Ancient Thracian Sanctuaries

A Unique Combination of Ancient Astronomy and Orphic Mysteries

Sep 27, 2009

Archaeologists and astronomers try to solve the riddle of the Thracian cults and religion.

A few people, determined to satisfy their curiosity, coped with the jagged rock paths towards the vulva-cave near the village of Padartsi in the Kardjali region, Bulgaria, on September 23. It was the day of the fall equinox: the only time of the year when a man can observe a magic phenomenon, an echo of the Orphic mysteries.

The Womb-caves – Places of Ancient Fertility Rites

The Padartsi cave is a natural crack in a rock in the Rhodope Mountains. It is 22 meters deep, 3 meters high and 2.50 meters wide and its tunnel is perfectly south-north oriented. The cave has been additionally cut by a human hand and has been shaped as female genitals, which corresponds exactly to the womb-caves, described by Prof. Alexander Fol. At the bottom of the crack, there is a 1.30-meter vulva-shaped altar with a little (10/5 cm) hole in the center of it.

On the ceiling of the cave, there is a specially made cleft, through which a sunbeam penetrates the cave exactly at noon, every day. For a couple of minutes, one can see how the beam is gradually expanding, obtains the shape of a phallus and moves towards the altar. However, the sunbeam touches the hole in the altar only once a year: on the day of the fall equinox.

According to the Orphism, the ancient Thracians’ religion, a cave symbolized a womb, conception and revival. So, Prof. Nikolai Ovcharov, who discovered the cave in 2001, is convinced that it was a temple where the Holy Orphic Mysteries, also known as Dionysus’ Orgies, had been carrying out. “The sanctuary, dated back to 11th – 10th century BC, provides clear evidence that Orphism had made a cult of the Sun, the God who fertilized the Goddess-Mother (the Earth), and that process always took place in a cave”, Prof. Ovcharov explained.

The Valley of the Thracian Kings – a Complex of Ancient Observatories

The Thracian sanctuaries, located in the valley of Kazanlak (called the Valley of the Thracian kings because of the numerous gold treasures excavated there), are a bit different from those in the Rhodope Mountains. “All of them had been astronomical observatories”, Dr Alexei Stoev stated. He headed up a team of astronomers who worked together with Georgi Kitov’s archaeological team four years ago.

“The sanctuaries differ from one another in many respects: their architecture, for example, has saved the memory of the rulers who had built them. But there is one thing that is common to all of the temples there: that is the astonishing precision of their orientation towards the Sun. Remember the ancient historians who wrote that Thracians taught astronomy to the Greek kings”, Dr Stoev pointed out. In his words,various signs which indicated the exact time of the spring and fall equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices were found in the unearthed sanctuaries.

The Tatul Sactuary or the “Orpheus’ Tear” Miracle

The story of the Thracian megalith monument near the village of Tatul in the Rhodope Mountains is just like a fairy-tale: although anyone would hardly believe it, they are impatient to hear the end. The site consists of an ancient pagan sanctuary and a middle-aged stronghold. A large sarcophagus was cut into the central part of a gorgeous cliff shaped by a human hand as a truncated pyramid. Another smaller grave was hewn into the southern side of the cliff and a wide stone staircase leads to the burial sites.

The entire cult complex includes some other niches, platforms, staircases, outfalls and reservoirs which had been cut into the nearby rocks. Some of the Bulgarian scholars assume that the Tatul temple was the Orpheus’ sanctuary and the burial site of the mythical Thracian king, religious leader, musician, healer and philosopher.

Recently, people in the neighborhood joined that “choral society” and announced a sensational piece of news: a grapevine of the legendary Thracian brand Zela (which is supposed to be faded centuries ago) has sprung up at the Orpheus’ grave. They called it “The Orpheus’ Tear”. The enigmatic moment in the announcement is the fact that no vines are planted in the region of Tatul.

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