Ancient Greek Ram’s Head Statuette Found in Bulgaria

SOZOPOL, BULGARIA—The Sofia Globe reports that a bronze ram’s head statuette has been recovered from a pit on St. Cyricus Island in the Black Sea, off the coast of the ancient city of Apollonia. Founded in the seventh century B.C. by Greeks from the western coast of Anatolia, Apollonia was known for its 40-foot-tall bronze statue of Apollo. A team of researchers led by Kristina Panayotova of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences found the ram’s head statuette in a layer of the pit dated to the sixth century B.C., which also contained ceramic ritual drinking vessels and jars painted with images of wild goats. Rams were often used as sacrificial animals, Panayotova explained, and the statuette's association with ritual vessels indicates it may have been intended as a gift to the gods. To read about the gold artifacts discovered in a Thracian burial in Bulgaria, go to "Thracian Treasure Chest."