Expedition to explore archaeological treasures in Albanian waters

TIRANA, July 31ؔhe Albanian slice of the Mediterranean Sea will finally reveal what it holds inside. The Albanian National Trust, a non-profit organization that aims at the protection of the Butrint National Park and the adjacent areas, will implement two projects that will explore the underwater cultural heritage of the Albanian and neighboring coasts.
The first project is the continuation of the previous year’s underwater archaeology explorations. This second expedition will send the archaeologists navigating and diving into Albanian waters for two months. They will be searching for any ancient shipwrecks found near the Albanian coast. The result product of the project will be the first ever digital mapping system of the entire underwater cultural and environmental heritage of the Albanian waters.
The Albanian National Trust is organizing the expedition with the cooperation of the RPM Foundation, a Florida-based non-profit archaeological research organization dedicated to the advancement of nautical archaeological survey and excavation of shipwreck and harbor sites. Additional support is provided by the Institute of Archaeology of Albania, the Institute of Nautical Archaeology in Texas A & M, the Albanian Ministry of Defense and its Naval Department.
This summer, the archaeologists will have another research vessel and the expertise of its team, making the project “one of the most important underwater expeditions in the Mediterranean waters,” according to the organizers of the expedition.
The second project will be a joint expedition of the Albanian National Trusts and archaeological institutions from Montenegro and Croatia. The parties have had talks for the past several months have and are now ready to launch the joint project in underwater archaeology.
The joint expedition will explore the Adriatic and the Dalmatian coasts for any ancient shipwrecks. The experts will also work on identifying any cultural heritage sites and on setting up a joint preservation program.
The second project will be launched later this year and will represent the first effort to create an integrated program for the Adriatic and Dalmatian coast in studying the ancient marine archaeology.