In 2010 the Centre Jean Bérard recommenced research on the monumental Roman necropolis situated immediately outside the Porta Meridiana in the north wall of Cumae.

During the last few years the excavations have uncovered an important cross-roads where three roads met: the first on a south-north alignment heading to Capua, the second – the via Domitiana – heading north-west towards Sinuessa and the via Appia and the third heading north-east, probably towards the road which from the town’s north-eastern gate headed north. The excavations have investigated various sections of the necropolis situated along the three roads, datable to between 1st century B.C. and the 3rd century A.D.

This years excavations concentrated on the northern and western sectors of the necropolis. In the first area investigated, situated along the northern edge of the via Domitiana, the excavation uncovered two funerary buildings of Julio-Claudian date. The first mausoleum, A49-51, of which only the rectangular podium with its facing of limestone blocks was preserved, had two burial chambers. Due to the presence of the water-table it was only possible to undertake a partial exploration of one of the chambers. The rectangular, vaulted chamber was built in opus reticulatum. Entry was through a door in the north-eastern side.

All that survived of the second monument, mausoleum A68, situated east of the first, was the cement nucleus of the standing structure and part of the podium with its facing of limestone blocks. The building was quadrangular in plan and had a square underground chamber with a barrel-vaulted ceiling which was entered through a door in the northern side. Inside the chamber was a sarcophagus of smooth white marble.

The second nucleus of monuments was situated along the eastern edge of the south-north road. In the investigated area two funerary monuments came to light (D29 and D33) together with a series of minor burials of secondary cremations. The earliest phase of this sector was attested by a cremation burial (SP29050) of the “parallelepiped” type with stele. The tomb comprised three tufa blocks, the two lower ones presenting a hollow in which the cinerary urn was housed. This type of tomb architecture was particularly widespread during the 2nd century BC.

Mausoleum D29 dated to the same period or just afterwards. It was a dry-stone construction of large tufa blocks, with a semi-interred rectangular vaulted chamber. The interior was occupied by two funerary beds and an “a cassa” tomb built of tufa slabs.

A nucleus of four tombs (SP29006, SP29007, SP29008 and SP29009) dated to a subsequent period. The burials presented four quadrangular cippi below which was a pit housing the cinerary urns containing the cremated bones. Inscriptions were present on some blocks.

Mausoleum D33 was slightly later, a tomb with a simple cell datable to the 1st century B.C., built with roughly squared small blocks and tufa chippings bonded with mortar. Inside the square, semi-interred and vaulted chamber were three masonry-built funerary beds. The entrance was in the west wall.