Second Statue from Ancient City of Heraclea Sintica to Be Exhibited in Central Sofia

BTA Correspondent Denitsa Kyuchyukova, Kaloyan Vassev

The Transportation of the Second statue (BTA Photo/ Evelina Mitreva)

Petrich, Southwestern Bulgaria,

15.10.2024 15:23

(BTA)

A statue discovered during excavations in the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica (near Petrich, Soutwestern Bulgaria), will be exhibited for the first time in the centre of Sofia, the head of the project for restoration, conservation and socialization of the Heraclea Sintica site, Katia Stoyanova, said here Tuesday.

The large marble statue of a young man was found during excavations in the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica in September. It was found lying face down but its head is missing. It was the second statue the team has discovered. The first was a large marble deity and was found in July 2024.

Katia Stoyanova stressed that there is a great interest in the two statues, and the first who are willing to present the second statue are the archaeologists from the National Archaeological Museum. "An agreement has been reached to exhibit the statue in the centre of Sofia on occasion of the Day of the Archaeologist in February 2025, when the process of restoring the statue should be completed", Stoyanova explained.

It is expected that the statue, which has a crack in the thigh area, will be transported for restoration to the National Archaeological Museum by the end of October.

The first statue, which is believed to be a representation of the ancient deity Hermes, will be exhibited in Petrich History Museum. It is currently being restored by Kitan Kitanov, according to whom it is in good condition. The restoration process can be viewed by visitors of the Petrich Historical Museum thanks to a special screen.

There is interest for the two statues to be exhibited outside the country, but this is subject to further arrangements, said engineer Katia Stoyanova.

/DS/