The Project
The Gluhite Kamani Research Project (КП-06-Н80/6 from 2023, BNSF) is aimed at stimulating the investigations of the Early Iron age in Thrace through application of tradicional and scientific methods in archaeology and with respect of the new digital era.
The long-term research of each archaeological site requires a periodic summary of the results and their interpretation so that the field data gathered can enter scientific circulation and become public. The excavations of the Gluhite Kamani carried out in the sectors Centre and North, revealed archaeological structures from different periods, an impressive amount of pottery, hundreds of small finds, anthropological, osteological and botanical remains.
The immediate goal of this project is to process, summarize and analyze the materials obtained from the excavations, summary of the results and preparation of a complete academic publication.In the long-term, the following goals of the project can be summarised:
- to stimulate research and scientific discussion on the EIA in Thrace;
- to improve the capacity of the team members;
- to provide job prospects and a good working environment for young researchers and students;
- to stimulate international contacts;
- to popularize the scientific interdisciplinary approach with the application of new methods of the digital and GIS technologies;
- to counteract the dissemination of pseudo-scientific and para-scientific messages and stimulate critical thinking and perception of information as a significant challenge for our entire society.
Work Packages
Processing of pottery and finds
Work package leader: Georgi Nekhrizov
The processing will be carried out in the archeological base in the village of Malko Gradishte, where the mass material is stored. The chronological approach will be followed in the distribution of the tasks for material processing since the excavations revealed structures and materials from the three main periods of the site – final Chalcolithic, Iron Age and Middle Ages. Scientific consultation with external experts will be sought, as well as for restauration of entire vessels from the EIA. The processing and digitization of the finds will require the purchase of appropriate hardware and software products
Interdisciplinary research
Work package leader: Julia Tzvetkova
The package includes activities focused at performing archaeobotanical analyses (2.1.) Mineralogical and petrological analyses (2.2.). They will be performed by the relevant specialists in the team. External consultations will be sought if possible for the implementation of archaeozoological analyzes.
Archaeometric analyses
Work package leader: Nataliya Ivanova
To perform them, appropriate samples will be selected in the process of analysis of botanical remains and during the pottery processing. The implementation of the foreseen analyses within the subset 3.1 will be performed in European laboratories, due to the lack of such in Bulgaria. The foreseen analyses include radiocarbon analysis, residue analysis, isotope analysis, etc., according to the quality of the selected samples. For the archaeometric studies of pottery, the collaboration with experts and laboratories in BAS, MGU is foreseen, which offer performing of analyses like XRD, SEM-EDX, X-ray tomography, etc.
Information technology (IT)
Work package leader: Nadezhda Kecheva
Activities in this package will be carried out jointly by the team members with the relevant competences. The implementation of 4.1 and the testing of the product with the populating of the database will be carried out by all participants in the package. In the implementation of 4.2. the Gluhite kamani site and its archaeological setting will provide the opportunity to test the implementation of a pilot study on the application of multispectral drone imagery. Including external experts will be discussed on demand.
Analysis and interpretation
Work package leader: Georgi Nekhrizov
The implementation of this package will be carried out by the relevant specialists according to the specifics of the individual activity, as a final stage of the preparation of the publication of the results.
Information portal and dissemination of knowledge
Work package leader: Julia Tzvetkova
The main deliverables here are promotion of the fundamental scientific results in the process of project implementation through participation in national and international conferences, and the preparation of a volume of the excataion results. An organisation of a workshop about the EIA studies in Thrace and the Balkans is envisaged, too. A preparation and maintaining of a webpage about the project and the site Gluhite kamane will serve as a main media for disseminating the project results and popularize the EIA studies in Thrace.