ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR SMYADOVO (Stefan Chohadzhiev – s_choha@abv.bg, Svetlana Venelinova) Explorations of a cemetery from the Chalcolithic period (5th millennium BC) began. The cemetery belonged to the Smyadovo settlement mound. Four graves at 63 – 93 cm in depth from the modern surface were explored. The graves are located at c. 150 m to the northwest from the settlement mound. The deceased were buried in Hocker position to the left, with their heads oriented to the east. The skeletons belonged to one adult and three children. The grave goods include a stone axe with a hole, bone beads, small snails with holes, a copper bracelet, few sherds and small pieces of red ochre. Remains of a Thracian and a mediaeval settlement were also discovered during the excavations.