Project Nivica Archaeology

This unique project, under the direction of Dr. Aisling Tierney, is a multiperiod archaeological research project that operates in collaboration with domestic Albanian organisations prioritising eco-tourism and socioeconomic development in a rapidly depopulating region. Our work focuses on multiperiod and multi-method archaeological investigations, with an emphasis on material culture, spanning thousands of years of history and human activity from ancient Illyrian, Epirote and Roman periods to modern conflict archaeology of the 19th and 20th centuries and built heritage. At the heart of the project is the town of Nivica and the mountainous Kurvelesh region, which is home to a wide range of intangible cultural heritage including polyphonic singing, traditional textile crafts and foodways.

The aims of the project are: to investigate coastal Illyrian/Epirote influence on the material culture of the inland mountains; to examine themes of isolation and connection; to understand how the inhabitants of Nivica shaped their identity in relation to their Mediterranean neighbours; to explore the range of occupation across the Kurvelesh, from the prehistoric, to antiquity, through the Ottoman phases and into modern conflict archaeology; and to situate heritage practice and participatory engagement within the principles of the Sustainable Development Goals.

A multiperiod archaeological research project that operates in collaboration with domestic Albanian organisations prioritising eco-tourism and socioeconomic development in a rapidly depopulating region. Our work focuses on multiperiod and multi-method archaeological investigations, with an emphasis on material culture, spanning thousands of years of history and human activity from ancient Illyrian, Epirot and Roman periods to modern conflict archaeology of the 19th and 20th centuries. At the heart of the project is the town of Nivica and the mountainous Kurvelesh region, which is home to a wide range of intangible cultural heritage including polyphonic singing, traditional textile crafts and foodways.