Един стенописен фрагмент от раннохристиянска гробница в София. За най-ранния пример на техника strappo в България

Study of Serdica’s necropolis began in the 1880s. The number of tombs known today, either discovered in systematic archaeological digs or found accidentally during excavations, is significant. During excavations for the construction of a new building for the National Library on the location of the royal riding-school during September 1940, ten early Christian tombs were discovered. A well preserved wall painting decoration was discovered in Tomb No. І, from which the first fragment was removed using the strappo technique. Use of the strappo technique in Bulgaria is associated with the name of Karl Yordanov, who between 1939-1949 worked as a restorer at the National Archaeological Museum in Sofia. Information published to date suggests that the earliest use of the technique was around 1941, when he removed several wall painting fragments from the ruins of the St. Nikola Church in the village of Zhelezna. In the process of documenting transferred wall paintings held in the NAIM-BAS collection in July 2006, a heretofore unknown fragment was discovered with a removal date of 1940. It was later established that this was the fragment from Tomb No. І, discovered in September 1940 during excavations for the construction of the National Library in Sofia. During May 1939 K. Yordanov was sent to Germany and Italy to study and familiarize himself with contemporary practices in the removal of wall paintings. His return to Bulgaria one year later coincided with the archaeological discovery. Until now data about the fate of the wall paintings has not been published. According to the newly discovered restorer’s reports, K. Yordanov managed to remove several fragments before construction on the new building began. Only one of them has arrived to the present day, which bears witness to the earliest use of the strappo technique in Bulgaria.