Bulgarian scientists will examine the remains of Tsar Samuil and two people identified as members of his family. The goal is to establish the family connection between them and to check whether those of Gavril Radomir - son of Samuil, and Ivan Vladislav - his nephew are among the remains.
On October 3, three coffins were brought from Greece to Bulgaria. The larger one contains the remains identified as belonging to Tsar Samuil. The bones are arranged in anatomical order and are preserved in their full height. The other two coffins contain the remains of people associated with the ruler's family.
“We are talking about chemical analysis, isotopic and other studies to understand as much as possible about these people“, said Prof. Lyudmil Vagalinski from the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He leads the team, which includes Assoc. Prof. Viktoria Ruseva and doctoral student Donika Yordanova.
Different methods will be used
The research will not be limited to DNA analysis. Physical-anthropological, chemical, isotopic and other studies are planned, which should provide information about the origin, lifestyle and family ties between the individuals studied.
Two interdisciplinary analyses have already been conducted for the remains of Tsar Samuil. According to Prof. Vagalinski, the work is long and includes not only the bones, but also other details related to the preservation and study of the remains.
The remains were discovered in 1969.
The tomb of Tsar Samuil was discovered in 1969 in the Basilica of “St. Achilles“ in the Small Prespa Lake by the Greek archaeologist Prof. Nikolaos Moutsopoulos. Since then, the remains have been stored in the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki.
After the official handover from Greece, the remains of Tsar Samuil arrived in Bulgaria on a “Spartan“ military transport plane. The coffin was placed in a specially made marble sarcophagus in the Basilica of “St. Sophia – God's Wisdom“ in Sofia. Under the agreement between the two countries, Bulgaria is handing over 48 church relics to Greece.
The new research results will be presented on October 8 at 10:00 at a press conference at the BTA National Press Club in Sofia. It will be attended by Prof. Lyudmil Vagalinski, Assoc. Prof. Victoria Ruseva, PhD student Donika Yordanova and the Director of the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Assoc. Prof. Hristo Popov.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg, bta.bg