Resources for “Brand Bulgaria” based on the cultural heritage from the Thracian Civilization Patriots insist on using the Proto- and Medieval Bulgarian glory, totally shaded by the Franc, Latin and Byzantine empires, which left behind much more important monuments and visible cultural heritage. In the times when France, Italy, Austria and even Russia were building baroque palaces and golden fountains, Bulgaria was under a hated Ottoman rule, and a peripheral region at that.
The modern times leave the strange taste of iron communist rule in the mouth and poor development of arts. So what is left? The prehistoric times are boring to the normal visitor – few bone tools at the museums do not represent much of an interest, no matter that they can prove that the country was one of the first cradles of European civilization. The Hellenic (Greek), Hellenistic and Roman civilizations have their countries of high concentration of sites. With the well-preserved artistic heritage of stunning monuments, Italy, Greece, and Croatia attract millions of visitors. In addition, the heritage of the Roman Empire can be seen in all Mediterranean countries, and it doesn’t represent uniqueness for branding purposes.
That is why the branding of Bulgaria should focus on the Thracian heritage, which no country in the world can dispute. Its uniqueness is guaranteed and can serve as a departing point to define “Brand Bulgaria” Bulgaria, as country and as travel destinations. But, here arises the problem. The Thracian were very different from the Egyptians, Acadians, Sumerians, Hittites, Greeks and Romans. Their Orphic traditions prevented them from building imposing monumental palaces and temples. The perfection for a Thracian king was expressed not by building an enormous palace, but by building the prettiest temple-tomb. This tomb, serving during the life of the ruler was a temple, after his death –a door to the afterlife. After the death of the family, the temple-tomb was buried and hidden under a naturally looking mound. More than 30 000 Thracian tombs are still visible in Bulgaria.
Many of them are victims of the illicit treasure hunters, clueless archaeologists digging with less finesse even then the treasure hunters, and careless government which doesn’t give a dime (textually) to restore the glory of these monuments. Still, from those, which are restored and preserved, the visitor can see an impressive building, architectural and artistic capacity of the hidden civilization of the Thracians.
The high level of knowledge used to produce gold vessels, military armament also prove the technology advancement of the Thracians, exporting their metalwork in all ancient world. Thracian gold, silver and bronze artifacts, mostly drinking vessels, can be seen from Istanbul to the Ortiz Collection and Metropolitan, to from Athens and Russia. Another problem with using the Thracians for branding purposes is the lack of their own writing system. That made them victims of enemy historians, who left contradictory and incomplete records. Modern zealots of the cause of the Greeks, Macedonians, and Russians try to reduce the Thracian civilization as mere peripheral expression of the Hellenic (Greek), Hellenistic or Scythian “mega” civilizations. Until now a day, the US universities study the Thracians as part of Magna Graecia, with few exceptions of individual scientists, who know the enormous difference. And, until now a day, Getty, Cleveland and Richmond museums, as well as British and other museums worldwide mislabel Thracian artifacts as “Greek”.
So, how you brand a country, if you have to focus on an unknown civilization, which didn’t leave too much visible and impressive monuments and daunting sites? Very easy. Using not only the “UNESCO” labeled temple/tombs and the gold treasures, but also the living cultural heritage of the Thracians that transcended to the modern life of the Bulgarians.
That heritage is visible at any corner and cannot be mistaken with another cultural influence. In addition, all myths and rites are authentic, not a tourism attractions or reenactments. After 20 centuries of Christian religion in the country, you still can see the pagan Nestinaria (dancing on hot coals), which came from the Thracians.
In modern Bulgaria, even now a days, the Bulgarian Ministry of Health still pays insurance cost for all these people who prefer to go to mineral water springs to cure their diseases with the same seriousness as they pay for prescription drugs. Complicated mixes of herbal medicines to cure from hypertonic (high blood pressure) to ED, and from cholesterol to heart arrhythmia are not considered “witch concoctions” but are prescribed by MDs in hospitals and clinics as often as the products of Novartis, Pfizer, and GlaxoSmithKline.
Each 6th of May, dressed as St. George day, the Bulgarians still sacrifice the lamb to the gods of prosperity. And this is not an exception: several Christian saints were invented or adopted in Bulgaria only as a cover-up for pagan rites and traditions, which survive until now a day. Each 14th of February, parallel with the St. Valentine’s Day, celebrated only in the last 10 years, the Bulgarians venerate Dionysus, the pruning of the vines. They perform dances and rites ensuring that the god of wine is happy and brings great crop and even greater wine.
On June 21st , the night before the Summer solstice, the young ladies from villages and towns go to collect curative herbs in the middle of the night, dancing in the forest, as their predecessors were doing thousands of years ago. Even Ph.D.s in cultural anthropology believe in legends, curses, dragons, deified stones and animals. And that is not a surprise, neither an exception, as writers as Elizabeth Kostova observes. Megaliths, single deified trees, a spring of water or a astronomical event are venerated as gods of Son, Great Mother Goddess, etc., and visited by thousands of pilgrims on same day, when these same devoted Christians go to the church to light a candle to the corresponding Saint. The devoted Christians in Bulgaria still celebrate the pagan Kukeri festival each year, equally important in small villages, as well as in some of the cities in the country.
The ancient legends about Orpheus still live in the enormous success in the musicians of Bulgaria – from the Grammy winners folklore singers, to the opera divas and the rock fest of Kavarna. There is folk song in Bulgaria about virtually every event of life, every type of celebration. Which is one of Thracians’ biggest contributions to the humanity – the art of poetry and song, preserving their enchantment from the Dionysian mysteries to the modern times.
