BTA: New Marble Statue Fragments Discovered at Ancient Heraclea Sintica

A marble torso was discovered during archaeological excavations at the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica near Petrich, said on Thursday Lyudmil Vagalinski of the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, who leads the excavations at the ancient city.

The find was made in the area of the eastern end of the forum and might date to the Roman Imperial period. According to the archaeologists' initial assumptions, the discovered fragment is part of a marble statue that may depict the deity Apollo or Dionysus. Fieldwork is continuing, and the team is excavating the area around the find in order to identify additional elements of the sculpture and determine its context.

"We are very close to the eastern end of the forum, so it is normal for such finds to emerge. We hope to discover better-preserved parts that will provide a more complete picture of the statue," Vagalinski pointed out. He also noted that this is the third similar marble fragment discovered in the area in recent years, with two comparable artifacts found earlier which are already on display at the Petrich History Museum.

The discovery comes just one day after archaeologists unearthed part of a marble statue of a goddess in the area of the Temple of Heracles. The newly found fragment consists of a base with the sandaled feet of a human figure and is believed to be part of a sculptural representation of Artemis. Comparative analyses of the marble will be carried out with specialists from Sofia University, while ongoing excavations around the temple may reveal additional pieces of the statue.