On October 3, Bulgaria received from Greece remains identified as those of the medieval Tsar Samuel, who ruled from 997 to 1014. This was reported by UNN, citing the governments of Greece and Bulgaria, BTA, and The Guardian.
The transfer took place following years of negotiations between the two countries במסגרת an agreement on the mutual return of historical and religious valuables. The remains have already been delivered to Sofia, where they were received with state honors and placed in a special marble sarcophagus.
Details
The official handover ceremony took place in the morning at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki, attended by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Bulgarian President Rumen Radev. The parties signed the relevant protocols on the transfer of cultural valuables. The remains were then transported to Sofia aboard a Spartan military transport aircraft. After it entered Bulgarian airspace, it was escorted by MiG-29 and F-16 fighter jets. A state ceremony titled "Bulgaria Welcomes Tsar Samuel" was held in the capital's center, during which the national anthem was played and a 21-gun artillery salute was fired.
After that, the remains were carried in procession to the Basilica of Saint Sophia. There, Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil led a memorial service, after which the remains were placed in a specially made marble sarcophagus.
The transfer was part of an agreement signed by the two countries' culture ministers on September 29. In exchange, Bulgaria returned 48 historical and ecclesiastical relics to Greece, which had been taken to Sofia in 1917 during World War I. These included icons, crosses, church vestments, reliquaries, and a bishop's throne from the Panagia Eikosifinissa and Timios Prodromos monasteries, as well as from the Metropolis of Serres and Nigrita. Until November 5, the items returned to Greece will be displayed at the Museum of Byzantine Culture in Thessaloniki, after which they are to be handed over to the monasteries and church institutions from which they originate. Sofia and Athens also agreed to continue negotiations on other historical objects of mutual interest.
How the remains were found
The remains believed to be those of Tsar Samuel were found by Greek archaeologist Nikolaos Moutsopoulos in the Basilica of Saint Achillius on an island in Lake Prespa. The discovery dates to 1965. Other anthropological material was also found with them in four sarcophagi, which Greece likewise handed over to Bulgaria.
There is no definitive genetic confirmation of this identification. Bulgarian historian Professor Milko Palangurskiy stated that no DNA analysis of the remains had been conducted before their return. At the same time, a number of Bulgarian archaeologists and historians consider the available archaeological and historical evidence sufficiently convincing to link the burial specifically to Samuel.
Negotiations lasted for decades
According to Mitsotakis, negotiations on the mutual return of cultural valuables effectively began about half a century ago. The first discussions of the issue were held in the 1970s by then-Greek Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis and Bulgarian leader Todor Zhivkov.
At the ceremony in Thessaloniki, Radev said that the return of the remains concludes a lengthy diplomatic process and could mark a new stage of cultural cooperation between the two countries. He stressed that historical objects should be accessible to the peoples with whose past they are connected.
However, the agreement also sparked debate. According to the Associated Press, some Greek scholars and church representatives expressed dissatisfaction with the specific items Bulgaria transferred to Greece. In Bulgaria, for his part, Professor Palangurskiy said that, in his view, a more comprehensive examination and cataloging of the relics should have been conducted before the agreement was concluded.
What the Parthenon Marbles have to do with it
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also used the transfer of the relics as an argument in Athens' long-running dispute with the United Kingdom over the Parthenon sculptures, a significant portion of which is held by the British Museum.
According to him, the international attitude toward cultural heritage is gradually changing, and historic monuments should not be regarded as military trophies or objects detached from the cultural environment for which they were created. Mitsotakis said that the same principle underlies Athens's demand for the reunification of the Parthenon sculptures.
The Greek prime minister also reiterated that Athens would not agree to a solution that would mean recognizing another state's ownership of the sculptures or provide for their return to Greece only in the form of a loan.
Who Was Tsar Samuel
Samuel ruled the Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 1014 and fought the Byzantine Empire for decades. During his reign, the state's political center moved to the southwestern Balkans, to the area around Prespa and Ohrid. In 1014, Samuel's forces suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of the army of Byzantine Emperor Basil II. Shortly afterward, the tsar died. The Bulgarian Empire continued to resist for several more years, but in 1018 its territories came under Byzantine control.
Recall
Earlier, UNN reported that in Egypt, an intact tomb belonging to a high-ranking official, more than 4,000 years old, was found.