In spite the fact that France is the best branded country, when it comes to wine, it is in the Thracian lands, where the cult to the wine and its god, Dionysus were born. Which, as in France, Italy and all the European road of wine, is visible for the visitor. The Bulgarians don’t drink more than other nations. They venerate the wine, the wine making, the ritual of drinking and the myths of the wine, more than in any other place in the world. Which is the living Thracian tradition, recorded from the times of Homer.
These rites and popular events surviving 4000 years are a living proof that the Thracian civilization lives in the lands of Bulgaria. Outside of the museums with the gold treasures and independently of the frescoes in the Thracian Tombs.
From the Ancient Greeks, who said that the most spectacular mysteries were the Thracian ones, to the modern day tourists, who see the festivity culture in streets and small villages, the soul and the spirit of the Thracian civilization is obvious and very much alive.
Is up to the scientists (historians, sociologists and cultural anthropologists) to determine why communists, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, Christians and Bulgarian pagans couldn’t eradicate the Thracian traditions. What is important is that focusing on Thracian civilization cultural heritage can differentiate “brand Bulgaria” from many other similar countries. Exactly with this magic, the spirit of festivity and the mysterious soul of the people who welcome every foreigner as a friend.
Delivering on “Brand Bulgaria” based on cultural heritage of the Thracian Civilization
As with all brands, no matter if they are Coca Cola or Ford, the most difficult part is to deliver the promise, the expectation and the “gut feeling” they create in the consumer. The exaggerated statement of Georgia brand “Europe starts here”, in spite of the historical ground to claim this brand, never worked, because the country couldn’t deliver on the brand. The recent un-European behavior of the country, the lack of sophistication not only in politics, but also in tourism offering is far away from such a bold statement.
Could Bulgaria deliver on such branding? I believe so. The beauty of branding something in the past, is safe for a country, which doesn’t have modern road infrastructure, which is overbuilt in the coastal and mountain resorts, but still pristine in the small towns and villages, where in reality the Thracian civilization still lives.
Is this brand sustainable and can it live long enough to propagate and become known worldwide? Yes, because the small towns and villages, with few exceptions, managed to preserve their authenticity, contrary to the big UNESCO sites, such as Nessebar, which will be deleted from the World Heritage list due to complete destruction of that same heritage. And, because the Bulgarian entrepreneurs don’t’ see reason to overbuild the interior of thee country, this authenticity is likely to be preserved. As “Brand Croatia”, which is based on the past “The Mediterranean as it once was”, the most important for a brand for Bulgaria to be sustainable based on the cultural heritage of the Thracian civilization is to preserve the environment of this past, without forgetting to take advantage of modern comforts and five stars service.
Marketing efforts to propagate “Brand Bulgaria” on the Thracian cultural heritage
In order to create, develop and propagate a brand based on the Thracian cultural heritage, all stakeholders’ efforts should be concentrated and coordinated nationwide first. Many of the owners of guest houses and B&B in Bulgaria don’t know that their establishments are completely green – from the materials used to build them, to the recycled toiled paper, coal heating in the rooms and organic food served. They have to be included in this “Authenticity” program, started by the USAID and called “Authentic Bulgaria” and now, not anymore financed, fallen in oblivion. There is still not coordination between the travel business and the enormous knowledge of local museums, libraries and culture houses (chitalishte) about how to create local tourism products related to the traditions, crafts and rites of the Thracian civilization. Such coordination and cooperation will bring the best for the marketing of these products. And third, the most important efforts, that have to be made by the private business in tourism, is to stop to sell “luxury” (understood as a Jacuzzi bathtub and a massage table), and concentrate to the “authenticity” as the most valuable asset of the country. This authenticity should be also focused on what remains from the Thracian lifestyle, traditions, crafts and arts.
Should Bulgaria stay in the past with this branding? No, that is just the opposite. The future of the country depends on preserving and making available the achievements of this past for the future generations worldwide. And that is what “Brand Bulgaria” should represent – a bridge between the values of the past and the advances of the future. As for millennia the Thracian civilization was: a bridge between civilizations and cultures in Europe and beyond.
P.S. For all foreigners, I am compiling a list of links in English to see and read about Thracian artifacts, sites and tumuli in Bulgaria and abroad, which are accessible for visit. This list is on a separate page, and everybody is welcome to add (use the comment function) whatever they believe should belong to the list. Also, I am publishing a short article about the Thracian Civilization, which I wrote 3 years ago for a client. The goal is these links and writings to serve as an electronic database of the Thracian civilization for travel agents, individual visitors, etc., before the electronic version of the Thracian Encyclopedia, prepared by Prof. Valeria Fol goes online in English.
List of photos:
1 - Kazanlak Thracian Tomb, UNESCO Wold Heritage Site, Bulgaria. Fresco detail. Photography: Rossitza Ohridska-Olson
2. - Thracian tomb in the Valley of the Thracian kings, with the mound. Arsenalka, Kazanluk, Bulgaria. Photography: Rossitza Ohridska-Olson
2. - Thracian mounds in Sborianovo Archaeological Complex, near the Svesthary Thracian Tomb, (UNESCO Wold Heritage Site), Bulgaria. Photography: Stevan Olson.
4. - Thracian Rhyton, mislabeled as "Greek" in the British Museu. Copyright: British Museum. Used for non-commercial purposes.
5. - Kukeri festivals. Photography: Klearchos Kapusis. Used with the kind permission of Mr. Kapustis.
6. - Thracian Rhyton from the Bojkov Collection. Copyright:Thrace Foundation. Used with the kind permission of Mr. Bojkov.
