Indo-European religion

Celebrations are a joyous time of reuniting with family and friends. But afterward, people can sometimes be left uneasily mulling over their relationships. Annual returns home can induce an uncomfortable nostalgia in the tension between how the past is remembered and how the present is experienced.

The tumuli built about 2,000 years ago for important people in the northwestern province of Kocaeli's İzmit district, where the ancient structures are located, have been struggling to survive for centuries, and the tombs, surrounded by grass, need to be brought to tourism.

Located in Turkey's western province of Manisa, the 2,700-year-old Bintepeler Tumuli, known to be the graves of Lydian kings, were plundered by treasure hunters, destroying the graves with construction equipment to quite an extent.

While two tumuli were feared to have been destroyed completely, works have been initiated to protect nearly 90 tumuli present in the region.

Hundreds of historical pieces were found in 8,000-year-old Tavşanlı Höyük (tumulus) following searches.

What archaeologists have hailed as a "monumental" 3rd century AD Roman tomb has just been discovered in Bulgaria, and researchers believe it most likely houses the remains of a Thracian aristocrat.