The palace of the Bulgarian governor of the Rhodoppe region located at the ancient sanctuary on the mount of Perperikon.

The discovery was made Thursday by a Bulgarian team of archeologists led by Professor Nikolay Ovcharov.

According to Ovcharov, the palace dates back to the 14th century, and from 1343 AD it was used by the Bulgarian governor of the region, who was appointed by Bulgaria's Tsar at the time, Ivan Aleksandar (r. 1331-1371), after a successful military campaign to re-conquer the Rhodoppe Mountains.

The building of the palace is 20 meter long and 15 meters wide, and was located at the southwest end of the citadel at Perperikon. It had two or three floors, and was right nearby a high battle tower, which is still standing today.

During the excavations the archeologists also discovered a large number of medieval coins and ceramic vessels, including a fragment of one vessel, which had been imported from China. The vessel was made of celadon, which is a pre-faience technique.

Perperikon is believed to have been a Thracian fortress, and a holy sanctuary and an oracular shrine dedicated to the god Dionysus of the Bessi tribe. However, Mount Perperikon was inhabited long before the Thracians - as early as 5000 BC.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!