© 2011 International Institute of Anthropology
Created: 3-8-11. For comments and questions e-mail to admin@iianthropology.org
Created: 3-8-11. For comments and questions e-mail to admin@iianthropology.org
Lozny's session at TAG UK 2011 on the communist archaeology is one of the most important in history of archaeology. Having blooding pages of victims of
communists and related to them archaeologists, it was a call for reconsidering humanity and how communists could invade the most delicate layers of society -
science, to erode, victimize and dehumanize society. With leading Henrieta Todorova and Vassil Nikolov as examples of picks of corruption in Bulgarian archaeology,
there are also others related to them that have been contributing to the terrifying erosion of science and social academic environment. Because of absence of
principals and embedded with decades corruption going back to the 9 September 1944, it looks even dangerous for young honest students to enter this field.
One of the big exceptions is Krassimir Leshtakov, a gifted Bulgarian prehistorian, victimized by placing him a shadow after defending his PhD dissertation. Instead
developing relationships, during the last years he was also placed in the role of punisher of the world recognized scholar in an attempt to defend a Habilitation
Doctor thesis in Bulgaria. The picture became comic, since in series of events he looked like a speaker of a mafia of post-communist pseudoscholars which only
satisfaction was to have seen how their victim sang the well learned group song although solo before the public.
Writing on Bulgarian prehistoric archaeology from later 20th – early 21st century is one of the most painful tasks for any author who knows it closely. It is story
about how connections have been winning over talents in the fight for the few positions at Institutes and Universities and a story about excavations that better
not to have been done at all. It is also a story about the advertised wrong methodology of excavating over big areas. It is a story about endless archaeological
material excavated and stored in museums or just disregarded, without being published. It is story of a pattern of victimizing of archaeologists by people with
abnormal behavior. It is a story of affairs related to most significant discoveries. This dark side of the coin is so heavy that today it looks like if one wants to think
about Bulgarian prehistoric archaeology it is better to think about a miracle to happen and a new people to build a completely fresh face.
However, there is a bright side of the coin: the Karanovo chronological column anchored to the name of Georgi I. Georgiev and some of the published
excavations that make possible today to write about Bulgarian prehistory although usually without opportunity for research in depth because of non-trustful record
or limited information. There are also some key publications written in the ashes of corruptions, pseudoscience and victimization – as perms of academism,
humanism and professionalism. Without doubt, Krassimir Leshtakov, associate professor at Sofia University, has the leading position as one of the rare authors of
these pieces of valuable works although in the scholar life he has become more popular with something different – his victimization from the corrupted higher
educational system.
Brilliant in the field and a brilliant researcher and writer, he won a concourse for PhD in 1980s and finished with an excellent dissertation. However, instead
being the only prehistorian at the Department of Archaeology, with opportunity for developing an excellent school of students and for advancing Bulgarian
prehistoric science, he was shadowed by Petya Georgieva, who became popular that was able to have arranged writing a dissertation even being on the third place
in the concourse for Doctor thesis and later to be hired together with Leshtakov despite a dissertation that had a bachelor level research of applying a Romanian
contribution to Bulgarian archaeology. It was not a surprise that person needed decades to become associate professor. At the same time it can be probably written
a book on her non-ethical visible behavior although the invisible one is probably even longer story if one can find out how to prove it, linked to the communist
Henrieta Todorova, a person with some of the most terrifying social practices and academic appearances in history of archaeology.
The sad example from Department of Archaeology, Sofia University, that shows how connections can erode prehistory as a research and an educational subject
may don’t have many analogies according to the degree of corruption –a winner in a concourse with brilliant dissertation to be placed in position to be shadowed by
a person who even was eliminated for one year from the educational system as a student because of a poor achievement. It will be even sadder if it occurs that
Georgieva was a child of the so-called fighters against capitalism and fascism. Such children entered the University during the communist regime with minimal
grades. The erosion of the Department of Archaeology that followed with hiring of Georgieva would be an example of how the communism regime with its privilege
rules had eroded the whole cultural system of Bulgaria. This would be also an example how such people were embedded in the higher education system without
having the quality of the gifted people. It is very important since there is a huge difference between Bulgaria before the Fall of the Berlin Wall and after 1989. Before
1989 only limited number of young Bulgarians were able to study abroad. For these reasons in Bulgaria was accumulated talent intellectual segment that was not
attached to the Communist party. In 1970s – 1980s it was possible to have gained a success in the upper education system without being a member of the
Communist party. The communists also usually demonstrated high quality knowledge. Typical instance from the Department of Archaeology at Sofia University is
Totko Stoyanov who was a member of the Communist party but known mostly as a gifted hard working archaeologist. In other words, in 1970s-1980s the quality
of knowledge was a real criterion although connections were possible to have broken the rule and to have eroded the system.
Archaeology and especially prehistory needs not only talent but also a very healthy professional environment since it is possible non-elite persons to contribute
to the erosion of this important for human history discipline. In case of prehistory it is missing the very important barrier – knowledge of ancient Greek and Latin,
as well as there is opportunity to fabricate documentation because in most cases what one excavates has been destructed. Georgieva, for instance, has series of
publications even without a sketch of the profile of her excavations.
