ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR THE VILLAGE OF POKROVNIK (Mark Stefanovich – mark@aubg.bg, Iliya Kulov) The archaeological site is situated on a hill, near to St. George Chapel. It is a mound, 14 – 15 m in diameter and 4 m in height. The site was divided in four sectors designated as A, B, C, and D. Sectors C and D were entirely explored, while sectors A and B were partially excavated. Two walls of a building constructed of stones with a bonding medium of mud were discovered. The first wall, in sector B, is southeast – northwest oriented and continues into sector A. It is 1.15 m in width and is preserved up to 1 m in height. The second wall is situated in sector A and has the same orientation. It stands at 2.20 – 2.30 m to the west of the first one. Both walls are parallel, but no any connection between them is yet discovered. The building was burned. This is confirmed by the fired bonding medium of mud and the large quantity of charcoal. The material discovered in the building (a spindle whorl and sherds) synchronizes it with the Late Bronze Age Kamenska Chuka site and dates it around the 13th century BC. A Christian inhumation burial was discovered in the eastern periphery of the mound. Remains of a cloth with metal threads were found under the skull. Most likely, the burial dates to a modern period and was related to the functions of the chapel.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR THE VILLAGE OF POKROVNIK (Iliya Kulov – iliakulov@yahoo.com, Mark Stefanovich) The explorations continued in sectors A and B. A layer accumulated after the first burning of the building was reached. Part of it was explored in sector A. During the reconstruction of the building, the southern wall was replaced at 2.48 m to the north and stones from the destroyed southern wall of the first construction period were reused. The preserved length of the wall is c. 11 m and its height is up to 1.20 m. The western wall of the building is totally destroyed in the explored part of sector A. Two inhumation burials of the Late Antiquity were discovered in sector B: grave No. 2 containing an adult and grave No. 3 containing a child. A bronze finger-ring was found on the right hand of the adult buried in grave No. 2. A wall of the Late Antiquity oriented north – south and 2.50 m in length was discovered in the central part of sector B. A fragment of tile was found in the northern part of the wall. Presumably, the debris of the earlier building was reused during the Roman period for construction of a tumulus. Such a practice was registered with the Late Bronze Age building explored in Kamenska Chuka locality near Blagoevgrad. The finds from the excavations include two spindle whorls, a sherd and a fragmentary small vessel of the Late Bronze Age.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR THE VILLAGE OF POKROVNIK (Iliya Kulov – iliakulov@yahoo.com) A layer, up to 30 cm in thickness, was explored in sectors A and B. Sherds of the Late Bronze Age and fragmentary tiles of the Roman period were found. It was specified that during the first occupation period the inner size of the building was c. 13 m (north – south) by 12 m (east – west). There are no data for the size of the building during the second occupation period. Both occupation periods ended with destruction accompanied by fire. Grave No. 4 with an inhumation burial was explored in sector B, at 50 cm in depth. Presumably, it dates to the Roman period, similarly to the other three graves. A sondage was carried out in the eastern part of sector C, in order to clarify the situation between both walls from the southern side of the building. A row of burned wooden posts was discovered alongside the pile of stones. It is arranged in the same direction as a similar row of posts discovered in 2005 in sector B. Both rows of posts are situated parallel to the wall and probably they supported the roofing construction of the building during the second occupation period. The finds include sherds, a stone amulet, two bone awls, a stone used for smoothing and a bone object, probably a hairpin. The pottery of the Late Bronze Age could be divided in two groups: rough-ware (mostly dolia) and fine-ware. The dark-grey and black pottery prevails, while the decoration is predominantly in relief (relief bands, some of them with slanting cuts), or includes hatched triangles. The handles are vertical or horizontal, and some of them belong to kantharoi.