Blaga Atanassova

My thesis closely examines elite Thracian tombs dated between the 5th-3rd centuries BC. The thesis aims to answer three main questions: how do these tombs fit within their local context; what they suggest about the Thracian funerary traditions in this period in different parts of Thrace and in Thrace as a whole; and how do the tombs fit in the broader, regional context. In order to answer these questions, I focus on three areas: the materials used to build the tombs; the tomb plans and the archaeological material found within them; and the tumuli, their construction and use, as well as the relationship between the tumuli and local settlements.