Hello Walyo
There are other things you may consider as a possibility?
No ordinary foot soldier or civilian would of been capable to write let alone write in 4 languages a complex cipher?
The Ottomans, lacking adequate regular troops because of the problems in the northwest, were compelled to use irregular Bashi-bazouks to quell the Bulgarians. (May 11-June 9, 1876) Those irregulars mostly were drawn from Muslim inhabitants of the Bulgarian regions, many of whom were Circassian refugees expelled from the Caucasus or Crimean Tatar refugees expelled during the Crimean War.
Both were either expelled by the Russians or had suffered at the rebels' hands. Making little distinction between rebels and passive peasants, bashi-bazouks, true to their reputation, brutally suppressed the revolt, massacring between 4,000 and 15,000 people in the process.
Perhaps your 4th language is from one expelled Muslims from the above?
When the Russians and Romanians invaded Bulgaria to expel the Turks Gazi Osman Pasha the Ottoman commander had better artillery but the Russians were better trained and prepared for the war. Perhaps it is worth your while to research journals of the events of that war?
It might be helpful if you can find out what high ranking officers was in Gazi Osman Pasha chief of staff?
Key to understanding it all is to know where the pot with the coins was found. That is your starting point. Know that and you will know the battle field. Study history books and you will know what Ottoman officers that were there.
As a speculation I suspect the alleged treasure is located in 4 locations not far from where the pot of coins was found? The cipher only gives the exact details of each of the four locations. Why is there four languages? As an added bit of security they used four languages in the cipher code to protect the treasure in four different locations.
As I have said the Key to it all is knowing where the pot was found.
I hope this has been of some help.
Regards Hardluck
Hello Walyo
I reasons to suspect that your friends found the alleged pot of coins somewhere near Plewna ( Pleven )
Another factor you need to be aware of is. In 1877 the Ottomans had early breach loading British artillery guns that had problems with gas escaping the explosion chamber thus reducing the efficacy of the weapon. Wax was used inside the barrels to seal the breach and to help increase barrel life in between each firing.These guns were only known to be used in Plewna and on battle of the Shipka pass.
The Ottoman forces used bees wax locally sourced in clay pots to support their artillery weapons. We know the Ottoman army had at least 12 of these artillery pieces at Pleven (Also known as Plewna ). Ghazi Osman Pasha tasked with holding back the Russian Army decided on a passive defensive measure that valiantly held up the Russians for 5 months.
These artillery guns were used around the town of Plewna. You can see for yourself a map of Russian and Turk Positions. Ultimately Ghazi Osman Pasha's defensive tactic was failure because once you are cut off from your supply lines it would be only a matter of time. Ghazi Osman Pasha's army survived 4 offensives however due to his lack of supplies he need break out of the Russian siege. He tried and it was unsuccessful and he knew his position was now hopeless.
The battle of Lovcha ( now called Lovech ) In July, 1877 shortly after the siege of Pleven began, the garrison commander Osman Pasha, received 15 battalions of reinforcements from Sofia. Osman choose to use these reinforcements to fortify Lovcha which protected the communication and supply lines running from Orchanie to Pleven.
After the failure of the first two attempts to storm the city of Pleven, the Russians brought up significant reinforcements and the investing army now totaled 100,000. Intent on cutting Osman's communications and supply lines, General Mikhail Skobelev was sent out with 20,000 Russian troops with the intention of reducing Lovcha to rubble.
On September 1 Skobelev reached Lovcha and attacked the city. Fighting continued on for the next two days. Osman marched out of Pleven to the relief of Lovcha but before he could reach to city it fell to the Russians on September 3.
Survivors of the battle withdrew into Pleven and were organized into 3 battalions. After the loss of Lovcha, these additional troops brought Osman's force up to 30,000; the highest it would get during the siege. After the fall of Lovcha, the Russians settled on the strategy of a complete iron ring blockade around Pleven, and with the loss of its major supply route the fate of Pleven was now inevitable for Ghazi Osman Pasha.
Ghazi Osman Pasha and his cash reserves to fight war was perhaps recovered by the survivors from his reserve base at Lovcha to his outer defenses around Pleven? Lacking paper materials with what resources around him he ordered the hastily burial of war funds in perhaps four locations. And Perhaps this explains the the clay pot with coins and a hastily written cipher in four languages on a piece of leather possibly describing four locations in and around the area fortified around the city of Pleven.
The coins with the various dates were taxed and levied from the Balkan region because at the time Turkey was in a massive recession from an extended drought that made the central administration bankrupt.
The central officer command was treated well by the Russians after Osman Pascha's surrender. However thousands perished of the regular troops when they were force marched north with no food or water in the middle of winter. Thousands more died of the wounded that were slaughtered by the Bulgarians themselves. And of course history moved on and the Ottomans never returned to Bulgaria.
Now we have a possible motive for your alleged treasure, an idea on where the pot of coins may of possibly been found. And a clue to where you might find a cipher to unlock the location details on your alleged map.
Once again I hope this will be of some help. And if you really what to find this alleged treasure you really need to research and research some more. Unless your friends are a little more forthcoming with the details, then you still have a hard search ahead of you.
Hardluck
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