This Peculiar Concrete Structure Is Not A UFO

What is this crazy concrete UFO doing on a mountaintop? It is not an unidentified flying object that was left with its parking brake on in the heart of the Balkan Mountains. It is a mysterious historical monument, called Buzludzha. It is three hours drive from Sofia, Bulgaria’s capital city, on potholed roads. The perplexing structure can be seen for miles, inspiring anxious excitement in those who lay eyes upon it for the first time. On a 230 feet high tower behind the saucer is a red star, the symbol for communism.

Completed in 1981, it is the largest communist structure in Bulgaria. It is 4,698 feet up the Buzludzha peak at the end of the Central Balkan Mountains. It was built to commemorate the creation of the Bulgarian Communist Party. Construction began in 1974 with a cost of $35 million of today’s dollars. They blasted 9 feet of rock off the mountain’s peak to create the platform for the monument. The inside of this historical national treasure are 5,500 square feet of glass mosaics. Armed guards sit outside to ward off curious explorers, making getting inside incredibly difficult.

When communism fell in 1989, the building was abandoned. Since then, much of the building has been vandalizes, with most of the mosaics defaced. The modern Bulgarian government has work underway to repair and de-politicize the building, in the hopes of it regaining its former glory one day in a post-communist world.

While hundreds of abandoned communist memorials are scattered all over the Balkans, few hold quite as much intrigue as the Buzludzha monument.