On June 4, 2018, at 14h00 at the Central Building of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (November 15 Street No. 1) a documentary exhibition "Time Traveler" will be presented. It is dedicated to the 85 years of Prof. Dr. Habil. Alexander Fol's birth. He was the founder of the Institute of Thracology at the BAS, currently Centre of Thracology 'Prof. Alexander Fol' at the Institute of Balkan Studies & Centre of Thracology - BAS. The exhibition is realized together with the New Bulgarian University.
15 posters present the life and work of Prof. Al. Fol. The story starts with his family of remarkable intellectuals, among whom the figurines of his mother, Vera Boyadzhieva-Fol, writer, journalist and public figure, and his father, Nikolay Fol, director and theatrical pedagogue, translator, author on books and plays for children.
The exhibition represents he most remarkable moments of life, as well as the inexhaustible multitude of aspects of the activity and the work of this scholar, public figure, teacher, artist, and visionary Alexander Fol - among students at the opening of schools in Troyan, Parvomay and elsewhere; among teachers and colleagues from museums and archeological sites; during his audience with Pope John Paul II; in Haus Wittgenstein in Vienna; during a meeting of UNESCO, Paris; together with Dalai Lama; with the Director-General of UNESCO Amadou-Mahhtar M'Bow, etc.
It is difficult to gather in only few posters all the horizons that Prof. Al. Fol outlined in his scientific research of the new scientific and academic discipline that he founded - Thracology. He is the author of over 400 scientific monographs, papers and articles published in Bulgarian and foreign editions; he has initiated a number of major publishing projects, which until now form the profile and strategy of the Centre of Thracology at the IBSCT - BAS. Of course, among the highlights of the exhibition are the efforts of Prof. Al. Fol for institutionalization of the science of Thracology and the founding of the Institute of Thracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences in 1972 as well as the international congresses on Thracology followed by the introduction of Thracology as main discipline in the university history programs and the creation of the National School of Ancient Languages and Cultures 'Saint Constantine-Cyril the Philosopher'.
Long before the fall of the Iron Curtain, Prof. Al. Fol initiated and implemented bilateral and multilateral international scientific expeditions which he personally leaded, such as: Bulgarian-German expedition for the study of the settlement hill in the village of Drama, Yambol Region; Bulgarian-Japanese-Dutch expedition to the settlement hill in Dyadovo village near Nova Zagora; Bulgarian-Russian expedition to the settlement hill Yunatsite, Pazardzhik Region; Bulgarian-French expedition to the Neolithic village of Kovachevo; Bulgarian-Italian expedition to Ratziaria (lat. Colonia Ulpia Ratiaria). He organized the historical and archeological expeditions Apolonia - Strandzha and Strandzha - Sakar, as well as the interdisciplinary research programs 'Rodopika' and 'Getika'. Photos with colleagues and students illustrate this overfilled period of life of the Teacher and the Scholar.
Another undertaking of Prof. Al. Fol raised the Iron Curtain long before the end of the 20th century. The initiation and organization of a series of exhibitions, starting with 'Thracian Treasures', which visited some of the largest and most remarkable museums in the world - Paris (1974), Vienna (1975), London (1976); 'Rogozen Treasure' - the British Museum (1986), Bonn (2004-2005), etc., the last one of which is 'Thracian Gold' - Paris (2006), followed by lectures and symposiums, helped our country to promote the cultural and historical heritage of the Bulgarian lands from ancient times and internationalized the Thtacology to the international scientific scene.
The current exhibition also represents a number of previously unveiled documents illustrating the active international correspondence of Prof. Al. Fol with world's leading figures in the science of Antiquity and culture, public figures and politicians; it illuminates his image through his close friendship with prominent Bulgarian intellectuals and scholars such as Peter Uvaliev, Prof. Bogdan Bogdanov, Georgi Kitov, Prof. Ivan Marazov and others; it touches his halo to charismatic lecturer at the Faculty of History and the Department of Cultural Studies at the Faculty of Filosophy at Sofia University 'St. Kliment Ohridski' and at New Bulgarian University, where he is an honorary professor.
The 'Time Traveler' exhibition offers a puzzling and short story about a life full of great enterprises and ideas, most of which have found and nowadays still find a successful realization! The materials included in the exhibition were provided through the courtesy of the University Archive of New Bulgarian University; Archives of the Institute of Balkan Studies and Center for Thracology 'Prof. Alexander Fol' at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences; State Agency 'Archives', the Library of the Center for Thracology 'Prof. Alexander Fol' at the IBSCT - BAS, the Library of NBU; personal archival materials of the Fol family, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mayia Vassileva, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Teodor Lekov, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Varban Todorov.