Culture and art
The Bulgarian lands have a rich and extremely diverse cultural heritage. Occupied by prehistoric times, they have preserved lasting traces of different eras with rich traditions. The location of Bulgaria at the crossroads is the cause of intertwining and mutual influences of the culture, morals and religions of tribes and peoples who lived here or crossed the region. Bulgarian culture is a unique blend of Thracian, Slavic and Proto-Bulgarian culture, with Byzantine, Turkish, Greek and other influences being clearly expressed in different centuries. The cultural and historical heritage of the ancient Thracians, Greeks, Romans, generations of Bulgarians who have left behind a deep trace and intriguing artifacts for their life, traditions and spiritual enlightenment is invaluable.
One of the earliest traces of antiquity was found in the Bacho Kiro Cave near the Dryanovo Monastery. These are flint and bone tools of work and ceramics from the Middle and Late Paleolithic. The gold objects found in the Chalcolithic necropolis in Varna are described as the oldest processed gold in the world. The oldest copper mines in Europe are found in the vicinity of Stara Zagora. Copper ore was mined in their galleries as early as the end of the 5th millennium BC. Of particular importance are the preserved cave drawings in the Magura Cave. They are painted in several historical eras, the earliest being of the Late Paleolithic, and the most recent of the Bronze Age.
Among the most valuable relics found on the Bulgarian lands is the cultural heritage of the Thracians, who created incredible artistic and architectural masterpieces. Thracian art, going through a long and complicated path of development from the early Late Bronze Age to the end of antiquity, has left remarkable treasures, temples, shrines and cities. The magnificence of the Thracian treasures is stunning. Among them are the golden treasure of Panagyurishte, the treasure of Rogozen, the golden treasure of Vulchitrun, the Borovo treasure, the Vrachan treasure and others.
Archaeologists have discovered and continue to discover many breathtaking Thracian tombs, shrines and forts every year. Most of the Thracian tombs and mounds are found in the Kazanlak region. The place is called the Valley of the Thracian Kings because of the large number of remains and artifacts found there. The Kazanlak Tomb together with the Sveshtar Tomb are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Traces of Roman times can be identified to this day in the territory of the country: fortress walls and forums, temples and thermal spas, amphitheaters, stadiums and buildings with various purposes in the ancient cities of Philippopol / Trimontium (present-day Plovdiv), Serdika (present-day). Sofia), Odessa (now Varna) and others. Among the most famous are the ancient theater in Plovdiv and the Roman baths in Varna.
When Christianity was established in the Roman Empire in the 4th century, the construction of Christian temples began on Bulgarian lands. The early Christian churches "Saint Sofia" and the Rotunda "St. George" in Sofia, the church "St. Sofia" (the old metropolis) in Nessebar, the red church "Holy Virgin" near Perushtitsa and others are very interesting from a scientific point of view.
Of great interest are the cultural and historical monuments that survived from the time of Danube Bulgaria, founded by Khan Asparuh. The stunning remains of Pliska and Veliki Preslav (the first and second capital of Danube Bulgaria) are a living testimony to the traditional building skills brought by the old Bulgarians.
Their grand architecture is a symbol of the political, economic and cultural rise of the medieval Bulgarian state. The kingdom of Simeon the Great, marked by a remarkable political upsurge and the flowering of culture and writing, is known as the Golden Age of Bulgarian culture. It was at this time that the Cyrillic alphabet was created at the Preslav Literary School. This is Bulgaria's exceptional and indisputable contribution to the World Heritage Site. Today, 70 languages and over 300 million people worldwide use Cyrillic.
The rock relief of the Madara Horseman is the most significant early-medieval artifact of Bulgarian monumental art and the only one of its kind in European cultural history (located near the village of Madara, Shoumen district). The relief is carved on a sheer cliff at a height of 23 m and the dimensions of the image are 2.6 m in height and 3.1 m in width. It is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The living symbol of Bulgarian statehood over the centuries is Veliko Tarnovo. The capital of the Bulgarian Kingdom in the 12th-14th centuries, Turnovo is among the largest cities in area and population in Southeastern Europe of that time. The surviving until now (partially or completely restored) takes us back to the time of the royal city of Turnovgrad, when magnificent palaces, monasteries, churches, fortifications, bridges and large buildings were erected. The flourishing of the remarkable Turnovo Art School was directly related to the economic and political strengthening of the kingdom, to the large-scale construction and intensive literary activities in the royal court, in the bishops and monasteries. Among the great artistic achievements are book miniatures, some of which can be seen to this day (in the Four Gospels of John Alexander, the Manasseh Chronicle, the Tomic Psalter and some others). The most remarkable cultural achievement at the end of the Middle Ages in Bulgaria and the most remarkable Bulgarian literary phenomenon in the fourteenth century was the Turnovo Literary School, related to the activities of Patriarch Evtimii.
