A clay bottle of gin dating back to the 1920s, walkie-talkies and coins dating back to the 1970s were just some of the rare finds collected from the seabed in Senglea during a clean-up on Saturday morning.  

Chairs, tables, tyres, ladders and even a bike were also retrieved, as well as glass bottles, jars and cups. 

QLZH Foundation co-founder Steve Mercieca carrying a bike retrieved from the sea. Photo: Jonathan Borg

Over 60 volunteers and 20 divers worked together for over four hours to retrieve a range of discarded items from the waters of the popular waterfront, with enough collected to fill two skips.

The haul included handfuls of mixed coins, including Maltese Lira coins.  

A diver retrieving a step ladder on Saturday morning. Photo: Jonathan Borg.

Saturday's action was the seventh edition of the annual Ocean Bed Clean-Up organised by the QLZH Foundation, a social impact voluntary organisation from real estate companies QuickLets and Zanzi Homes. 

"The purpose of today was to raise awareness of our urban environment and to take care of it," said QLZH Foundation co-founder Steve Mercieca.

"If everyone does their part, we'll get there," he said. 

This coin dates back to 1972, before Malta adopted the Euro. Photo: Jonathan Borg.

Describing discovering a plastic moneybox full of coins from the 1970s and 1990s as "like finding treasure," Mercieca said the morning had been a fun one for all the family. 

"It was fantastic... the kids in particular really enjoyed it," he said. 

Tyres were also collected from the sea in Senglea. Photo: Jonathan Borg.

The waste collected from the waterfront will be handed over to Wasteserv for collection and sorting, Mercieca confirmed, adding the local council was cleaning the promenade after the clean-up. 

Deloitte was the main sponsor for the event. Additional support on the day provided by Bad Boys Cleaners. 

Laferla provided insurance for the operation and skips were supplied by HMS Group. Underwater filming was carried out by Raniero's Adventures and food for the volunteers was provided by Mannarinu. Additional support was provided by Clean Malta and No to Plastic.