Archaeology of North Macedonia

Last updated February 02, 2025

Archaeology of North Macedonia is the field of archaeology in the country. It was documented in the broader region for the first time in the 19th century. Before the establishment of a Macedonian state, it was part of the Serbian framework. The establishment of a national archaeology permitted the creation of local institutions and the involvement of local scholars.

History

19th century–20th century

Western travelers documented archaeological activities in region of Macedonia in the 19th century. In this period, notable works about antiquities were published, such as Antiquarian Researches in Illyricum I-IV (1883–1885) by Arthur Evans, Arhaia geografia the Makedoniae (1874) and Makedonia en lithois fthengomenois kai mnemeiois sozomenois (1896) by Margaritus Dimitsa. During World War I, Bulgarian archaeologist Bogdan Filov and Czech archaeologist Karel Škorpil, excavated the necropolis at Trebeništa and discovered two golden masks in royal graves in 1918. After the annexation of Vardar Macedonia by the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in the same year, there was an increase in archaeological activities. Between 1924 and 1936, the National Museum in Belgrade had organised a large field project (led by Vladimir Petković, Balduin Saria and Đorđe Mano-Zisi, and Rudolf Egger from Vienna) at the site of Stobi, a large ancient city. The team found evidence of Roman infrastructure there, as well as early Christian churches. At the time, it was one of the biggest projects in present-day North Macedonia in the interwar period and also one of the biggest projects of Serbian archaeology, which was also noticed by foreign scholars. The first archaeological institutions appeared in the 1920s, such as Historical Archaeological Museum, the Faculty of Philosophy, and the Skopje Scientific Society, all of whom were part of the kingdom's program to develop what they considered as Southern Serbian regions. Archaeologists in the territory of present-day North Macedonia were then from Belgrade or from other Yugoslav cities such as Sarajevo and Zagreb. Archaeology then was part of the Serbian framework. Another site that was researched was Heraclea Lyncestis in Bitola in present-day southern North Macedonia. The first excavations on the site were made in the early 1930s, while more systematic research followed from the mid to late 1930s.^[1]

20th century–21st century

After World War II, Vardar Macedonia became a state of SFR Yugoslavia. In this period, a national archaeology was established, with local institutions and scholars. Most of the first generations of Macedonian archaeologists studied in the University of Belgrade. There was focus on medieval (Byzantine and Slavic) archaeology as a basis for developing the field, due to the support of the Macedonian nation-building process by the Communist Party of Yugoslavia and the Yugoslav Macedonian government. After the 1963 Skopje earthquake, the buildings of the Archaeological Museum and the Faculty of Philosophy were reconstructed. Archaeological curriculum was introduced for the first time in the University of Skopje's Faculty of Philosophy (established 1946) in the academic year 1974/1975.^[1] The Archaeological Society of Macedonia was founded in 1975 in Skopje as a non-governmental organisation, as part of the Archaeological Society of Yugoslavia.^[2]

Macedonia (now North Macedonia) became independent during the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. During that period, the communication between Macedonian archaeologists and other archaeologists was limited due to visa regime restrictions imposed on Macedonia by the EU, as well as poverty, however they were able to re-establish ties with other archaeologists.^[1] The discipline was influential during the dispute between Macedonia and Greece over the ancestry of Alexander the Great and ancient Macedonians. In the country, the field has often been placed at the service of the state, and used to legitimise nationalist claims to history, culture, and territory.^[3] In 2009, a burial tomb containing golden burial equipment from the 5th century BCE, was discovered in Ohrid.^[4] Around 80 artefacts were found during an excavation of an archaic necropolis from the 6th century BCE at the Rasnica site in the village Korošišta in 2024.^[5]

Archaeologists

Related Research Articles

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time; however, it came to be defined as the modern geographical region by the mid-19th century. Today the region is considered to include parts of six Balkan countries: all of North Macedonia, large parts of Greece and Bulgaria, and smaller parts of Albania, Serbia, and Kosovo. It covers approximately 67,000 square kilometres (25,869 sq mi) and has a population of around five million. Greek Macedonia comprises about half of Macedonia's area and population.

