The plain of Faragola extends on the right bank of the river Carapelle (the ancient Calabius), a few kilometres NW of Ascoli Satriano (FG). The archaeological interest of this territory is indicated by the toponym 'Faragola', which would seem to indicate a small 'fara', that is a Lombard agro-military settlement. A further indication was provided by the presence of a great number of glass-paste tesserae (mainly blue) and numerous fragments of precious marbles. On the basis of this evidence, an excavation was started and soon revealed a mosaic pavement at the centre of a vast archaeological context. As it was intended to discover the size and nature of the site in order to protect it and have it placed under a restriction order, it was decided to put in a series of small trenches over a wide area. These revealed a series of walls, all perfectly aligned, mosaic and marble pavements and the basin of a nymphaeum at the centre of a probable summer triclinium. The excavation stopped, not so much because of a lack of funding, but in order to allow a series of interventions to be carried out in order to protect the site from the many clandestine excavators in the area. In fact, with the collaboration of the Comune of Ascoli Satriano, a timely injunction was issued to place a restriction order on the site and enable its acquisition. At the same time the preliminary excavation report was published.

Following a geophysical survey the excavations at Faragola began in 2003. Previously, the first occupation of the site had been dated to the Daunian period, as attested by a cobble mosaic. However, the discovery in 2006 of a semi-chamber tomb, which had been converted into a tank during late antique restructuring, shed light on the organization of the pre-Roman Daunian village (datable to at least the 4th-3rd century B.C.) and in general on the phases preceding the villa, before the Roman conquest of Daunia. There is limited data for the late Republican and early-middle Imperial periods, to which the first phase of the villa at Faragola dates. This first phase was attested by several structures in opus incertum, later reused as foundations for the walls of the late antique phase, an oscillum and a marble statue of a boy hunter, resembling Eros, in one of the rooms of the late antique bath complex (2nd century A.D.). The 2006 campaign provided new data regarding the complex architecture and functioning of the villa, highlighting the central role of the baths beside the coenatio, which were linked to the latter by a long corridor. The excavations uncovered the _natatio_, an integral part of the _frigidarium_, a _sudatio_ and a second bath complex, of smaller size standing next to, but separate from the first and with a separate entrance, warm and hot rooms and a _preafurnium_. The second set of baths was probably used by those who worked at the villa, whilst the larger and better organized complex may be interpreted as that belonging to the owners, that is for the use of the _dominus_ and his family. Two sets of baths in a private rural residence are however rare. A large room, partially covered by a mezzanine floor was also investigated. This may have been used for the preservation of foodstuffs and a storeroom as suggested by a series of metal artifacts and pottery vessels found along the walls (where there were once perhaps wooden shelves), a latrine, with relative system for water provision and waste disposal, and two square features, perhaps light wells. The finds relating to the medieval village (7th-8th century B.C.) which developed in the area of the villa following its abandonment, confirm that the form acquired by the villa in the 5th century A.D. did not last long. In the late 6th century what had been the _coenatio_ was used as a stable and/or rubbish dump, whilst the other rooms housed craft activities for the production of bronze and lead (as attested by several smelting pits, work surfaces and metal waste products). The phases regarding the baths and the storage areas were more complex. Between the walls of the late antique villa, which were still preserved, huts were constructed, in part resting on the pre-existing walls, in part resting on posts which held up the beams. In the case of the large rectangular storage rooms the old walls were used as an enclosure housing huts which perhaps had wooden silos for grain storage. Other spaces were used for burial purposes, as documented by the infant graves.

