Albanian Rescue Archaeology Unit

The Albanian Rescue Archaeology Unit is a non-Governmental, non-profit organization funded by Packard Humanities Institute, that conducts research and rescue archaeological projects. It promotes contemporary standards of archaeological practice, principles of public archaeology, archaeological publications, scientific debate and archaeological education in Albania.

Opening of the Kamenica Tumulus As A New Cultural Heritage Site

On June 27th, 2007 took place the opening of the Tumulus of Kamenica as a new cultural heritage site, the newest in Albania (Figs. 1, 2).
The Tumulus of Kamenica is one of the most representative monuments of the prehistory of Albania and that of the wider region. It is the largest monument of its kind discovered and investigated so far in the country. The history of the cemetery spans from the end of the 13th to the middle of the 6th century B.C. The Tumulus was rescued and excavated by the Albanian Rescue Archaeology Unit in collaboration with the Institute of Archaeology between 2000 and 2002. The project has been totally funded by the Packard Humanities Institute (Fig. 3).
The site consists in the preserved part of the tumulus itself, and in a site museum. Visitors can see some funerary structures, unique for the prehistory of Albania and the wider region:


1) ‘The Big Circle’ around the central grave;
2) The first group of ‘monumental graves’;
3) The second group of ‘monumental graves’;
4) The unexcavated part of the Tumulus.

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