Within Bulgaria UFO
What Did Bulgaria's Military Seek at Tsarichina?
The military excavation was real, but its changing objectives and missing records do not verify claims of a buried non-human being.
On this page
- How the military excavation began
- How paranormal claims reshaped the mission
- What the surviving evidence can actually support
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Introduction
The Tsarichina excavation is one of Bulgaria’s most unusual modern historical episodes because the excavation itself is undisputed, while the extraordinary claims surrounding it remain unverified. Between December 1990 and November 1992, the Bulgarian military carried out a secret excavation near the village of Tsarichina, northwest of Sofia. What began as a state-sanctioned search reportedly linked to buried treasure evolved into a mission increasingly influenced by paranormal advisers, who claimed that an ancient non-human being or primordial ancestor lay underground. The project ended abruptly, the tunnel was sealed with concrete, and no publicly demonstrated discovery followed.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
For readers interested in Bulgaria’s UFO history, Tsarichina matters less because it provides evidence for extraterrestrials than because it illustrates how a genuine military operation became intertwined with folklore, psychic claims, incomplete documentation and decades of speculation.
How the military excavation began
The core historical facts are comparatively straightforward.
On 6 December 1990, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defence began a classified excavation at Tsarichina, a small village roughly 30 kilometres from Sofia. Military engineers dug a deep, winding underground tunnel over the course of nearly two years before the operation ended on 19 November 1992. The tunnel was subsequently sealed with concrete. These basic facts are consistently reported across military recollections, Bulgarian journalism and later historical summaries.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
The original objective is less clear. Early accounts describe the operation as a search for the legendary treasure of Tsar Samuel, allegedly prompted by information supplied through individuals claiming unusual intuitive or psychic abilities. During Bulgaria’s turbulent political transition following the collapse of communist rule, the boundaries between official institutions and unconventional beliefs sometimes became unexpectedly blurred, allowing ideas that would normally have remained outside military planning to gain influence.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
Even at this early stage, however, there is little surviving official documentation explaining precisely why the excavation received military approval or how its objectives were formally defined.
How paranormal claims reshaped the mission
As the excavation continued, the reported purpose of the project changed repeatedly.
Individuals associated with psychic guidance claimed to receive messages directing the dig towards increasingly extraordinary targets. Depending on the period and the source, the object beneath Tsarichina was described as:
- the hidden treasure of Tsar Samuel;
- the remains of humanity’s first ancestor;
- a “Biblical” figure;
- an ancient hermaphroditic being;
- a non-human intelligence whose discovery would overturn conventional ideas about human origins.
These descriptions did not emerge simultaneously. Rather, the target evolved over time, with successive claims replacing or expanding earlier ones. This shifting narrative is significant because it weakens the case that investigators were pursuing a clearly defined objective supported by independent evidence.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
Stories involving the famous Bulgarian mystic Baba Vanga also became attached to the excavation. Different retellings portray her as supporting the search, predicting a strange buried creature, or opposing the operation altogether. The contradictions between these versions make it difficult to treat any of them as reliable historical evidence.[www.24chasa.bg]24chasa.bgwww.24chasa.bgВанга била против копаенето в Царичина и поискала да го прекратятAugust 1, 2024…
What can actually be verified
Separating documented events from later folklore produces a much narrower body of evidence.
The following points are well supported:
- The Bulgarian military conducted a prolonged excavation from 1990 to 1992.
- The excavation created a substantial underground tunnel.
- The operation remained unusually secretive.
- The tunnel was sealed after the project ended.
- No publicly released archaeological discovery, skeleton, artefact or scientific report confirmed the extraordinary objectives later attributed to the mission.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
By contrast, there is no publicly available evidence verifying claims that the military recovered:
- extraterrestrial remains;
- an ancient “proto-human”;[livescience.com]livescience.comSource details in endnotes.
- advanced technology;
- a buried spacecraft;
- inscriptions proving alien contact.
Many books, documentaries and interviews repeat such stories, but they rely largely on retrospective testimony rather than independently verifiable physical evidence.
Missing records and the problem of documentation
One reason the Tsarichina story has endured is the incomplete documentary record.
Former participants and later journalists have claimed that much of the project’s documentation disappeared or was destroyed after the excavation ended. Some reports state that operational files were removed, while others describe the loss of notebooks associated with the psychic advisers. Because these records are unavailable for independent examination, neither believers nor sceptics can reconstruct the operation in full detail.[Vagabond]vagabond.bgBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABONDBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABOND…
Importantly, missing documentation does not itself support extraordinary conclusions.
Historical investigations frequently encounter incomplete archives for mundane reasons, including administrative changes, poor record keeping, political upheaval or deliberate destruction unrelated to the claims later attached to an event. The absence of records therefore creates uncertainty rather than evidence for hidden discoveries.
Why the tunnel was sealed
The sealing of the tunnel is often presented as proof that something remarkable had been found.
The evidence does not support that conclusion.[livescience.com]livescience.comSource details in endnotes.
The tunnel was indeed filled and sealed after the excavation ceased, but several ordinary explanations exist:
- stabilising an unsafe excavation;
- formally closing an abandoned military worksite;
- preventing public access;
- ending an expensive project that had failed to produce its expected results.
No publicly released engineering report or official statement demonstrates that the sealing occurred because investigators discovered non-human remains or dangerous technology.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
The dramatic image of a concrete-sealed tunnel has nevertheless become one of the central elements of the site’s mythology because it naturally invites speculation about what might have remained underground.
Competing explanations
Several interpretations have been proposed over the years.
