site.btaScientists Discover Fragment of Medieval Inscription of Church in Melnik

Scientists discovered 124 artifacts of stone, ceramics and metal during archaeological excavations at the Church of the Holy Mother in the town of Melnik, said the National Archaeology Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences on Monday. The excavations were held for the second consecutive season in 2023 with the financial support of the Municipality of Sandanski.

Among the findings, two stand out. The first is a second fragment of the medieval inscription from the 13th-14th centuries, the first part of which was discovered in 2022. Most likely, the inscription is about the first construction period of a church. The second find is a fragment of a marble relief plate from the 18th or early 19th century, on which a seraphim (four-winged angel) is depicted, said the scientists.

According to them, the excavations at the Church of the Holy Mother provide a lot of new scientific data and an opportunity to include the church in a tourist route as an important monument of the history of Melnik. 

The archaeological site is presented with a poster in the Bulgarian Archaeology 2023 exhibition, which opened on February 15 at the National Archaeological Institute, and will be shown there until May 15, the museum team said.