“I am excited. This is a historical event that will remain in the annals of history in time. In a similar way, although not quite, there is an analogy with the adventurous transfer of Gotse Delchev's bones to Bulgaria“, commented in “This Saturday“ Prof. Georgi Nikolov - historian, lecturer at Sofia University, one of the greatest experts and researchers of Tsar Samuil and Samuil's Bulgaria.
In addition to the mortal remains of Samuil, the remains of the other two graves will also arrive in our country.
„They will be left at the National History Museum for research, as we assume that they are those of Gavril Radomir and Ivan Vladislav. I personally assume that in the last grave, designated by Nikolaos Moutsopoulos as „Delta“, Samuil's parents and his brother David were buried. It was there that the inscription was found, which was later found in German, because the slab, which is the roof slab of the sarcophagus, is missing. So a DNA test and other studies that anthropology is doing will reveal a little more about the family ties between them and then bolder hypotheses can be made“, explained Prof. Georgi Nikolov.
“Initially they will be in the museum, but a study requires specialized laboratories, which are mainly abroad – in Harvard, in Leipzig. Moreover, unlike Samuil's bones, their condition is not so good. There is no skull. They are not preserved because they were looted in 1071-1072. Then the Franks were sent to suppress the uprising of Georgi Vojtech and looted this basilica. This is explicitly noted in a chronicle“, commented the historian.
“My colleague academician Vasil Nikolov told me that he also has a foreign collaborator in Provadia, at the Saltworks, which you know. There, you can tell from the bones what a person was sick with, how he ate. In general, the technique is quite advanced in this regard. And for Samuil, of course, this technique will allow us to make a new three-dimensional image of his face — how he looked. So far, only photographs or plaster casts have been used, but now our anthropologists will have the opportunity to make a complete reconstruction of Tsar Samuil's face“, pointed out Prof. Nikolov.
According to anthropologists, the best DNA is taken from the teeth.
He said that there is no doubt that these are the remains of Tsar Samuil.
„Here in recent days I have listened to what we are returning, why it is here, how they will bring it, why it is not in another way. This work reminds me of an old anecdote in which one carried a hundred eggs. The German saw him and said: “Oh, what an omelette I would make!“ The Frenchman saw him and said: “Oh, what pastries I would make!“ The Bulgarian saw him and said: “If he falls now, what a cheese he will make!“, said Prof. Nikolov.
“There are many sources pointing to this. Michael Ataliat, a Byzantine historian, explicitly writes that Samuel, frightened after the Battle of Klyuch, fled and died on the marshy island of Prespa. Another thing is known - that it was he who transferred the relics of Saint Achilles of Laris, where they are kept, and he probably wished during his lifetime to be buried there. And next to the sarcophagus of his parents“, the expert commented.
Under his body was found the gold-woven fabric, which not everyone had.
„When asked why, for example, we don't find a crown or something else, I must say that there was a vaulted space above the grave. And in fact, if there were any gifts, they were in this vault. It was they who were looted, and the looters did not think to open the grave. And it stood like that for 955 years until it was discovered by Moutsopoulos — thanks to the fact that there was actually another cavity with the gifts above the grave“, pointed out Prof. Nikolov.
When asked about the current reaction of our neighbors from North Macedonia, the historian replied:
“In a country where the authorities daily emit hatred towards Bulgaria, towards Bulgarians, I cannot expect a positive reaction. Even if the most positive thing on earth happens here, they find a way to say that this is bad. Bulgarophobia there is like a profession. Daily, negative signals towards Bulgaria are emitted in newspapers and media. I don't know how these people imagine entering the European Union, where there should be brotherly love, not hatred. So, in my opinion, the attitude will be negative. And what should it be? If they consider Samuil as their forefather, they should come here today and rejoice“, said Prof. Nikolov.