The marble statue uncovered in the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica is now in the museum in Petrich

The statue, found during excavations in the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica, can now be seen by visitors of the History Museum in Petrich, Southwestern Bulgaria.

The remarkable find is unpacked, additionally secured and safely put on display in a place where every visitor to the Petrich Museum can see it.

Sculpture restoration specialists will soon begin to work on it. Once the face is finally cleaned, it is expected to find out who the ruler depicted as a deity might have been.

Images by Facebook/Archaelogia Bulgarica

The statue was discovered at the beginning of July at the site of the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica. This find emerged during excavations in the Cloaca Maxima, the Roman sewage system. In mid-July, it was successfully brought to the museum in Petrich. The head of the excavations team, Prof. Dr. Ludmil Vagalinski, commented at the time that it is believed to depict Hermes, a prominent deity in the Ancient Greek pantheon, but after looking at the front as well as the whole face, the statue may not be from the 2nd century, but may be about 200 years earlier i.e. around AD, and may not depict Hermes, but a ruler or other important figure in the social hierarchy of the era.