Another ancient myth proven (blood, myths, Greek, Roman)

[Djamila]

Hutovo Blato Park, Bosnia

Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina - A team of Bosnian archaeologists have discovered the remnants of Illyrian ships in Europe's largest preserved wetland, the Hutovo Blato Park.

Illyrian ships, which must be at least 2,200 years old, are commonly referenced in ancient Greek and Roman myths but have, until now, never been verified as historical fact. In Hutovo Blato, two ships were discovered eight meters underwater.

The Hutovo Blato wetland probably became their final destination after they sailed in from the Adriatic Sea, which is connected to Hutovo Blato by the Neretva River. The Desilo location where the ships were discovered will be searched further.

Only eight square meters have been searched so far, but the team has already discovered some 80 amphora corks and 30 different amphora fragments with seals of various workshops. Additionally, for the first time a steel Roman spear with a preserved wooden handle has been found, together with eight graves, which are presumed to be even older than the ships.

The Illyrian ships were a means of transportation and trade for the ancient Illyrian people, the first inhabitants of Bosnia and much of the Balkan peninsula. The Illyrian people are believed to be the direct ancestors of today's Albanians who, alongside Greeks, are the only Balkan nation that did not arrive with the Slavic migrations of the 5th and 6th Century.

[James the Persian]

Originally Posted by Djamila

The Illyrian ships were a means of transportation and trade for the ancient Illyrian people, the first inhabitants of Bosnia and much of the Balkan peninsula. The Illyrian people are believed to be the direct ancestors of today's Albanians who, alongside Greeks, are the only Balkan nation that did not arrive with the Slavic migrations of the 5th and 6th Century.

Interesting, but I just have to pick up on the last part. It is indeed part of the Albanian national myth that they are the Illyrians, but there is precisely no evidence that this is so. In actual factm, the linguistic evidence suggests that they could not come from a coastal region and as the only language with cognates of peculiarly Albanian words is Romanian (and these are those parts of the language that are pre-Roman Dacian), the evidence seems to suggest that they are actually probably the descendants on non-Romanised Dacians, likely displaced by the Gothic invasions in the 4th century. Of course, they could have some Illyrian blood (as could almost any other group in the Balkans) given where they settled but to claim to be the direct descendants of the Illyrians as they do is unsustainable in the light of the actual evidence.

James