Archaeologists excavating a fortress near Bulgaria's north eastern town of Dobrich unearthed bronze elements from a belt of a Bulgar warrior, reports the Standart daily.

Archaeologist Boyan Totev told journalists that this is the first such find by archaeologists in Bulgaria. Parts of another belt has been found by treasure hunters, again near Dobrich.

“This one is whole and we expect to find the buckle and the loop,” he said. “The elements are made of bronze and are dated end of IX c. AD. The belt belonged to a middle rank soldier and has been decorated with floral motives.”

The director of the Dobrich regional history museum Kostadin Kostadinov told the journalists that the fortress was probably built to guard the basilica which was already found nearby. The entire area is a cult site and archaeologists suspect that further excavations can find more religious artifacts and buildings.

Earlier this year at the same site the archaeologists excavated a church treasure of bronze Byzantine coins.