An Early Christian monastery near the village of Dragoinovo, Parvomai municipally (preliminary report) Cover Image

An Early Christian monastery near the village of Dragoinovo, Parvomai municipally (preliminary report)
An Early Christian monastery near the village of Dragoinovo, Parvomai municipally (preliminary report)

Author(s): Ivo Topalilov
Subject(s): History, Archaeology, Ancient World
Published by: Шуменски университет »Епископ Константин Преславски«
Keywords: Christianisation; bessoi; Rhodope; monastery; archaeological report

Summary/Abstract: This article presents the preliminary results of the archaeological campaigns between 2009-2019 in the region of ‘Tsarkvishte’ (Church), south of the village of Dragoinovo, Parvomai municipality. In this period a full study of a three-nave basilica and the partial study of the building located south of it and part of the eastern enclosed wall of the complex has been undertaken. Although the excavations are not completed, they allow us to gain some idea of the specifics and reconstructions of the uncovered early Christian complex, which is interpreted as a monastery. Its foundation dates back to the end of the 4th - beginning of the5th century and is accepted as part of the process of Christianisation of the mountain population of the Rhodopes, which in the sources is mentioned as ‘Bessoi’, and which determines the specifics of the complex. It lasted until the end of the 6th-beginning of the 7thcentury when it was destroyed during the Slavic-Avar invasions.

  • Issue Year: 2020
  • Issue No: 7
  • Page Range: 209-235
  • Page Count: 27
  • Language: English