British teen makes historical underwater find

A team of British experts headed by BBC Two’s Oceans show Dr Lucy Blue is expected to investigate a significant finding made by a teenage British tourist in Montenegro.

The UK holidaymaker, Michael Le Quesne, all of sixteen years old, is said to have chanced upon what could be an ancient temple, buried at sea in the Mediterranean. The tourist was snorkelling in the coast off Montenegro with his ten-year-old sibling, when he spotted a unique looking stone, which on closer inspection turned out to be a whole submerged building.

The ‘stone’ was discovered at a depth just two metres, and experts are thinking this may have been an important building within a historic Greek or Roman trading post. The theory is that the building, and its surroundings may have been submerged after a high-magnitude earthquake.

Michael’s father, a professional archeologist followed his son to the spot, after having been told of the discovery. Mr Le Quesne and his family had been holidaying in the Balkans a month ago, when the discovery was made. Through some digging, Le Quesne uncovered columns which seem to indicate this may have been an ancient temple or major public building.

Michael’s recognition of the possible importance of the ‘stone’ came from having been to various archeological ruin sites with his father.

Much curiosity and excitement has arisen around the finding, and experts believe that if theories are proved to be correct, this would put Montenegro on the archeological map. Other such discoveries at Montenegro have included the remains of two cargo ships from the Roman era, discovered by American experts working with a local team.