Imagine sitting down for a drink at a bar on the beach on a warm summer's evening, resting your arm on a beautifully carved stone table, and not knowing you were leaning on someone's ancient burial coffin.
That is exactly what happened at the Radjana Beach bar on the Black Sea coast in Varna, Bulgaria. While on vacation, a former law enforcement officer saw the carvings in the stone structure and decided to notify the authorities. Archaeologists showed up and verified it was an authentic Roman sarcophagus from the 2nd century AD.
The coffin was just sitting there, plain as day, for years. Between 2020 and 2022, photos and videos show customers sitting around the ancient relic, completely unaware of what it actually is. A 2020 promotional video even showed the sarcophagus being used as a bar table.
1,700-year-old artwork used as outdoor furniture
It was not just any old stone. Its rich ornamentation was identified by archaeologists of the Regional History Museum in Varna as belonging to the style of the “garland sarcophagi” from Roman times. It is made of shell limestone and adorned on each of its four sides with elaborate relief carvings of garlands, animal heads, rosettes, and a labrys, or double-headed axe.
The original lid was missing, and where its lid had been was a flat slab that served as a tabletop. Someone had also repainted it at some point, which made it blend in as just another piece of weathered outdoor décor.
.png?w=600)
