Roman shipwreck found in Albania

Archeologists found a Roman ship wreck with more than 300 amphoras onboard in Albania.

A team of Albanian and American archaeologists has found the remains of a Roman ship off the Karaburun Peninsula in Albania's southern coast.

Researchers discovered the 30 meter-long ship wreck at a depth of 50 meters and believe it to date back to a time between the second and first century BCE, BalkanInsight reported.

Experts say the find can reveal new facts about the ancient population of the southern Illyrian coast and its trade relations in the Mediterranean.

“The growing maritime evidence points toward an intense wine industry and associated heavy trade that developed in the 2nd century BCE and continued into the 1st century CE,” Dr. Jeff Royal of the RPM Nautical Foundation said in a statement.

“The heavy traffic of this commodity ran southward down the Eastern Adriatic route to the Vlora area before cutting over to Southern Italy and continuing into the West Mediterranean,” Royal added.

The vessel was found with more than 300 amphoras-a type of ceramic container- onboard.

The Albanian coast was part of an important trade route, receiving traffic from Greece, Italy, North Africa and the western Mediterranean.

“This discovery is important not only for the expedition but also for Albania's underwater archaeology,” said Dr. Adrian Anastasi of Albania's Institute of Archeology.

Financed by the RPM Nautical Foundation, the expedition has discovered 20 shipwrecks from ancient, medieval and modern times in the Albanian coast over the past five years.

TE/HGH