The cradle of civilization

"Before the glory that was Greece and Rome, even before the first cities of Mesopotamia or temples along the Nile, there lived in the Lower Danube Valley and the Balkan foothills people who were ahead of their time in art, technology and long-distance trade", begins the story “The New York Times” dedicated to the exhibition "The Lost World of Old Europe".

Thracian Tsar Sevt III source: Tomb of the Thracian King Sevt III

The Balkans are the cradle of civilization, these lands were inhabited by a highly developed culture that is much older than the Mesopotamian civilizations, says Deutsche Welle

The city of Varna in Bulgaria is one of the oldest cities in Europe, with a history dating as far back as 4600 BC during the Chalcolithic period. The people who lived in Varna at this time have been simply called the ‘Varna Culture’, and the majority of information about this culture comes from the Varna Necropolis. source

Golden mask of the Thracian king Teres - "The golden mask weighs 673 grams and images the face of an adult man, with clearly portrayed individual features. It was cast and additionally processed by forging and chiseling. The portrait is dated to the 5th century BC and, so far, the only mask of this kind from this period in Thrace and the Mediterranean area. It said it is the mask of the Odrysian King Teres." source