A prehistoric cult complex dating back 7,500 years has been unearthed in Bulgaria.

Researchers have described the Palaeolithic settlement as including 'possibly Prehistoric Europe's largest stone building'.

The building once covered an area of over 2,153 square feet (200 square metres) - larger than a singles match tennis court - although archaeologists suspect the building had two floors, meaning it could be closer to 4,306 square feet (400 square metres).

A prehistoric cult complex dating back 7,500 years has been unearthed in Bulgaria. Researchers have described the Palaeolithic settlement as 'Prehistoric Europe's largest stone building' (aerial view shown)

The remains of the settlement, which is thought to have collapsed due to an earthquake, were uncovered on the 'big island' of Durankulak Lake, a 1.3 square mile (3.4 square km) lagoon in the north east of Bulgaria.

Excavations at the site, known as 'Dobrudzha Troy' started in the 1970s when artefacts dating back to around 10,000 BC were discovered, along with evidence of the Neolithic settlement, Archaeology in Bulgaria reported.

However, this summer, archaeologists unearthed a huge building containing a kiln, which they believe was used for around 80 years.

The remains of the settlement (pictured), which is thought to have collapsed due to an earthquake, were uncovered on the 'big island' of Durankulak Lake – a 1.3 square mile (3.4 square km) lagoon - in Bulgaria

Excavations at the site, in the far north east of the country (marked on the map), known as ‘Dobrudzha Troy’ started in the 1970s when artefacts dating back to around 10,000 BC were discovered along with walls

ANCIENT TWO-STOREY HOUSES In May, archaeologists uncovered the remains of 60 large houses built 8,000 years ago as part of a Neolithic village, in south west Bulgaria near the village of Mursalevo. Thought to be built by farmers, the part of the village that's been excavated so far, has three parallel streets with homes spread over five acres (215,278 square ft or 20,000 square metres). Archaeologists from the National Institute and Museum of Archaeology of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences unearthed prehistoric houses that would have stood 26 feet (eight metres) tall with gabled roofs, Archaeology in Bulgaria reported. Experts believe that the well-planned village, built between two ravines on the bank of the Struma River and consisting of 60 houses so far, was home to the earliest European civilisation. House were made of wattle and clay with thin walls of eight inches (20cm) despite some of them being as large as 1,076 square feet (100 square metres), Professor Vasil Nikolov, co-lead archaeologist of the excavations told the Bulgarian daily newspaper, Standart. All of the 60 buildings had two storeys and stood 26 feet (eight metres) tall, 'which attests to high technological advancements at the time,' he said. Advertisement

Built in the Chalcolithic, or copper age, the building is thought to have later collapsed as the result of an earthquake.

Petar Zidarov, an archaeologist from New Bulgarian University in Sofia told Bulgarian National Television: 'The challenge we are now facing is to reveal the sequence of the layers, or the stages of life, in one of the most monumental buildings ever in prehistoric Europe.'

It is possible the huge building had two floors.

Speaking about technology at the time, he added: 'The people who lived in this place were not just excellent builders but they were also among the first people in the world who started to smelt metals such as native copper and native gold, to forge jewels out of them, and to trade with them as far as the Mediterranean coast.'

The team also discovered a building nearby with cult objects.

The remains of the buildings make up what is thought to be Europe's first stone city, which was built in around 5500BC when the Neolithic Hamangia-Durankulak Culture was dominant.

Finds at the site range from the Paleolithic Age, 10,000 years ago to the Middle Ages.

Prehistoric remains date from the first sedentary agricultural culture in Europe, which created Europe's first stone buildings.

It is the only fully researched archaeological site from the time of Trojan War on the Balkan Peninsula.

The team also discovered a building with cult objects (pictured left and right) including a ring and sculpture

This summer, archaeologists unearthed a huge building containing a kiln, which they believe was used for around 80 years. An aerial view of the whole site, protruding into the lake, and its many buildings is pictured

The remains of the buildings (pictured from afar) make up what is thought to be Europe's first stone city, which was built in around 5500BC when the Neolithic Hamangia-Durankulak Culture was dominant

'The people who lived in this place were not just excellent builders but they were also among the first people in the world who started to smelt metals such as native copper and native gold, to forge jewels out of them, and to trade with them as far as the Mediterranean coast,' Zidarov adds.