Ancient Coins Found in Durres Restored

Some 675 ancient coins discovered forty years ago in the Artemis sanctuary in the Daute hills of the city of Durres have been restored, the Conservation Laboratory says. The ancient coins, some of which are golden ones, were accidentally discovered in 1970 by archaeologist Ilia Toci. The expedition which continued for several years discovered some 14,000 objects mainly terracotta ones.
According to the director of the Conservation Laboratory at the Centre for Albanological Studies, Frederik Stamati, the restoration process took five years because most of the coins had become corroded after being left un-restored for 30 years.
Specialists say they made 70 percent of the coins readable compared to only 17 percent before the restoration began. The coins display views of Durrahium, modern Durres, various symbols and ancient Greek mythological heroes such as Heracles.
Six years ago, the Albanian Institute of Archaeology and the French “Charles de Gaulle” University launched a project to study and publish the objects found in the expedition. The study is in its final phase.