Рисунката с обяснителни надписи от Плиска – 1948 г. Addenda et corrigenda

Abstract

The reviewed article examines the results of Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) and 3D Laser Scanning documentation recently carried out by E. Komatarova-Balinova, P. Charalampakis and M. Raykovska on a well-known stone block with carvings and inscriptions discovered during the 1948 excavations in Pliska. Reviewing the data about the place of its discovery, its manufacture, as well as the presence of two “signs” with the character of letter combinations, the author of this paper confirms the conclusions of St. Stanchev (Vaklinov) from 1955 that the stone block with the graffiti originated from the palatial complex, most likely from the pagan temple in the Citadel, from which the stone block was removed for repeated subsequent use as early as the middle of the 9th c. The current review also takes into account older photographs of the monument that are compared to the RTI and 3D Laser Scanning documentation to achieve a more substantial reconstruction of the details in the carvings and inscriptions. Compared to the new documentation, they offer opportunities for a more objective consideration of the controversial issues related to the understanding of these graffiti. Regarding the images, the author maintains the opinion that they occupy the entire obverse of the stone and that, regardless of the different qualities of execution, they form a single composition dedicated to an important event – a religious ceremony held most likely at a Bulgarian ruler’s residence.

Keywords

• Pliska
• Proto-Bulgarian inscriptions
• stone carvings