Archaeologists: Roman-era sarcophagus found on Bulgarian beach is authentic

The sarcophagus, which was found on a beach in Sv Konstantin i Elena resort near Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Varna at the end of last month, is authentic, and dates back to the second century CE, Bulgarian National Television reported.

This was established by archaeologists at the Regional History Museum in Varna after removing part of the facade paint that covered the valuable find, the report said.

The sarcophagus belongs to the so-called garland sarcophagi from the Roman era, which are characterised by rich ornamentation.

It is made from Shelly limestone, characteristic of north-western Bulgaria.

From photos published on social networks, it is clear that for a long time the sarcophagus was used as a bar in one of the popular establishments on the beach.

According to archaeologists, this raises serious questions about the preservation of cultural heritage in Bulgaria.

“Every object that has archaeological value, regardless of where, when and by whom it was found, belongs to the state,” archaeologist Alexander Minchev told BNT.

“That is, the person who found it is obliged to give it to the nearest museum,” Minchev said.

“It is the job of the police, possibly the prosecutor’s office, who must investigate how this sarcophagus ended up in Varna and on the beach. That is something to be done by the relevant authorities and it must be done, because this is probably not an isolated case,” he said.