Ancient Civilisations

In Bulgaria, the earliest traces of human civilisation reach back into remote antiquity. Archaeological discoveries made in 1996 revealed that Kozarnika Cave near Belogradchik contained an ancient culture from the middle phase of the Palaeolithic. The tools discovered there date from 45,000 years ago. The most important discovery, however, lay in the cave's lowest rock strata. Research dates these to 1.4 million years ago, and remains of members of the genus Homo were found there. They are thought to have belonged to the species Homo erectus, presumed ancestors of our ancestors. If these remains are recognised, they will constitute the oldest evidence of human-like hominins in Europe. Other early traces of human presence dating from the Palaeolithic have been discovered in Bacho Kiro Cave near Dryanovo Monastery, from around 43,000–36,000 BC.