is known that the first civilization on the Continent was born here in that period. The treasure of the Varna necropolis is dated to that time – it is the oldest engraved gold in the world. The treasure was found in a grave of a shaman and that is why we have created a replica of the treasure, along with a wax figure of an ancient priest, covered with this fine jewelry, the way he wore it back then. The so-called Thracian museum is interesting too. It exhibits replicas of some of the most emblematic Thracian treasures across these lands. Replicas of Thracian swords and battle gear have also been displayed, along with female clothing from the period. We have also presented a replica of the Aleksandrovska tomb from the 4 c. BC, as we want the visitors to get acquainted with Thracian culture. A large bronze figure of legendary Thracian ruler Telephus has been lifted up in front of the museum – he reigned during the time of the Trojan War. The building of a Thracian residence is forthcoming as well, where tourist will have the chance to spend an unforgettable weekend. There will be reenactments of Thracian feasts, as our ancestors were known as the best winemakers across Antiquity.”

Furthermore – tourists will have the opportunity to cut a Thracian coin, they will be able to try to grindEinkorn wheat flour, shoot an arrow or take a picture in medieval armor.

English version: Zhivko Stanchev