The country, worthily competing with other foreign "all-Russian sea health resorts", is rich not only in beaches, fruits and hot sun. For fans of historical and archaeological monuments, the culture of Bulgaria is the creators of the Cyrillic alphabet, ancient monasteries decorated with ceramic masterpieces of icon painting, and music festivals on the Black Sea coast.
From the Neolithic to the present day
All architectural monuments located in Bulgaria have a long history. They are carefully preserved so that every guest of the country can see the immortal creations of Balkan masters:
- The Varna necropolis was built no earlier than seven thousand years ago. Both noble priests and simple artisans are buried in it, and the value of archaeological artifacts extracted from the tombs here is very significant.
- The tomb of Sveshtari, found in the northeast of the country, dates back to the 3rd century BC. The burial chamber is decorated with female figures carved from stone, and the walls are covered with paintings.
- Madara horseman, carved on a 23-meter-high cliff at the beginning of the 8th century by order of Khan Tervel and depicting the Slavic god Svyatovit.
- Monastery in Rila, built in the 10th century and protected by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage site. The frescoes of the monastery are especially famous, and the relics of the founder John of Rylsky and the miraculous icon of Hodegetria are revered here.
The very same Cyril and Methodius
Famous brothers, Christian preachers have made a huge contribution not only to the culture of Bulgaria, but in general to the development of the Slavic peoples. They came up with the idea of creating a Cyrillic alphabet and its implementation. After the death of the brothers, their comrades-in-arms and disciples translate from Greek and donate books such as the Gospel, the Psalter and the Apocalypse to the Bulgarians. The literary banner was taken up at the end of the 9th century by the Preslav Book School, which the Bulgarians consider the sources of the development of literature.
In the 15th century, significant epic literary works were written: heroic ballads telling about the struggle for independence from the Turks, and everyday epic, where the main characters were invariably a husband and wife and a harmful mother-in-law.
To the sound of bagpipes
The culture of Bulgaria is also its folk music, which is distinguished by special fervor, liveliness and energy. The dances of the Bulgarians are usually collective, and the performers are accompanied by musicians playing the bagpipes, tambour, kavala or gadulka. Not a single holiday, city day, festival or folk festivities are complete without a performance by a local dance group.
