The Mystery of the “Oldest Gold of Mankind” In The Varna Necropolis Was Buried 6,500 Years Ago

The Varna Necropolis, a burial site dating back to 4,460–4,450 BC, is located on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, and it is where the earliest gold objects have ever been discovered.

The Varna Necropolis, sometimes referred to as the Varna Cemetery, is a sizable burial site in the western industrial area of Varna and is widely regarded as one of the most important prehistoric archaeological sites in the world. It dates back to the time of the Chalcolithic (Copper Age) Varna Culture that flourished around 6,000-6,500 years ago.

According to Archaeology in Bulgaria, 294 burials totaling around 3,000 gold objects have been found at the Varna Necropolis so far. Numerous prestigious graveyards were discovered, but grave 43 in particular distinguished out from the others. The bones of a high level person, who appears to have been a monarch or leader of some sort, were found here by archaeologists.

The Varna Gold Treasure was unintentionally found in 1972 while workers were erecting a canning plant there. An excavator operator named Raycho Marinov, who was 22 at the time, uncovered a number of items and brought them home in a shoe box. A few days later, he made the decision to tell some nearby archaeologists about the discovery.

The necropolis thereafter saw the discovery of 294 Chalcolithic burials in all. The Varna Gold Treasure was discovered in Copper Age burials that were radiocarbon-dated to 4,560–4,450 BC.

The Neolithic and Chalcolithic eras in modern-day Bulgaria, the remainder of the Balkan Peninsula, the Lower Danube area, and the West Black Sea coast saw the rise of an ancient European human civilisation that produced all these astonishing artifacts. This ancient culture is sometimes referred to as “Old Europe” by academics.

The necropolis’s discoveries show that the Varna Culture maintained business ties with far-off Black Sea and Mediterranean areas, and it is likely that rock salt from the Provadiya – Solnitsata (“The Salt Pit”) rock salt mine was exported during this time.

Additionally, scientists speculate that this ancient civilization may have utilized the shells of the Mediterranean snail Spondylus, which were discovered in tombs at the Varna Necropolis and other Chalcolithic sites in Northern Bulgaria, as a sort of payment.

Archaeologists also think that the Balkan Peninsula (Southeast Europe) had some kind of statehood and a royal institution as early as the Copper Age since some of the burials found included a richness of gold objects.

Over 3,000 gold objects totaling over 6.5 kilos are part of the Varna Gold Treasure, which is divided into 28 different categories.

As previously mentioned, Grave No. 43, which was uncovered in the center of the Varna Necropolis in 1974, included one of the most intriguing inventory. It belonged to a guy around 40-45 who was of pretty significant stature for the period (he was approx. 1,70-1,75 meters or 5 feet 6 – 8 inches tall) (he was approx. 1,70-1,75 meters or 5 feet 6 – 8 inches tall).

The fact that his tomb included about 1.5 kg of gold objects is one of the reasons why researchers think the guy who was buried was a highly important person in his community, probably a monarch or king-priest.

A great number of rings, some of which were attached on strings, two necklaces, beads, what looks to be a gold phallus, golden decorations for a bow, a stone ax, a copper ax, and a bow with gold applications are among the gold artifacts.

Over 850 gold items, including a tiara, earrings, a necklace, a belt, bracelets, a breastplate, a gold hammer-sceptre, a gold model of a sickle, two gold lamellas representing animals, and 30 models of horned animal heads, were discovered in Grave No. 36, a symbolic grave, which was also unearthed at the site.

More items were discovered on the right side of the body, lining the outlines of a human body, which is assumed to indicate that the burial held a male funeral. The things were discovered clothed in a gold-laced fabric. Once more, researchers believed the golden items to be royal insignia.

The Varna Chalcolithic Necropolis’ tombs No. 1, 4, and 5 have also yielded similar “royal” burials.

The position of the smith, who as a creator replaces the role of the Great Mother Goddess and turns the matriarchal society into a patriarchal one, is regarded as being celebrated in many of the findings from the Varna Chalcolithic Necropolis.

The role of the smith is comparable to that of the king in Chalcolithic culture because metal was more of a status symbol than an economic tool during this time.