A műemlékek sokszínűsége (A 28. Egri Nyári Egyetem előadásai 1998 Eger, 1998)

Előadások / Presentations - Svetla KOINOVA METCHKUEVA: Two thracian tombs in Bulgaria entered in the world heritage list

The decoration scheme used in the Kazanluk tomb relies entirely on colour as a means of expression, while plastic is the leading decoration principle in the Sveshtari tomb. Here the figurai composition of the lunette is not coloured although it is generally presumed that this is due to the unfinished status of the tomb as a whole. If we compare the bucrania and rosettes in the Kazanluk tomb - which are executed through the art of painting - with the same elements in the Sveshtari tomb - which are sculptured - we shall see that one and the same objective has been be reached using different means. I will take the liberty, to make a brief outline of some of our specific views and interpretations concerning this monument. One important substantiated assumption of the team is related to the figurai composition of the lunette, which is considered to be infinished, as it is only a drawing. If this is but a drawing waiting for its completion in colour, the question arises: why is there no ground coat or padding under the drawing of the figures only? When a surface is prepared for colouring, it is an established rule to lay a fust coat. This principle is observed in the Sveshtari tomb: wherever there is colour, there is a lime coat. Why is there no such coat under the lunette? The figures there are outlined with whitewash which surrounds them carefully and is laid on the entire wall but the figures themselves are not covered with this material, and this was intentional. The figures were executed firstly as rough drawing or silhouette, and a second time as a light-and-shade effect emphasising the volume of the bodies. The light-and-shade effect and the main drawing are accomplished in an interesting way, not by means of an undertone or a stroke but by rubbing charcoal blend into the surface which had been evenly rugged by means of a special tool. This was exactly the way in which the drawing in the unfinished decorative element of the female sarcophagus was made. The figures are too small, and if the intention was to colour them, the preliminary saturation of the drawing as described above seems nonsensical. It is normal practice in frescoes to draw the basic outlines first, in order to get an idea of the silhouette of the figures and of their main movement, while the details would be arranged later when laying the colour. In this specific case, the detailed preparation of the drawing tells of a preparation for a different procedure, e. g. a plastic decoration in shallow relief. In this tomb, luckily unfinished, we have already seen the charcoal that had been used for a drawing preceding a plastic work. We suppose that the drawing in the lunette is a preparation for the execution of a relief. This assumption is also based on the fact that this tomb as a whole emphasises on the plastic decorative solution rather than on a painted decoration which can be seen here on the plastic decoration, according to practice. There is argument among our experts about the aedicula, too. According to one of the views, the aedicula was introduced later. This is why the project concerning the opening of the monument to the public envisages that the aedicula remains outside, in the covered premise imitating a tumulus. The team of artists-restorers of which I am also a member, headed by Mrs Lozinka Koinova Arnaudova, preserves itself the right to defend an independent but categorical view that the aedicula was designed at the same time as the construction of the tomb, as its centre-piece and as the most important element of the rich plastic decoration. We bear out this statement using the following arguments: -There is no difference between the systematic workmanship of the aedicula or the workmanship of the other plastic elements of the tomb, in regard to the method or the modelling technique (including the tools used).