page_title: Chavdar, Sofia Province
section_title: Prehistoric time
hierarchical_section_title: Chavdar, Sofia Province / History / Prehistoric time
caption_attribution_description: English: Bulgaria 6200BC neolithic Chavdar culture
context_page_description: Chavdar is a village situated in a mountain region, in the eastern part of Sofia Province, Bulgaria.
  It is the administrative center of Chavdar Municipality. The municipality is located in the sub-Balkan Zlatitsa-Pirdop Basin. It consists of only one village, namely the village of Chavdar. The municipality is one of the smallest in Bulgaria, situated at the southern outskirts of the Balkan Mountains, and on the northern foothills of Sredna Gora mountain. It is located about 72 km east of Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria. Close by are the cities of Zlatitsa and Pirdop.
context_section_description: Ever since prehistoric times the land of present time Chavdar has been populated by people. Archaeological excavations of a settlement mound near the Topolnitsa River show that a Neolithic community has been present as early as 7,000 years ago.
  The study of Neolithic culture "Chavdar" began in May 1968. Professor Georgi Georgiev and Senior Researcher Kancho Kanchev, both with the National Archaeological Museum of Bulgaria were leading the efforts through the years to uncover the hidden artifacts. Team of British archeologists were also involved in the archeological dig. Stratigraphic coring results confirmed the presence of seven cultural layers. By 1980 the site was fully explored. 
  Early Neolithic village of Chavdar is isochronous to Karanovo I and II Neolithic sites which are dated about 6200 BC. The artifact findings are also similar to Kremikovtsi Neolithic village findings. "Early Neolithic culture Kremikovtsi—Chavdar" is the earliest Neolithic culture in the Sofia Plain and the sub-Balkan Basin. This culture artifacts have played important role in periodization of the prehistoric time in Bulgaria and the region.
  The Neolithic settlement mound consisted of pile dwellings along the Topolnitsa River. Extremely valuable Neolithic painted pottery and stone tools have been found. A sword dated back to 4th century B.C. is also among the artifacts. Other findings include pottery and coins dated to different time in history. All artifacts were made available to specialists for further studies. Now all the findings are in the exhibitions of the Bulgarian National Archaeological Museum (Capital Sofia), and the local historical museum (City of Pirdop).
caption: Neolithic Chavdar Culture, polychromatic and anthropomorphic pottery, 6200-5400 B.C., Bulgaria
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