A genuine paranormal search. Some former participants maintained that the military sincerely believed psychic guidance pointed towards an extraordinary buried entity. This explanation accepts that officials genuinely pursued an unconventional objective, even if they ultimately found nothing verifiable.[Vagabond]vagabond.bgBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABONDBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABOND…
A failed treasure hunt. Another possibility is that the operation began as a search for historical treasure before gradually accumulating increasingly exotic explanations as progress stalled.
Institutional dysfunction. Many sceptical commentators argue that the excavation reflected the political uncertainty of early post-communist Bulgaria, where weak oversight allowed an expensive project driven by untested claims to continue far longer than it otherwise might have.[Vagabond]vagabond.bgBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABONDBULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABOND…
Deliberate cover-up. The most sensational theory proposes that an extraordinary discovery was made and concealed. Although this remains popular in UFO literature, no independently verified evidence has emerged to substantiate it.
Why Tsarichina remains central to Bulgarian UFO folklore
Unlike conventional UFO cases involving unexplained lights or aerial sightings, Tsarichina combines several themes that reinforce one another:
- military secrecy;
- psychic guidance;
- missing records;
- changing official objectives;
- rumours of ancient beings;
- a permanently sealed excavation.
Each element encourages speculation, and together they create a story that has remained culturally influential long after the excavation ended.
Within Bulgaria’s broader UFO tradition, Tsarichina therefore occupies a distinctive place. It is not the country’s strongest evidence for extraterrestrial activity, but rather its most famous example of how a real state operation became transformed through folklore, media retellings and competing personal testimonies.
What the evidence ultimately supports
The strongest evidence leads to a cautious conclusion.
The Bulgarian military unquestionably conducted an unusual and costly excavation at Tsarichina between 1990 and 1992 under conditions of considerable secrecy. During the project, paranormal claims increasingly influenced public and participant narratives, and the excavation’s reported objectives shifted from buried treasure to increasingly extraordinary ideas about humanity’s origins. The operation ended without any publicly demonstrated discovery, and no independently verified archaeological, biological or scientific evidence has confirmed claims of a buried extraterrestrial, primordial being or alien artefact.[Wikipedia]WikipediaOpen source on wikipedia.org.
For that reason, Tsarichina is best understood as a historically genuine military excavation whose enduring mystery arises from incomplete records and evolving folklore—not from verified evidence that Bulgaria uncovered a non-human being.
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Endnotes
1.
Source: Wikipedia
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsarichina
2.
Source: vagabond.bg
Title: BULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABOND
Link:https://www.vagabond.bg/bulgarian-x-files-4600
Source snippet
BULGARIAN X FILES | VAGABOND...
3.
Source: 24chasa.bg
Link:https://www.24chasa.bg/bulgaria/article/18556466
Source snippet
www.24chasa.bgВанга била против копаенето в Царичина и поискала да го прекратятAugust 1, 2024...
Published: August 1, 2024
5.
Source: bulgaropedia.org
Link:https://bulgaropedia.org/mysterious-places-in-bulgaria/
Source snippet
PERPERIKON – THE THRACIAN CITY OF PROPHECY Image: Perperikon ancient Thracian city ruins in Bulgaria with mysterious stone structuresBegl...
6.
Source: explorersweb.com
Title: Bulgaria’s Area 51: The Strange Case of the Tsarichina Hole » Explorersweb
Link:https://explorersweb.com/bulgarias-area-51-the-strange-case-of-the-tsarichina-hole/
Source snippet
May 6, 2026 — BULGARIA’S AREA 51: THE STRANGE CASE OF THE TSARICHINA HOLE May 6, 2026 Kristine De Abreu Exploration mysteries Image: aeri...
Published: May 6, 2026
7.
Source: buzzsprout.com
Title: Did Communist Bulgaria Dig for Aliens?
Link:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2514534/episodes/18516016-did-communist-bulgaria-dig-for-aliens-the-tsarichina-mystery-explained
Source snippet
The Tsarichina Mystery ExplainedMarch 3, 2026 — GL DEEP DIVES DID COMMUNIST BULGARIA DIG FOR ALIENS? THE TSARICHINA MYSTERY EXPLAINED Mar...
Published: March 3, 2026
8.
Source: youtube.com
Title: What Was the Government Covering Up at This Dig Site? | Tsarichina Hole
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yrx9s2_UZM
Source snippet
Inside Bulgaria's Skinwalker Ranch | The Tsarichina Hole...
9.
Source: youtube.com
Title: Operation Sunray | Hunting the Entity in the Tsarichina Hole
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1eGM-dTZu0
Source snippet
Bulgaria's Most Mysterious Place: Tsarichina Tunnel and What's Inside...
10.
Source: thecoldfile.com
Title: 1925 percy fawcett
Link:https://www.thecoldfile.com/articles/1925-percy-fawcett/
Source snippet
Lt. Col. Percy Harrison Fawcett of the Royal Geographical Society, photographed in 1911. On 29 May 1925, w...
Published: May 1925
11.
Source: youtube.com
Title: Bulgaria’s Most Mysterious Place: Tsarichina Tunnel and What’s Inside
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvpZnqbgtLg
Source snippet
The Entity of Tsarichina REVEALED - Forgotten History...
12.
Source: youtube.com
Title: Inside Bulgaria’s Skinwalker Ranch | The Tsarichina Hole
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SEo8a4XxpA
Source snippet
Operation Sunray | Hunting the Entity in the Tsarichina Hole...
13.
Source: livescience.com
Link:https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/ancient-egyptians/cleopatras-final-secret-documentary-reveals-hundreds-of-coins-and-port-found-in-egypt-but-does-that-mean-cleopatra-was-buried-there
14.
Source: livescience.com
Link:https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/no-scientific-evidence-that-ancient-human-relative-buried-dead-and-carved-art-as-portrayed-in-netflix-documentary-researchers-argue