| Dolni Glavanak Cromlech | |
| Map Type: | Bulgaria |
| Relief: | yes |
| Location: | Rhodope Mountains |
| Region: | Bulgaria |
| Coordinates: | 41.681°N 25.8128°W |
| Epochs: | Iron Age |
The Dolni Glavanak Cromlech is an oval stone circle located 2 kilometres west of village of Dolni Glavanak, some 12 kilometres from town of Madzharovo, in Bulgaria.[1] The site is referred to as a cromlech by analogy with similar monuments in Western Europe, but it is the only structure of its kind known in the country.
The site is situated on a low ridge-top above the left bank of the Arda river.[2] It is enclosed on all sides and isolated from external influences.[1] The circle consists of vertical, roughly-shaped, blocks of local hard volcanic rock (rhyodacite).[2] The blocks are trapezoidal in shape, and are approximately 1.2 to 1.5 metres tall, and around 0.9 to 1.2 metres wide at the base, and 0.4 to 0.6 metres thick.[2] Nine blocks still stand and three are now fallen. The vertical blocks are spaced at regular intervals, with smaller stones placed horizontally between them.[2] The circle has an internal diameter of about 10 metres. There is an entrance on the southeast side.[2]
There are two smaller structures in the vicinity.[2] One is a 3-metre-wide oval enclosure constructed out of stones located around 15 metres southeast of the cromlech.[2] The other is a slightly larger oval enclosure of the same type, with a diameter of about 6 metres, located around 19 metres south of the cromlech.[2]
The site was discovered and excavated by Georgi Nehrizov in around 1998–1999.[1] The excavations uncovered decorated pottery, as well as bronze artefacts (a fibula and a pin).[3] These date the construction of the cromlech to the second phase of the Early Iron Age (8th–6th centuries BC).[3] The two stone enclosures were in use around the same time, and finds of burnt human bone suggest a funereal use.[2] The site continued in use into the late Iron Age.[2]