The history of North Macedonia encompasses the history of the territory of the modern state of North Macedonia.

North Macedonia is a country situated in southeastern Europe with geographic coordinates 41°50′N22°00′E, bordering Kosovo and Serbia to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south and Albania to the west. The country is part of the wider region of Macedonia and makes up most of Vardar Macedonia. The country is a major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Southern Europe and the Aegean Sea. North Macedonia is a landlocked country but has three major natural lakes: Lake Ohrid, Lake Prespa and Lake Dojran. It has a water area of 857 km², while its land area is 24,856 km².

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Stobi or Stoboi, was an ancient town of Paeonia, later conquered by Macedon, and finally turned into the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia Salutaris. It is located near Gradsko, North Macedonia, on the main road that leads from the Danube to the Aegean Sea and is considered by many to be the most famous archaeological site in North Macedonia. Stobi was built where the Erigon joins the Axios (Vardar), making it strategically important as a center for both trade and warfare.

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The Serbs are one of the constitutional ethnic groups of North Macedonia, numbering about 24,000 inhabitants.

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Trebeništa is an ancient necropolis from the Iron Age southeast Illyria, near the northern shore of Lake Ohrid. The site is located near Trebeništa in modern-day North Macedonia. It is believed that the necropolis was used by the people from the nearby Illyrian town of Lychnidos. They are considered to have been the product of the local Illyrian population, which were attested in later historical sources and Hellenistic epigraphic material to have been the Dassaretii, also identified with the earlier Enchelei, who constituted the oldest known Illyrian kingdom. Some have hypothecised a Thracian influence, or a mixed Balkano-Aegean cultural expression. Archaeological material with gold-riches from the burials at Trebeništa, Aiani on the middle valley of the Haliacmon, and Sindos on the Thermaic Gulf, indicates substantial cultural continuity throughout the wider region, despite the fact that different tribes lived in the various areas of the whole region.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architecture of North Macedonia</span>

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North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the north. It constitutes approximately the northern third of the larger geographical region of Macedonia. Skopje, the capital and largest city, is home to a quarter of the country's population of 1.83 million. The majority of the residents are ethnic Macedonians, a South Slavic people. Albanians form a significant minority at around 25%, followed by Turks, Roma, Serbs, Bosniaks, Aromanians and a few other minorities.

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References

1 2 3 Ludomir R Lozny, ed. (2011). Comparative Archaeologies: A Sociological View of the Science of the Past. Springer New York. pp. 417–427. ISBN 9781441982254.
↑ Blaže Ristovski, ed. (2009). Macedonian Encyclopedia (in Macedonian). Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts. p. 90.
↑ Loring Danforth (1995). The Macedonian Conflict Ethnic Nationalism in a Transnational World. Princenton University Press. p. 169. ISBN 9780691043579.
↑ "Macedonia: Valuable Artifacts Found". Balkan Insight. 20 July 2009.
↑ "Presented findings from Rasnica archaeological site in Ohrid-Struga region". MIA. 8 November 2024.

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[:1-1] 1 2 3 Ludomir R Lozny, ed. (2011). Comparative Archaeologies: A Sociological View of the Science of the Past. Springer New York. pp. 417–427. ISBN 9781441982254.

[2] Blaže Ristovski, ed. (2009). Macedonian Encyclopedia (in Macedonian). Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts. p. 90.

[3] Loring Danforth (1995). The Macedonian Conflict Ethnic Nationalism in a Transnational World. Princenton University Press. p. 169. ISBN 9780691043579.

[4] "Macedonia: Valuable Artifacts Found". Balkan Insight. 20 July 2009.

[5] "Presented findings from Rasnica archaeological site in Ohrid-Struga region". MIA. 8 November 2024.

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