Tomb raiding in the Balkans
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Tomb raiding in the Balkans

Expert Reports  
02-03-2020
 

In the press of Bulgaria, Northern Macedonia, Serbia, Greece and other Balkan countries, quite often reports are published that the police and customs suppressed the illegal operations with valuable cultural artefacts, and also the reports on the trials of tomb raiders and speculators of antique and medieval artefacts. Representatives of the official archeology and law enforcement agencies often compare the ‘shadow’ antique market of the Balkans - in terms of profitability and volume - with the drug and prostitution markets. It has been argued that more people are involved in the illegal tomb robbing and artefact trading only in Bulgaria than they serve in the Bulgarian police.

Over the past 20 years, the rather effective metal detectors available via the Internet, the archival materials, maps, satellite images accessible through the Internet, and the intensive exchange of information on specialized sites have really greatly fueled interest in treasure hunting around the world, and the Balkans are no exception. Moreover, there is a very real reason for such an interest in the region. The permanent political turbulence, so characteristic of this trade and cultural crossroads, forced both Thracians, Macedonians, Romans, Dacians, and Ottomans to bury treasures into the earth... Undoubtedly, the Balkans are quite rightly called ‘the land of treasures’. Each year brings amazing world-class finds - for example, in August 2019, there were reports about the gold ring of George Palaeologue (14th century) found in the Kaliakra fortress (60 kilometres north of Varna). Given that Kaliakra is a well-known archaeological and tourist spot where professional archeological excavations have been conducted for more than a decade, it is most likely to assume that many parts of the Balkans still ignored by official archaeologists hide a lot of amazing surprises.

The legislations of all Balkan states strictly regulate the circulation of the items of cultural value; special units of the law enforcement agencies have been set up everywhere to combat the illegal tomb robbing and artefact smuggling. This fight brings certain results: rather many cases are heard in the courts, exhibitions of artefacts seized from smugglers are periodically held for the press and the public. However, there are two serious problems that objectively help preserve and develop the ‘black’ antique market.

The first problem is that the official archeology of the Balkan countries (except for Greece) is poorly financed by the budget - with whatever funds remain. This leads to the fact that already identified archaeological sites can wait their turn for excavations for decades, and meanwhile, the information about them is already in the public domain. The archaeological mapping and even cursory study of the significant part of the Balkans’ territory were no carried out. Therefore, many discoveries and finds occur completely by accident. So, in 2003, only a few kilometers from the village of Dobrinishte (Western Bulgaria), during the forestry operations, an over 25,000-sq. m Thracian fortress (about 2,000 BC) was found, previously unknown from any sources. The Balkans are the last archaeological ‘terra incognita’ in Europe. And given the difficult landscape and low population density, it is understandable why many treasure hunters look to this region.

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The second reason is also associated with the lean budgets of the Balkan countries - the state is not ready to pay decent money for finds. That is why there are no ‘tomb robbers’ in the United Kingdom! In the UK, any artefact found - from 300 years and older - containing precious metals should be given to the museum, where it would be added to the database, and experts would value its market price. After that, the national museums have the right to buy it at this price. And if they don’t buy it for some reason, the find becomes the property of a happy treasure hunter who is free to do with it whatever he wants. The reasonable legislation stimulates a fascinating hobby - the search for artefacts with a metal detector (except for archaeological sites, of course), the museum collections are replenished with interesting exhibits, there is simply no room for the ‘black market’. But such a result is possible only under condition that the budget has money to buy artefacts at a price close to the market one.

The Balkan countries do not have such sums of money. And the rules of the game are completely different - if you find an artefact, you must give it to the authorities. You will also have a long and nervous trial - under what circumstances the find occurred. In the best case, which, frankly, is almost unbelievable, you will be paid 25% of the cost of the artefact – the pricing is unclear. However, you can be imposed a penalty, and even a criminal inquiry can be launched if the authorities consider that you have disturbed the occupation layer (even unintentionally).

And therefore, frankly speaking, there are few of those who wish to share their joy of finds of antique and medieval artefacts found by chance (or supposedly by chance) with the authorities. Meanwhile, trade in metal detectors and field equipment used by treasure hunters is booming. The plot of ‘Treasure Island’ is eternal, and the press reports on many thousands of grave robbers in the Balkans are close to the truth. This is easy to confirm by an experiment on the site.

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Having determined - with the help of satellite images, easily accessible maps and literature - the place of the probable location of an ancient settlement (not marked on the archaeological maps), the writer of these words undertook a short expedition, of course WITHOUT a metal detector, pickaxe or shovel. Here is an interesting burial mound in the foothills of the Rhodope Mountains. Let's climb up to the top. Well, someone here recently worked hard here, and it is clear he was not a professional archaeologist. We have only fragments of the Byzantine Pythos left.
 

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A little further away, there is a looted antique necropolis. Broken ceramics and upturned gravestones - at first glance, they gо back to around 1st century of Christian era. What was inside? Who knows now …

From time to time, stunning artefacts of clearly Balkan origin appear at famous auctions in Belgium, Germany, and England. Of course, they are already ‘laundered’, provided with impeccable documents, they have changed the hands of several respectable owners. This process is neither fast nor cheap. But often, it begins here - in the Balkan mountains, to the bleep of a metal detector and a frantic beating of the treasure-hunter’s heart, thrusting a pickaxe into the ancient mound.