Фрагмент от луксозно легло от Севтополис

Despite intensive recent investigations of major centres from the Classical and Hellenistic periods in the Thracian interior, there is no evidence about furniture, even in the interior of monumental buildings. Hence a great importance is attributed to the decorative ivory fragment of a luxury wooden couch discovered during the investigations of Seuthopolis. The context of discovery provides some possibilities for reconstructing the setting where the couch was used. Numerous finds of such couches in funerary complexes in Macedonia and the plausible reconstructions that have been proposed allow complete visual restoration of the couch, based only on that fragment. This paper highlights the significance of the fragment against the background of the available evidence of furniture in the Thracian interior, mainly from burials, and from the West Pontic poleis, again from burials. One cannot exclude the leading role of the Macedonian connections of the court of Seuthes III for the appearance of luxury furniture in his capital. The burials with luxury couches from the region of Odessos, practically contemporary with the fashion of placing luxury couches in tombs in Macedonia, also suggest Macedonian influence.