Among the cultural monuments that survived this period are murals in some churches in Turnovo, icons in churches in Nessebar and elsewhere. Particularly noteworthy are the unique murals in the Boyana Church and the Ivanovo Rock Churches, highly regarded and included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. These indisputable masterpieces of medieval Bulgarian art represent to the world the achievements of the Bulgarian creative genius.
Church murals painted during the Ottoman rule can be seen in the churches of Kremikovtsi, Dragalevtsi and some other monasteries near Sofia, in the Orlytsa method of the Rila Monastery, in Arbanassi and other churches and monasteries.
The remarkable upsurge in architecture and fine arts, accompanying the Renaissance, was reflected in the erection of remarkable residential and public buildings, in representative churches and monasteries. The remarkable art schools in Samokov, Tryavna and Bansko emerged during this quiet period, filled with constructive energy. Their representatives have left behind exceptional carvings, icon painting and painting.
Cultural tourism sites are a number of settlements as well as urban neighborhoods that have preserved the atmosphere of the Renaissance period such as Koprivshtitsa, Old Plovdiv, Veliko Turnovo, Arbanassi, Zheravna, Bozhentsi, Tryavna, Bansko, Melnik and some other monasteries and churches, among them are the Rila, Bachkovo, Troyan, Rozhen, Transfiguration [monasteries], Holy Virgin Church in Pazardzhik, Holy Trinity Church in Bansko and others. Becoming lively centers of cultural and socio-political life in the 18th-19th centuries, Bulgarian monasteries became a natural incubator for the spiritual and material creativity of the awakening Bulgarian nation.
The period after the Liberation of Bulgaria (1878) is characterized by rapid construction. Urban development plans are being made enormously, the city and the city centers are being formed, solid buildings with a new, European appearance are being created, the decoration of the town houses has been modernized. Special lounges, luxurious cafes and clubs are appearing, where in a pleasant and sophisticated atmosphere, topical issues related to the culture and politics of post-liberation Bulgaria are discussed. European influence is spreading more and more in the way of life and customs of the people, as well as in the architectural outlines of the newly built structures. Cities such as Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Ruse, Burgas and others have undergone rapid and visible changes over the years.
Many contemporary Bulgarian cities naturally combine their centuries-old history and artistic patterns from different eras with the vibrant and noisy presence of modern life. Some are university centers that focus on the vibrant cultural life of our time, while others are fashion resorts that offer wonderful conditions for relaxation, comfort and fun. And no matter where they are located in the mountains, in the plains or at the sea, they are attractive because of their diverse and unexpected cultural tourism opportunities in the country.
From 1878 to the middle of the 20th century an extremely intensive process of incorporating Bulgarian art into contemporary European artistic culture took place. The development of Bulgarian art follows the path of the ethnographic and descriptive genre scenes painted by artists after the Liberation, such as Ivan Murkvichka, Anton Mitov, Ivan Angelov, Yaroslav Veshin, passing through exquisite landscapes and elegant portraits, characteristic for the beginning of the 20th century by Nikola Petrov, Nikola Marinov, Stefan Ivanov, Elena Karamikhilova and reaches the extremely rich creative talents and various plastic searches in the 1930s and 40s and the 20th century by Vladimir Dimitrov - Master, Zlatyu Boyadzhiev, Dechko Uzunov, Nenko Balkan and, Sirak Skitnik, Vera Nedkova, Ivan Nenov, Bencho Obreshkov. Artists such as Ilia Beshkov, Alexander Bozhinov, Rayko Alexiev and others have made outstanding contributions to the development of the cartoon. Bulgarian sculpture is developing as well. Creators such as Zheko Spiridonov, Andrei Nikolov and Ivan Lazarov, Lyubomir Dalchev, Vaska Emanuilova, Marko Markov, Ivan Funnev lay the foundations for it. The turn in Bulgarian painting, sculpture and graphics occurred in the 1980s, when figurative depiction gradually decayed and abstraction became a leading trend. And from the 90s to the present, unconventional forms have become essential, especially for the younger generations of artists. Bulgarian art continues to develop vigorously and independently in our time.
The Bulgarian contribution to opera art is also recognized. Many of the best performers on the world stage are Bulgarians. Among the most famous are the names of Nikolay Giaurov, Boris Christof, Gena Dimitrova, Raina Kabaivanska, Anna Tomova-Sintova, Veselina Kasarova and others. Exceptional musicians like Vasko Vasilev and Theodosii Spasov interweave the Bulgarian heritage in their work and thanks to artists like them, Bulgaria continues to be present on the world music scene.
Bulgarian artists, writers and actors, musicians and singers, architects, scientists and inventors, established or emerging, continue to create the Bulgarian cultural heritage of tomorrow, addressing the spiritual messages of the centuries-old Bulgarian tradition, intertwining it with modern trends. Thanks to the inheritance of the creative potential of the millennial culture, they produce original musical and verbal images, sculptures and new architectural outlines, create unique paintings and drawings.