The Oplontis Project conducted a much smaller excavation operation in the 2019 season than in previous years. The limited excavations were aimed at answering some open questions about the development of the site, as well as further recording the structure. The excavations focused in two areas: the central courtyard, which included the adjacent room 15, and the open space (44) to the south of the barrel-vaulted rooms.
OPB 32 The reopening and expansion of trench OPB 32 was a principal objective of the season. Its primary aim was to uncover more of the architecture recovered at the end of last season (2018) and see if it connected in any way to the foundations recovered in trench OPB 35 to the north. In the area on the southwestern side of the trench, the team reached and continued to excavate the lowest and earliest foundation wall recovered in the area. Ancient builders must have used the wall to even out this slope with a series of terracing fills. The wall may have functioned as a terracing structure for an earlier version of the courtyard structure. A series of walls emerged on the eastern side of the unit that signal the next major phase of occupation in the area. The northern side of wall 32126 ended abruptly against a further structure (wall 32136) brought in later. This newer structure featured a T-shaped junction composed of a wall running east-west and another masonry wall heading north into the baulk.
OPB 39 The objective of OPB 39, located on the eastern side of space 44, was to connect the last piece of the large trench excavated on the exterior of the building that includes OPB 6, 28, and 34, and 39. The team excavated about .5 m of eruption lapilli still in place that had remained unexcavated. A thin layer of earth ranging between 10-5 cm thick made up the floor level on the exterior of the barrel-vaulted rooms. The following surface beneath the 79 CE layer featured a matrix of concrete on the eastern side of the trench that disappeared toward the west as it transitioned into an earthen surface. A deposit of well-rounded beach pebbles, about fist size in dimensions acted as a construction fill for both surfaces.
OPB 40 The principal aim of trench 40 in room 15 was to see if any of the architecture recovered in the rooms to the south and southeast continued in this area of the site. The team began to excavate out the cocciopesto floor that was in situ at the time of the eruption. The team soon encountered a unique floor after the removal of the cocciopesto. It featured a series of large badly fired bricks about 330mm long x 310mm wide and 90 mm thick. The pavement respected the layout of the room as it reached the outer walls, indicating that they functioned together. Numerous adjustments in the brick pattern suggest that a number of corrections occurred as the workers put the floor together. The pavement is still fully in situ and the team did not excavate it farther.
OPB 41 Trench 41 sought to continue the clean-up and recording operations of the pavement on the western side of the courtyard. Our aim was to understand any possible dynamics of cart traffic and use of the building through any possible marks of wear or traffic as well as repair or leveling events. The pavement itself displayed two compositions, indicating at least two paving events