Eighty km from the city of Varna and surrounded by magnificent yellow sandstone cliffs lies the Horseman of Madara.
It is an ancient bas-relief, so famous in Bulgaria, that it is on the back of all stotinki coins. Yet not all Bulgarians know this; on our visit, we met a Bulgarian couple, who asked why we had come to look at the Horseman. When we explained about the stotinki, they were amazed, so much so that they proceeded to search through all of their money to find it. Sadly, the horseman on the coin is substantially better defined than the original on the rock, but then it has been there since the 8th century and many scholars believe it to be even older. Its very faint outline shows a rider on horseback, some believe to be the nameless rider god of the Thracians, trampling a lion. A greyhound tails him. In one hand, he holds the reins to control his horse and in the other (in true Bulgarian style), he holds a goblet of wine. Next to this faint yet impressive rock carving, there is an inscription, which records a debt owed by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian II to Bulgar leader Khan Tervel.
After pondering on the Horseman, we decided to race to the top of the cliffs to visit an old fifth century fortress. The rough-hewn path, which at first seemed to gently wind its way up the cliff-side was dangerously steep. What started out as a race became an exercise in rock climbing. There are no barriers to defend against sudden loss of balance and the rock steps have been worn to a shine in places. If you attempt this journey in summer be sure to take sunscreen and plenty of water and snacks. It is not for the fearful or infirm.
Finally, on reaching the plateau, we rested and admired the spectacular view across the valley below. We were so high up, I felt like I had reached heaven. It was so peaceful here and people were parasailing like colourful little angels. The fortress turned out to be a pile of ancient ruins, so we paid it scant attention.
After light refreshment at the cafe below we headed off into the darkness of the Golyamata Peshtera cave beneath the giant rock overhang which forms the base of a 14th century rock monastery, although there is little left to see of it. The caves provided endless entertainment for my sons who were spurred on by the knowledge that many pieces of ancient pottery, flints and bones had been found here. Certain that they would find ancient treasures here; they groped around in the dust, but found no more than a few dirty stotinki.
At the end of visit, we let the boys scour the few souvenir stalls. My eldest son bought a piece of pottery with a picture of the horseman on, but as he waved it around to show us, it slipped out of his hands and fell to the floor where it broke into two halves, making it look even more like the real horseman. Of course, this was a major catastrophe, far worse than if the real horseman had been sprayed with graffiti and the only solution was to replace it with another.
Once calm had returned to our group, we dined at the Happy Bar, on the motorway to Shumen. The Happy Bar chain dominates the Varna district and provides a delicious assortment of food, which children and adults love. The prices are extremely reasonable too and this branch has a play area outside.
Refreshed and enthusiastic we decided to head on into Shoumen. We had hoped to find the mosque, which appears in The Rough Guides list of Bulgarian “Must Sees”, but after several wrong turns in the centre of the town, we gave up and instead opted for the huge monolith on the Shoumen Plateau. The monolith is visible from the motorway as a huge concrete carbuncle, yet when you reach it, you will be pleasantly surprised. Many people choose to park their car and walk some of the way through the dense forest, but we chose to park as near to the monument as possible. The monument was built solely from concrete in 1981 and is dedicated to the Founders of the Bulgarian State. Whoever designed it certainly had Cubist inclinations, yet the sculptures of haiduti, monks, Khans and heroines were beautiful. Particularly impressive was the replica of the Horseman of Madara and being honest this one appealed to me more than the real thing, yet the panorama at Madara was far superior to that of the plateau. The view here is of a sea of drab concrete apartment blocks. Dull, shabby, rectangular boxes in desperate need of renovation or demolition. In my view a picture of communist design at its worst.
With so much history buzzing inside our heads, we had a drink in the small cafe and then headed back to Varna. The trip to the concrete monument has motivated me to photograph more communist monoliths and sculptures; much of their beauty seems neglected in favour of the rapid pace of modern development.
