The "Azores Underwater Cultural Heritage" application was unanimously pre-selected by the national jury, along with the Lines of Torres, to represent Portugal in the submission of the application for the 2019 edition of the "European Heritage Label."
 
The application was submitted by the Regional Directorate for Culture, the entity in charge of managing the archaeological assets in the Azores Sea. It took into consideration the experiences of the Azores Underwater Cultural Heritage, launched in 2017, and the Interreg-MAC Margullar project developed in partnership with Madeira, Canary Islands, Caped Verde and Senegal, which is currently under way.
 
This application seeks to enhance visibility and relevance of underwater cultural heritage for Humanity through three fundamental axes, namely scientific recognition, the development of a sustainable, community-based, environmental and economic management model, and the dissemination of heritage among the population.
 
Since the establishment of the "European Heritage Label" in 2014, Portugal has already submitted seven applications. The distinction was only awarded three times: the General Library of the University of Coimbra, also classified by UNESCO as World Heritage, the Charter of Law of Abolition of the Death Penalty, dated from 1867, which is currently preserved at the National Archives of Torre do Tombo, and the Promontory of Sagres.
 
The "European Heritage Label" aims to raise citizens' awareness for sites that have played a significant role in the history, culture and development of the European Union as well as to enhance their European dimension through educational and information activities.
 
The ultimate goal of the "European Heritage Label" is to strengthen the sense of belonging to the European Union in accordance with the following criteria: applicants must be located in one of the participating Member States, they must have a symbolic European value, and they must have played a relevant role in the history and culture of Europe and/or in the construction of the European Union.
 
The panel of experts responsible for the evaluation of applications will announce the results by the end of this year.