Despite the many archaeological digs, the history of the Thracians remains shrouded in mystery. There are many theories as to the origins and level of development of this ancient people that lived on Bulgarian lands but it is perhaps Homer who gives the clearest details in his legendary epic the "Iliad".
According to be ancient Greek writer, the Thracians were mighty warriors. Their army, which came to aid a besieged Troy, was beyond measure. The warriors came by fearsome chariots. Their infantry consisted of spearmen, each of them equipped with recurve bows, their shots sowing terror among the Greeks. The warriors were experienced in hand-to-hand combat.
Homer described the Thracians as competent horse breeders, who lived in the fertile lands of Thrace. Powerful princes and noble lineage inhabited the region. The ancient people came to aid the Trojans, wrote the author of the "Iliad", in all of their military might and gave no ground to their enemies.
The Thracians fought with gold decorated weapons.
Up until recently this was thought to be fiction but new excavations near the mine in Krumovgrad proved that the mine supplied metal to Troy and Mycenae. This region was the very heart of the kingdom of the mythical king Rhesus, who answered Troy's call for help. Therefore, Homer's descriptions might not be far from the truth.
The information pertaining to the Thracians in the "Iliad" was also the 1st written account of this ancient people. In his famous poem he depicted the Thracian king Rhesus as a great general, leading his army by a chariot decorated in gold and silver. Homer wrote that he looked more like an Olympian God than a common mortal.
Homer did not conceal his awe of the horses from Thrace. They were incredible, never before seen, supremely tall and of a color whiter than snow. Impressed by their speed, the author compared them to the wind.
And he was not the only one. Numerous poets and historians of ancient Greece expressed their shock of the Thracians. Interestingly, a majority of the singers, musicians and artists in Greek mythology were born in Thrace.
The Father of History, Herodotus, wrote this about the ancient Thracians: Out of all the people, the largest is the Thracian people - after the Indians of course; and if they were to be ruled by one man, united, they would be undefeatable, the strongest by far of all the people in my opinion. But this is insuperable and impossible for them and will never happen; that is why they are weak.
