Beglik Tash

Beglik Tash
Site notes
Беглик Таш
A view of Beglik Tash
Shown within Bulgaria
Location	Primorsko, Burgas Province, Bulgaria
Coordinates	42°18′42″N 27°46′1″E / 42.31167°N 27.76694°E / 42.31167; 27.76694Coordinates: 42°18′42″N 27°46′1″E / 42.31167°N 27.76694°E / 42.31167; 27.76694
Type	Monument
Area	6 ha
Public access	free

Beglik Tash (Bulgarian: Беглик Таш), is a Thracian rock sanctuary situated on the southern Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, a few kilometers north of the city of Primorsko.

At the end of the 19th century, the Czech-Bulgarian historian and archaeologist Karel Škorpil produced the first scientific account of the sanctuary, which was then known as Apostol Tash.^[1] In 2002, the Bulgarian archaeologists started excavating the place under the direction of archaeologist Prof. Nikolay Ovcharov.

Beglik Tash - an expression whose meaning is probably related to the tax on sheep collected by the Ottoman authorities until 1913, the "beglik", and a Turkish word to describe an area made of large stones, taşlar^[2] - is a natural phenomenon of huge megaliths arranged and carved by a Thracian tribe and later used for religious ceremonies. It is part of a wider surrounding area and a natural rock formation of huge monolithic blocks of volcanic origin, and were formed of hardened magma that erupted from a volcano active during the Mesozoic era.

Most of the megaliths have traces of carvings for the purposes of Thracian rituals. There are also the remains of a labyrinth that visitors can pass through. A Thracian sun clock is formed from huge stones. There is also a 150-ton rock that rests on the ground in only two places, and a "womb-cave".

Inside it, archaeologists have found ceramic artefacts from the Early Iron Age (10th-6th century BC), the Antiquity, and the Middle Ages, as well as a man-made stone altar at the end of the natural cave which proves that it was used as a shrine. Every day at noon, a ray of sunlight enters the narrow entrance of the cave, and projects itself on the back of cave. According to late Bulgarian archaeologist Prof. Alexander Fol, the founder of thracology, some of the Thracian womb-caves had the property of letting the sunlight in only at certain times of the day, a natural phenomenon seen by the Thracians as acts of symbolic fertilization of the Earth womb or the Mother Goddess by the sun phallus of the Sun God.^[3]

The site is an open-air museum maintained by the Burgas Historical Society. It is visited annually by 40,000 tourists.^[4] Beglik Tash is located in the vicinity of two other Thracian sites: the city of Ranuli and the fortress of Pharmakida in the Strandhza mountain.

A general view
An element of the complex
Begliktash BG General Plan

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Beglik Tash.

European megaliths

Armenia	Metsamor Zorats Karer

Azerbaijan	Gobustan Rocks

Bulgaria	Beglik Tash Garlo

England	Arbor Low Avebury Barbrook One Birkrigg Boscawen-Un Boskednan Brown Willy Cairns The Bull Ring Burnmoor stone circles Castlerigg Craddock Moor Devil's Arrows Doll Tor Drizzlecombe Duloe Fernacre Gardom's Edge Goodaver Grey Wethers Hoarstones Hordron Edge Hurlers Leper Stone Long Meg and Her Daughters Mên-an-Tol The Merry Maidens Mitchell's Fold Nine Ladies Nine Stones, Altarnun Pipers Rollright Rudston Monolith Scorhill Stannon Stanton Drew Stonehenge Stripple Swinside Trippet

France	Barnenez Tumulus of Bougon Caixa de Rotllan Carnac Menhir de Champ-Dolent Dolmen de Bagneux Broken Menhir of Er Grah Filitosa Gallardet Dolmen Gavrinis Harrespil Kerzerho Locmariaquer megaliths Mane Braz Paddaghju Peyre-Brune Tremeca Verziau of Gargantua

Germany	Altendorf Denghoog Fraubillen cross Harhoog Lancken-Granitz dolmens Lohra Megaliths in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Niedertiefenbach Oldendorfer Totenstatt] Riesenstein Route of Megalithic Culture Sieben Steinhäuser Wotanstein Züschen

Ireland	Ardgroom Beltany stone circle Bohonagh Brownshill Dolmen Brú na Bóinne Carrigagulla Carrowmore Castlestrange stone Creevykeel Court Tomb Drombeg Gaulstown Portal Tomb Glantane East Grange stone circle High cross Knocknakilla Meehambee Dolmen Piper's Stones Poulnabrone dolmen Reask Templebryan Stone Circle Turoe stone Uragh Stone Circle

Jersey	Jersey Dolmens La Hougue Bie

Malta	Megalithic Temples (Borġ l-Imramma Borġ in-Nadur Buġibba Debdieba Ġgantija Ħaġar Qim Ħal-Ġinwi Kordin Mnajdra Qortin l-Imdawwar Santa Verna Skorba Ta' Ħaġrat Ta' Marżiena Ta' Raddiena Tal-Qadi Tarxien Tas-Silġ Xemxija Xrobb l-Għaġin) Hypogeum of Ħal-Saflieni Xagħra Stone Circle

Netherlands	Hunebed

Northern Ireland	Aughlish Ballynoe Beaghmore Corick Drumskinny Legananny Giant's Ring

Poland	Brąchnówko Grzybnica Odry Węsiory

Portugal	Almendres Cromlech Anta Grande do Zambujeiro Cunha Baixa Dolmen

Russia	Dolmens of North Caucasus Thunder Stone Megaliths in the Urals Russian Geoglyph

Scandinavia	Picture stones Runestones Stone circles Stone ships

Scotland	Balquhain Callanish I II III IV VIII X Carlin Cat Stane Clach an Trushal Colmeallie Drybridge Easter Aquhorthies Lochmaben Stone Pictish Ring of Brodgar Sheldon Stenness Steinacleit Strichen Yonder Bognie

Ukraine	Boundary stones

Wales	Barclodiad y Gawres Bedd Arthur Bedd Taliesin Bodowyr Bryn Cader Faner Bryn Celli Ddu Bryn Gwyn stones Capel Garmon Carreg Coetan Arthur Carreg Samson Coetan Arthur Foel Chwern Llanfechell Lligwy Burial Chamber Maen Llia Maen Madoc Meini Hirion Moel Tŷ Uchaf Parc Cwm long cairn Penrhos Feilw Pentre Ifan St Lythans burial chamber Trefignath Tinkinswood Tŷ Newydd Burial Chamber Whetstones

General articles	Standing stone Dolmen Henge Menhir Stone circle Stone row Concentric stone circle Recumbent stone circle Chambered cairn Harrespil Photographs of stone circles Middle Eastern megaliths

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Beglik Tash

See also

Notes

External links