The 2015 excavations involved the sector that was occupied, from the second half of the 5th century A.D. onwards, by the late antique cemetery situated north of the northern walls of the Roman city of Albintimilium, following the area’s abandonment and subsequent burial by a landslide from Collesgarba above and flooding from the Nervia torrent.

The excavations were extended towards the west of the area under investigation, for an overall area of 40 m2, with the aim of completely exposing the four sarcophagi made of Finale stone that were partially excavated in 2014. The intention was also to further define and clarify the numerous anomalies in this zone shown by the geo-radar survey undertaken at the end of last season.

Within the extended area, below a series of layers relating to the prolonged agricultural use of the area (US 5079, 5081, 5131, 5133 = phase II, 14th – 18th century), other layers post-dating the abandonment of the cemetery area (US 5097, 5101, 5102, 5112) were exposed, in which a series of trenches and pits were identified. These were the result of the violation of the sarcophagi and robbing of the walls in antiquity.

The fill inside sarcophagus A was excavated. The lid had been removed in antiquity and it had been reused for several successive burials. In fact, the remains of at least seven individuals in secondary deposition and four in primary deposition (two sub-adults and two adults, one of which identifiable as female) were identified.

The female burial US5182 presented the remains of personal ornament and clothing constituted by two “hoop” type earrings, a ring made of folded lamina, and a shield fibula, datable to the 6th-7th century A.D., for which parallels are being sought.

This season, excavation also continued in sector 5000/2014 extension, exposing tomb 25/324 with a brick cover, abutting the north side of the wall. This was certainly reused for a later burial sealed by a cover of stone slabs US5140. A large robber pit on the west side of the North Gate was also identified, which had been dug in the same period to recover building materials from the walls.