EXCAVATIONS TO THE SOUTH OF THE PATRIARCHATE OF PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – aim-bas@aclubcable.com) The excavations were carried out to the south of the Archibishopic in the center of Veliki Preslav. A north – south oriented mediaeval street was discovered at 37 – 38 m in length. It is 1.95 m in width. The street begins from the southern square in front of the Archibishopic and leads to the south, towards the extension of the citadel. There is a wall, 60 – 80 cm in width, parallel to the street from its eastern side. The wall supported or surrounded an architectural complex situated to the east in the unexplored area. Mediaeval sherds, glass fragments, iron nails, arrowheads, etc. were found during the excavations. A drain built of stone slabs was discovered to the east of the surrounding wall. A pile of stones prepared for a lime-pit was found in the southern end of the excavated area. The street could be dated to the 10th century.

EXPLORATIONS TO THE SOUTH OF THE PATRIARCHATE OF PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – aim-bas@aclubcable.com) The explorations of the street discovered in 2004, which run from the southern square of the Patriarchate of Preslav, continued in 2005. From the east, the street is flanked by a surrounding or supporting wall. The reason for the destruction of the southern end of the street pavement was established: a drain was discovered there. The drain was constructed of slabs and stones that originated from the street pavement. Two Christian graves were found in the southern end of the excavated area. Most likely, they belonged to the periphery of a small cemetery explored in the neighboring archaeological sector. Remains of two semi-dug sunken-floored houses of the 12th century were discovered in the excavated area. The finds from the site are typical of Preslav: coins of the 13th century, two parts of lead seals of the 11th century, numerous sherds of mediaeval pottery, metal objects (parts of small knives, rings, etc.). Materials from the period when Preslav was the capital of the Bulgarian Kingdom during the 9th – 10th centuries were also found: fragmentary windows glass, limestone and marble fragments of rich architectural decoration.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS IN PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – naim@naim.bg) The explorations of the street, which connects the southern square in front of the Patriarchate of Preslav with the aristocratic building complex situated to the south, continued. The street is 1.92 m wide and was traced out at 40 m in length. A building 8 m in width, consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line, is situated to the east of the street. The building was documented at 40 m in length. There is a pavement of stones in front of its eastern façade. Drainage for the water from the pavement was discovered. A Christian burial (No. 3) of the middle of the 10th century was explored over the debris of the building. A gilded bronze belt-buckle was found in the grave. The building and the pavement probably belong to a southern court of the Patriarchate. The construction of the street and the adjacent building dates to the end of the 9th or the first half of the 10th century. Probably, the construction was part of the enlargement and the reconstruction of the Citadel of Veliki Preslav. The street and the building were demolished in the middle of the 10th century, most likely, first after the capturing of the city by the army of Kievan Rus led by Prince Sviatoslav I and later, after the invasion of the Byzantine army led by Emperor John I Tzimiskes. Several pits for garbage collection cut the debris from the building. A pot of the end of the 12th century was discovered over a pit. The pot contained remains from cooked peas and carbonized wooden spoon of ash. Two semi-dug sunken-floor houses of the 12th – 13th centuries were discovered. The finds from the archaeological excavations include scyphate copper coins of the 13th century, lead seals of the 11th century, sherds, nails, rings, tools, fragments of architectural decoration of marble and limestone, window glass, etc.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS IN PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – naim@naim.bg) The explorations of the street continued. It begins from the southern square in front of the Patriarchate of Preslav and probably is directed towards the southwestern circular corner tower of the fortification wall. The section of the street explored is 57 m long. It is 1.95 m wide, including both curbstones. A building consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line, over 40 m long and over 7 m wide, adjoined the eastern side of the street. The walls of the building are 1.20 – 1.50 m wide. The façade is oriented to the east. There was a second southern churchyard of the Patriarchate located to the east. It had three levels. The lowest level dates to the beginning of the 10th century, judging from e seal belonging to Bulgarian King Petar I (AD 927 – 969) with Queen Maria-Irene. The upmost level is dated by two copper coins of Bulgarian King Mitso Asen (1256 – 1263) who resided in Preslav during the 13th century. After the invasion of the Pechenegs in the middle of the 11th century the city dwindled. Pits, the remains of houses, two domestic ovens and graves in the cemetery of the 11th – 12th centuries, related to the period of decline, were discovered. The finds from the excavations include a bone scabbard of a knife, fragmentary building ceramics, sherds mostly of the 11th – 12th centuries, copper coins (Latin imitations), pieces of white marble and red slate from mosaics in opus sectile, fragments from limestone architectural decoration and animal bones.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS IN PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov, Yavor Vasilev – ivor@mail.bg) An area of 100 sq. m was explored. It was found that the street and the flanking building consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line continued to the south. The façade of the building was oriented to the east and there was a timber porch in front of it. Three stone bases of wooden posts, 8 – 10 cm in diameter, which supported the porch, were discovered. The bases were situated at 3.50 m in front of the façade and at 5 m from each other. The finds included sherds of the 10th – 14th centuries, iron nails and cotters, glass bracelets and fragments of glass windows. A bronze coin of Lysimachus was found under the stone pavement. Probably, it testified to occupation in the Hellenistic period in that part of mediaeval Preslav.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS IN PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – naim@naim.bg) It was found that the large building, consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line, was destroyed and the stones from its structure robbed. The destruction probably occurred after the middle of the 10th century, maybe after Preslav was conquered by Sviatoslav I Igorevich, the Prince of Kievan Rus, in AD 970. In the excavated area, the mediaeval street turned to the east and it probably reached the southern gate of the so-called third fortification wall. Debris from the 12th – 13th centuries (parts of houses, a domestic oven and midden pits) were documented in the southeastern corner of the excavated area. The finds from the excavations included a copper coin of the Bulgarian King Ivan Shishman (1371 – 1395), a bronze cross-encolpion, containing a piece of wood and showing crucified Christ and Saint Mary Oranta, which was found together with coins of the first decades of the 11th century, a circular medallion with two faces of the beginning of the 11th century, showing crucified Christ and Saint Mary Oranta, and a small ritual bell produced of a copper alloy with high content of silver.

PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – naim@naim.bg) The explorations of the street, directed to the south and beginning from the southern square of the Patriarchate, continued. A building consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line was situated along the eastern side of the street. The building and the street bordered the western side of a second southern yard of the Patriarchate. The building was over 50 m long and had a façade with a timber porch to the east, as evidenced by the stone bases that supported wooden posts. The walls of the building were 1.50 m wide, built of stones bonded with mortar. The baths of AD 900 – 925, which were explored during the 1960s, were documented. The debris of ramshackle buildings of the 11th – 12th centuries were dismantled. The finds included a large quantity of animal bones with traces from butchering and a double iron hook that was used for hanging, flaying and cutting up animals. These buildings were probably butcheries. Three midden pits were explored and three Christian graves were discovered on the site. The finds from the excavations included sherds of the 9th – 12th centuries, a gilded copper cross – appliqué from a liturgical book, a bronze medallion with an image and an inscription, and a bronze medallion showing a cross on the one side and the Proto-Bulgarian symbol IYI on its other side, which is related to the period when the Proto-Bulgars were converted to Christianity in AD 864 – 865 when the Pagan and the Christian symbolism coexisted.

PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov – naim@naim.bg) The sector of the street leading to the east and the adjacent building consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line, 52.60 m by 7.55 m in size, were explored. The southern end of the eastern wall of the building had a foundation 1.60 – 1.70 m wide. Rectangular pads for the foundations of an outer staircase that led to the second floor were documented to the east of the eastern wall. A water-conduit and a drain were discovered in the building. Seven midden pits and three Christian burials of children were explored, dug out into the debris of the building. The building was probably synchronous to the first occupation period of the baths situated to the west. The building existed from the middle of the 10th to the middle of the 11th century when it was destroyed and the building material was robbed and reused. The finds included pottery of the 10th – 13th centuries, a gold solidus of Romanos I Lekapenos and Christopher Lekapenos minted in AD 931, a bronze seal with an image and a small gold plate showing a water bird in cloisonné enamel.

PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov, Yavor Vasilev – ivor@mail.bg) An area of 30 sq. m was explored, located to the east of the southern part of the building consisting of parallel rooms arranged in a line, excavated in 2010 – 2011. Piles of roughly-cut stones, fragmentary bricks and roof-tiles were discovered, most probably remains from workshops. Iron nails, fragments from glass bracelets and copper plates were found. A stratum of the end of the 12th – 13th centuries was discovered at 0.90 – 1 m in depth. A layer of mortar was documented at 1 – 1.10 m in depth related to the construction of the building of the 9th – 10th centuries that was explored to the west. Five places for stirring the mortar were discovered. Part of the drain was explored. It was constructed over the debris of the building after it was demolished and later, the drain was transformed into a water-conduit with terracotta pipes. The kerbs in a section of the street and several stone slabs from its pavement were discovered. The street partly destroyed the water-conduit. The finds from the excavations included a bronze cross-encolpion of the 10th century, Byzantine anonymous copper coins of the 10th – 11th centuries, a lead seal of a Byzantine administrator with a high rank, two bone dice, iron arrowheads and appliqués.

PRESLAV (Zhivko Aladzhov, Yavor Vasilev – ivor@mail.bg) The explorations of a sector of the street continued. It was destroyed by later structures of the end of the 12th – beginning of the 13th centuries. The extension of the wall built in rubble masonry and c. 90 cm wide was discovered in Trench 59. A second wall with the same structure, c. 1 m wide, was discovered. The building was most probably destroyed during the major reconstruction of the citadel during the reign of the Bulgarian King Peter I (AD 927 – 969). The finds from the excavations included a lead seal of the middle of the 11th century belonging to Theodoretos who was Protospatharios and Strategos, a Byzantine anonymous follis of the Class B (AD 1030/1035 – 1042), two bronze and an iron crosses of the end of the 10th – beginning of the 11th centuries, a fragment from a Latin funerary inscription of the second half of the 2nd – beginning of the 3rd century AD reused as a spolia.