The Thracian Tomb of Sveshtari is 2.5 km southwest of the village of Sveshtari, Razgrad Province, which is 42 km northeast of Razgrad, in northeast Bulgaria.

The tomb is probably the grave of Dromichaetes who was a king of the Getae on both sides of the lower Danube (present day Romania and Bulgaria) around 300 BC, and his wife, the daughter of King Lysimachus who was a general and diadochus (i.e. „successor“) of Alexander the Great. The tomb is a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site.

General information

Discovered and excavated in 1982 during excavations at Mound No 7 of the East Mound Necropolis of Sboryanovo (Ginina Mogila) – a tumulus of the early Hellenistic period, the Sveshtari tomb was built in the first quarter of the 3rd century BC.^[4] The tomb’s construction reflects the fundamental structural principles of Thracian cult buildings. The tomb’s architectural decor is considered to be unique, with polychrome half-human, half-plant caryatids and painted murals. The ten female figures carved in high relief on the walls of the central chamber and the decorations of the lunette in its vault are the only examples of this type found so far in the Thracian lands. It is an exceptional monument of the Getae, a Thracian people who were in contact with the Hellenistic and Hyperborean worlds, according to ancient geographers.

In 2012, archaeologists uncovered a significant treasure near the village. The treasure included a golden ring, 44 female figure depictions and 100 golden buttons, found in 150 tombs from the 4th century BC. It has been suggested that it is part of the site of the Getan city of Helis.