11 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Two Altars Used for Blood Sacrifices and Divinations Discovered in the Ancient Thracian City of Perperikon

In the ancient Thracian city of Perperikon, partly carved into the rock in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria, two altars were unearthed, one of which was used for sacred winemaking and the other for animal sacrifices.

Professor Nikolay Ovcharov, head of the Perperikon excavation team, announced the discovery of two altars, one designated for blood sacrifices, that mark the boundaries of a “sacra” area in the southern section of the archaeological site.

Prof. Nikolay Ovcharov, who has been leading excavations at the site for nearly 25 years, told BTA that these altars fully prove the fact that the great temple of Dionysus was located in the complex.

The priestesses of Thrace’s renowned Dionysus Oracle foretold the glorious futures of Alexander the Great and Augustus, the first Roman Emperor. This is what ancient historians tell us. However, none of these ancient sources have provided a precise description of the shrine’s location, other than to say it was on Thrace’s highest mountain, in the lands of the Satri tribe. So far, historians have claimed that the seer lived primarily in the Rhodope and Stara Planina mountains, where he competed with the Delphi-based Apollo Oracle in prestige and prophecy accuracy.

However, Perperikon is the largest megalithic settlement in the Balkans and has a history of 8,000 years. Over time it was used by various civilizations such as the Thracians, Romans, Byzantines, and the medieval Bulgarian Empire.

In Perperikon, numerous rock-cut altars and sanctuaries that may have been used for religious rituals honoring Dionysus have been discovered by archaeologists. These altars, carved directly into the rock, often feature basins that may have been used for libation. Dionysus was central to the Orphic Mysteries, a collection of religious practices that began in Thrace.

Some scholars also suggest that the Thracian god Zagreus, son of Zeus and Persephone—who was dismembered by the Titans and reborn—was sometimes identified with an Orphic Dionysus, linked to mystery cults and the cycle of life and death. Sabazios, the sky father and horseman, was another deity worshipped in Thrace, and he might have also influenced later interpretations of Dionysus.

“The earliest sacrifices were made 3000-3200 years ago, at the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age,” the archaeologist explained, adding: “As the altar is from the Roman era, we are using the data from that era and doing a comparative reconstruction,” said Prof. Nikolay Ovcharov.

Prof. Nikolai Ovcharov described the function of the altar. Photo: Valentina Stoeva, BTA Kardzhali

He noted that it was most likely an altar for the underground gods, where it was necessary for people to dress in black and animals to have black fur. He added that it must have been small animals, like goats and sheep, which were brought as sacrifices, and that it was also mandatory the animals were healthy, as well as that the animal itself went voluntarily, and not to be dragged by force.

Ovcharov said that the altar was most likely made as early as the end of the Bronze Age or the beginning of the Iron Age and was abandoned in the Middle Ages. It is related to the temples of the 3rd-4th century, which have been studied in the southern quarter and include the temple of the Eastern god Mithras, the temple of the Ancestors and an unidentified temple. Ovcharov emphasised that the two large sacrificial altars are only the beginning and more finds are to be expected.

The excavations at Perperikon will continue until the beginning of November.

Cover Image: Perperikon, Kardzhali District, Bulgaria

BTA

Related Articles

Archaeologists Discover Fragment of Medieval Inscription of Church in Melnik

1 March 2024

1 March 2024

124 artifacts made of stone, ceramics, and metal were discovered during archaeological excavations in the Church of the Holy Mother...

An 8,500-year-old trepanned skull discovered in Çatalhöyük

23 December 2023

23 December 2023

Traces of trepanation (skull drilling operation) were found on a skull found in the 9,000-year-old Çatalhöyük, near the modern city...

50 Lost War Helmets Found Near Wrocław University

16 June 2025

16 June 2025

In a remarkable archaeological discovery, over 50 military helmets from both World Wars have been unearthed just steps away from...

2000-year-old quarry discovered in Jerusalem that could be the source of Second temple stones

5 September 2021

5 September 2021

Archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old quarry in Har Hotzvim, now an industrial park in Jerusalem. The Israel Antiquities Authority said...

Feline and anthropomorphic 29 new geoglyphs discovered in Peru

21 December 2023

21 December 2023

In Ica, a region south of Lima on the coast of Peru, 29 geoglyphs were found by an archaeologist from...

Archaeologists Unearth Roman Archive of Ancient City of Doliche

20 November 2023

20 November 2023

Archaeologists from the Asia Minor Research Center at the University of Münster have uncovered the municipal archive in the ancient...

Rare textiles and dwellings discovered in the submerged Neolithic settlement near Rome

6 June 2023

6 June 2023

Underwater archaeologists have discovered rare, well-preserved textiles, basketry, and cordage from the early Neolithic period in an area near Rome,...

One of the largest mass burial pits ever discovered in the UK has been unearthed next to Leicester Cathedral

21 November 2024

21 November 2024

While excavating the gardens of Leicester Cathedral for the future construction of a learning center, archaeologists uncovered one of the...

2,000-Year-Old Hellenistic Tomb Discovered Under Collapsed Port Road in Northern Cyprus

24 June 2025

24 June 2025

A routine alert about a collapsed road at Gazimağusa Port in Northern Cyprus has led to a remarkable archaeological breakthrough....

A first-of-its-kind Ayyanar stone idol found in Vellore, India

25 June 2022

25 June 2022

An Ayyanar stone idol, the first of its kind in Vellore, was discovered at Thandalai Krishnapuram (TK Puram) in Tamil...

Researchers found evidence of the use of medicinal herbs in the Grotte des Pigeons Cave in Morocco dating back 15,000 years

5 November 2024

5 November 2024

Morocco’s National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage has announced an important discovery that will enhance our understanding of ancient healing...

Viking Dentistry Was Surprisingly Advanced And Not Unlike Today’s Treatments

15 December 2023

15 December 2023

Viking Age teeth at Varnhem indicate surprisingly advanced dentistry, according to the results of a study conducted at the University...

First Female Viking Grave Discovered In Swedish Mountains

21 August 2022

21 August 2022

A mountain hiker in Jämtland, in central Sweden, on his way camping in Kalffällen, made a surprising discovery. The discovery...

Archaeologists discover the Americas’ oldest adobe architecture

7 December 2021

7 December 2021

On the north coast of Peru, researchers have discovered the oldest adobe architecture in the Americas, constructed with ancient mud...

Illegal digs reveal rare Roman-era mass grave in Turkey

28 July 2022

28 July 2022

A total of 27 skeletons were found in a burial pit carved into the rocks in Adıyaman province, an important...