Lapidarium

In every museum presenting monuments from the Antiquity and the Middle Ages, there is usually a special place for those monuments connected to the architecture, or outer and inner decoration of the buildings. These are items made of marble, limestone and granite, which are very often decorated with carved ornaments different in shape and cutting depth. The name of this part of the museum is called Lapidarium, or the Lapidary Site.

The name comes from two Latin words: “lapis”and “lapidarius” which mean “stone” (noun) and “stone” (adj.) respectively. The major and role of the Lapidary Site is to introduce the visitor into the atmosphere of the exposition and to let his imagination roam to the distant past. The Lapidary Site of “Veliki Preslav ” Museum is no exception. It is located along the main entrance hall and  occupies the entire first floor of the exposition.

Here you can view a number of preserved items from Simeon’s palaces: stone-plastic decorations, cornice details, embossed capitals from the big city’s shrines and colorful marble flooring. Some of them were brought from far and wide under the king’s order, and local craftsmen skillfully cut the rest, combining both tradition and  their knowledge of mythological subjects.