ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR THE VILLAGE OF MADARA (Stanimir Stoichev – s_stoichev@mail.bg, Nedelcho Nedelchev) The explorations in the sanctuary were carried out in trenches Nos. 2, 11 and 32, down to 60 cm in depth and to the level of the bedrock. Fragmentary hand- and wheel-made pottery, fragments of building pottery, iron nails, fragments of votive reliefs of the Thracian Horseman, fibulae and coins were found. A stone with an opening that was used for a door post or a base was discovered in trench No. 2. The wall built of uneven stones bonded with mud was deconstructed in trench No. 32. Sherds were found inside and below the wall. The groove, cut into the rock platform in trench No. 22, continued under the wall in trench No. 32 and was filled with fragmentary mortar and uneven stones. Fragments of votive reliefs, a bronze coin minted by Odessos in the 3rd – 2nd century BC and a coin of Emperor Licinius were found. Sondages were carried out to the east and to the north of the sanctuary. Fragmentary hand- and wheel-made pottery was found in the sondages. The finds from the excavations confirm the already specified date of the sanctuary: 2nd – 4th centuries AD. The coin of Odessos is the only one pre-Roman find and could not be considered as a proof for an earlier date of the sanctuary.