„ΤΗΕ FORGOTTEN DEITIES“ COΜΕ ALIVE AT THE NATIΟNAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM

213 rare artifacts are telling the story of more than 6000 years history of faith in the present-day Bulgarian land from August 7, 2026 till January 17, 2027.

The National Archaeological Museum presents the temporary exhibition “The forgotten deities” – a large-scale project that brings together 213 rare artifacts and traces the development of religious beliefs in the present-day Bulgarian lands from the beginning of the Neolithic to Late Antiquity. The exhibition offers an opportunity to explore more than 6,000 years of spiritual history and reasoning about how different societies have sought to explain the universe, nature, and human existence.

The exhibition presents one of the most valuable pieces of evidence for the spiritual world of the ancient societies that inhabited the present-day Bulgarian lands. The visitors would have the opportunity to encounter images of the forgotten deities, cults, and mythological personages – from the Great Goddess Mother of the prehistoric agricultural societies to Zeus, Dionysus, Mithra, the Thracian horseman, and a series of other deities from the Graeco-Roman and Thracian religious traditions.

Among the highlights are dozens of exhibits with high scientific and artistic value, restored specifically for the exhibition and displayed to the general public for the first time. The chronological scope of the exhibition spans more than six thousand years – from the early Neolithic, around 6200 BC, to the 4th century BC. Through figures of deities, votive offerings, cult objects, coins, statues, reliefs, ornaments, and everyday objects, the exhibition traces the history of religious ideas and beliefs across different epochs.

Ass. Prof. Kaloyan Pramatarov, one of the exhibition curators, says: “The artifacts that reach us are an archaeological illustration of this journey, and, in that sense, the present exhibition is an invitation to reflect on the layers of religious ideas and beliefs that have left their traces over time. The exhibits not only tell their story but also remind us of the link between the limits of human consciousness and the immensity of the world”.

“The forgotten deities” includes themes such as prehistoric cults of fertility and natural cycles, religious practices during the Bronze and early Iron Ages, the interaction between Thracian and Hellenic religious traditions, and the variety of cults in the present-day Bulgarian lands during the Roman period. Part of the finds have already entered the museum collection at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, and others have been found during archaeological excavations, donated to the museum, or rescued by the authorities. Exhibition curators are Kaloyan Pramatarov and Chavdar Chomakov.

„Forgotten deities“ could be seen from August 7th 2026 till January 17th 2027 in the National Archaeological Museum (Atanas Burov Square No 1).

Αs part of the exhibition, a specialized and richly illustrated edition with popular scientific articles in Bulgarian and in English was prepared.

*The exhibition is organised with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and INFRAMAT – Modern Scientific Equipment in Support of Science, Technology, and Culture, part of the Bulgarian National Roadmap for Scientific Infrastructure, supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Bulgaria.