It is unclear how many books would be written by Krassimir Leshtakov and his students in the last 20 years if he received his academic chair at the Department of
Archaeology at Sofia University without being shadowed by Georgieva. However, better later than never. There is really a hope that soon the new Bulgarian
prehistoric science will come on the world stage and without doubt the world eyes are on Krassimir Leshtakov as the leading Bulgarian prehistorian with best
international recognition at this moment. It is really time for something new and nice from Bulgarian prehistory, which is one of the icons in the world
archaeological science because of the Varna cemetery and Georgiev’s Karanovo chronological column.
communists and related to them archaeologists, it was a call for reconsidering humanity and how communists could invade the most delicate layers of society -
science, to erode, victimize and dehumanize society. With leading Henrieta Todorova and Vassil Nikolov as examples of picks of corruption in Bulgarian archaeology,
there are also others related to them that have been contributing to the terrifying erosion of science and social academic environment. Because of absence of
principals and embedded with decades corruption going back to the 9 September 1944, it looks even dangerous for young honest students to enter this field.
One of the big exceptions is Krassimir Leshtakov, a gifted Bulgarian prehistorian, victimized by placing him a shadow after defending his PhD dissertation. Instead
developing relationships, during the last years he was also placed in the role of punisher of the world recognized scholar in an attempt to defend a Habilitation
Doctor thesis in Bulgaria. The picture became comic, since in series of events he looked like a speaker of a mafia of post-communist pseudoscholars which only
satisfaction was to have seen how their victim sang the well learned group song although solo before the public.
Writing on Bulgarian prehistoric archaeology from later 20th – early 21st century is one of the most painful tasks for any author who knows it closely. It is story
about how connections have been winning over talents in the fight for the few positions at Institutes and Universities and a story about excavations that better
not to have been done at all. It is also a story about the advertised wrong methodology of excavating over big areas. It is a story about endless archaeological
material excavated and stored in museums or just disregarded, without being published. It is story of a pattern of victimizing of archaeologists by people with
abnormal behavior. It is a story of affairs related to most significant discoveries. This dark side of the coin is so heavy that today it looks like if one wants to think
about Bulgarian prehistoric archaeology it is better to think about a miracle to happen and a new people to build a completely fresh face.
However, there is a bright side of the coin: the Karanovo chronological column anchored to the name of Georgi I. Georgiev and some of the published
excavations that make possible today to write about Bulgarian prehistory although usually without opportunity for research in depth because of non-trustful record
or limited information. There are also some key publications written in the ashes of corruptions, pseudoscience and victimization – as perms of academism,
humanism and professionalism. Without doubt, Krassimir Leshtakov, associate professor at Sofia University, has the leading position as one of the rare authors of
these pieces of valuable works although in the scholar life he has become more popular with something different – his victimization from the corrupted higher
educational system.
Brilliant in the field and a brilliant researcher and writer, he won a concourse for PhD in 1980s and finished with an excellent dissertation. However, instead
being the only prehistorian at the Department of Archaeology, with opportunity for developing an excellent school of students and for advancing Bulgarian
prehistoric science, he was shadowed by Petya Georgieva, who became popular that was able to have arranged writing a dissertation even being on the third place
in the concourse for Doctor thesis and later to be hired together with Leshtakov despite a dissertation that had a bachelor level research of applying a Romanian
contribution to Bulgarian archaeology. It was not a surprise that person needed decades to become associate professor. At the same time it can be probably written
a book on her non-ethical visible behavior although the invisible one is probably even longer story if one can find out how to prove it, linked to the communist
Henrieta Todorova, a person with some of the most terrifying social practices and academic appearances in history of archaeology.
The sad example from Department of Archaeology, Sofia University, that shows how connections can erode prehistory as a research and an educational subject
may don’t have many analogies according to the degree of corruption –a winner in a concourse with brilliant dissertation to be placed in position to be shadowed by
a person who even was eliminated for one year from the educational system as a student because of a poor achievement. It will be even sadder if it occurs that
Georgieva was a child of the so-called fighters against capitalism and fascism. Such children entered the University during the communist regime with minimal
grades. The erosion of the Department of Archaeology that followed with hiring of Georgieva would be an example of how the communism regime with its privilege
rules had eroded the whole cultural system of Bulgaria. This would be also an example how such people were embedded in the higher education system without
having the quality of the gifted people. It is very important since there is a huge difference between Bulgaria before the Fall of the Berlin Wall and after 1989. Before
1989 only limited number of young Bulgarians were able to study abroad. For these reasons in Bulgaria was accumulated talent intellectual segment that was not
attached to the Communist party. In 1970s – 1980s it was possible to have gained a success in the upper education system without being a member of the
Communist party. The communists also usually demonstrated high quality knowledge. Typical instance from the Department of Archaeology at Sofia University is
Totko Stoyanov who was a member of the Communist party but known mostly as a gifted hard working archaeologist. In other words, in 1970s-1980s the quality
of knowledge was a real criterion although connections were possible to have broken the rule and to have eroded the system.
Archaeology and especially prehistory needs not only talent but also a very healthy professional environment since it is possible non-elite persons to contribute
to the erosion of this important for human history discipline. In case of prehistory it is missing the very important barrier – knowledge of ancient Greek and Latin,
as well as there is opportunity to fabricate documentation because in most cases what one excavates has been destructed. Georgieva, for instance, has series of
publications even without a sketch of the profile of her excavations.
It is unclear how many books would be written by Krassimir Leshtakov and his students in the last 20 years if he received his academic chair at the Department of
Archaeology at Sofia University without being shadowed by Georgieva. However, better later than never. There is really a hope that soon the new Bulgarian
prehistoric science will come on the world stage and without doubt the world eyes are on Krassimir Leshtakov as the leading Bulgarian prehistorian with best
international recognition at this moment. It is really time for something new and nice from Bulgarian prehistory, which is one of the icons in the world
archaeological science because of the Varna cemetery and Georgiev’s Karanovo chronological column.
| Where is Krassimir Leshtakov? Toward the communist and post-communist Bulgarian prehistoric archaeology (after TAG UK Lozny's session) |