This excavation was undertaken in the area next to the central part of the defences where, beside the west gate, house K had been obliterated by the huge earthworks abutting the walls. The house had stone footings and walls of unbaked bricks, plastered with lime and painted white and red.
The construction of the central part of the defences in the mid to second half of the 3rd century B.C. caused the sacrifice of many pre-existing houses, that were either completely razed to the ground or had only their walls demolished and were then covered with a deep layer of dumped earth and stones.
In the so-called “area HI” (800sq.m) situated in the centre of the plateau between the rectilinear inner wall and the acropolis wall, the extension of the city’s first phase was investigated. This provided more comprehensive data regarding house M (11.07 × 23.04m), which was composed of an elongated courtyard with 4 rooms opening onto it. In the same sector a well came to light, situated between houses IH and J. It had a circular well-head (diam. 0.70m), surrounded by limestone and sandstone slabs. The well’s presence may have conditioned the positioning of the nearby “House of the Molds”, which needed water for the manufacturing activity which took place there.
Following the abandonment of this house, during the 3rd century B.C. the well began to fill with demolition debris but remained in use for at least the duration of the 2nd century B.C., until the moment when the “lower city” was abandoned and life became concentrated on the upper terrace of the plateau (acropolis or arx), circa 150m away. That the well was still in use is attested by numerous fragments of common ware jugs found among the fallen stones inside it. Also present were fragments of black glaze forms, including a cup (Morel 2324), dating to around 150-50B.C. (Maria Luisa Nava)