Albania promotes its underwater archaeology, for tourism

TIRANA, Albania – Albania is promoting the archaeological finds in the waters off its southwest coast to raise public interest and to attract attention of decision-makers who can help preserve the discoveries.

The Albanian National Coastline Agency opened an exhibition on Monday of 30 pictures showing underwater finds of potential archaeological significance from the last decade.

The nonprofit RPM Nautical Foundation has mapped Albania’s coast from Saranda to Vlora. National coastline agency head Auron Tare says the scan found 38 shipwrecks, six of them more than 2,000 year old.

Tare says the ships and other objects “show ancient Illyria (Albania’s predecessor) was a commercial pass rather than a pirates’ place.”

He says the archaeological wealth of Albania’s 220-mile coastline needs more legal protection and better care to make it a popular tourism destination.