Stone Wedding, Megalithic sanctuary in Medovo, Bulgaria

The Stone Wedding is a south-facing rock arch 2 km north of Medovo, in Bratya Daskalovi Municipality. Around the arch, the rock massif is cut with numerous secondary carvings, and a small tree grows at its right side. A high rock platform lies beyond the arch, which serves as a gate to it.

The rock sanctuary entered scientific literature in 2006, when Prof. Vasil Markov carried out fieldwork at the site and published it a year later. The south-facing arch and the rock-cut structures around it were linked by Markov to the Thracian Great Mother goddess, while rings left as offerings point to Orphic rituals for the sun god. In the late Christian era, candles burned at the spot replaced the heavenly fire of older Thracian holy places.

The name Stone Wedding comes from a local legend of a wedding party turned to stone, but the site's ritual use is older: visitors still pass through the south-facing arch and leave small coins or rings on the rock platform beyond it. Sick pilgrims tie a thread or scrap of cloth to a small tree beside the arch, then wash at a sacred spring, mainly seeking healing from female infertility.

The sanctuary lies 2 km north of Medovo's centre; the last stretch is on foot over uneven rock. Wear sturdy shoes and bring water, as the arch and the platform beyond it are reached by walking and climbing on bare stone.

The site's name, Stone Wedding, comes from a local legend that a wedding party was turned to stone; the sources record the name but not the tale's details. Visitors still leave small coins or rings at the arch, and on the right side a small tree holds strips of cloth or thread left by people seeking healing.