Excavations conducted by the University of Foggia and the Archaeological Superintendency of Apulia on the site of Faragola in the territory of Ascoli Satriano (FG) began in 2003. At the same time a survey was undertaken in the Valle del Carapelle and restoration work was undertaken at the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro. The research aims to reconstruct the complex vicissitudes of the settlement, from the Daunian phases, to the large Roman and late antique villa and the early medieval rural settlement. The 2009 excavations looked at several areas of the site which were important for the definition of the villa’s layout in the various construction phases and for an understanding of the spatial functions. At the end of the campaign the excavated area had reached a total surface area of over 3,500 m2. In particular the research defined a number of aspects of the late antique (3rd-4th century) villa’s physiognomy, whose layout had only been partially investigated previously as it was overlaid by structures belonging to the later phase of monumentalisation, datable to the 5th century. One trench confirmed the presence of a large garden extending to the west of the luxurious dinning room (cenatio) that was restructured during the 5th century A.D. This in turn confirmed the hypothesis that this large hall which must have appeared as a pavilion, a sort of ‘gazebo’ in the garden, with a roof but with large openings in the sides to favour the circulation of air and light. The identification of two pre-existing parallel walls, aligned with the wall identified in the previous campaigns, below the portico of the cenatio, led to the discovery of a section of a great quadrangular peristyle dating to the 4th century A.D., extending over an area of over 1200 m2, probably divided by pillars. A number of rooms, only partially excavated, must have been arranged around the peristyle. Most of the walls belonging to the peristyle had already been identified in the area of the baths complex and in correspondence with the passageway between the cenatio and the baths. The multiple and complex functional and architectural transformations which these rooms underwent between the 5th and 7th century meant that it was only possible to partially define the overall layout of the complex. The investigations undertaken in the sector to the north-west of the portico of the cenatio revealed a complex of large rooms belonging to the 3rd-4th century villa. These were characterised by construction interventions during the 5th-6th century, with subsequent changes in function in the early medieval period. There was evidence which would seem to indicate that in the late antique period these structures had a service-productive function (probably linked to grain processing and storage). On the other hand, important data was acquired relating to the abandonment of the villa and the subsequent forms and modes of occupation in the early medieval period (7th-9th century). The rooms were used as a cemetery, characterised in particular by infant burials. In some of these burials there was evidence of ritual practices (refrigerium). Subsequently, the structures were used for residential purposes, as attested by the evidence of a kitchen, and probably divided into family units. Important data regarding diet and construction in perishable materials may be produced by the bio-archaeological analyses currently in progress. A trench situated at circa 20 m east of the area excavated to date was positioned in correspondence with anomalies detected by the magnetometer survey. This led to the discovery of a complex of rooms where craft-working activities took place, probably metal working (in particular copper), attested by waste materials. This is important for the understanding of the layout of the villa’s service and production areas. The villa at Faragola seems to have had an extensive craft-working complex, characterised by numerous workshops and a wide range of production activities identified during previous campaigns (pottery, stone, metal and glass working)

The investigations undertaken at Faragola in 2010 concentrated on the western sector of the archaeological area where a peristyle built in the 4th century A.D. was examined. It was partially obliterated by the construction of the monumental _cenatio_, and partially incorporated into the structures of the residential complex. The latter was restructured during the 5th century A.D. when the portico’s east wing was transformed into a corridor providing a link to the bath complex and most of the south sector was affected by restructuring undertaken in order to enlarge the _balneum_. The peristyle of the villa at Faragola, covering an overall surface area of about 1225 m2, was quadrangular, surrounded by a portico with pillars and probably paved with a geometric mosaic. Along the western wing of the peristyle a series of large rooms were investigated. These were probably pre-existing and were incorporated and restructured at the time of the creation of the monumental garden. These interventions were attested by the raising of the floor level and the change in the position of the entrance to the rooms on the eastern side, with an opening directly into the portico. No floors, wall revetments or stratigraphy relating to the occupation phases were preserved, making it impossible to define the function of these rooms. It may be suggested that they were residential, dining and reception rooms, characterised by monumental architecture, as attested by the presence of an apsidal wall. The abandonment of the peristyle’s western part and of the rooms around the east side of the portico occurred during the mid-second half of the 4th century A.D., probably as a result of the severe damage caused by the earthquake which struck Daunia with the epicentre in Irpinia. It cannot be discounted that demolition was undertaken in order to create an open space for a hanging-garden with the _cenatio_ conceived as a pavilion immersed in a rustic setting. There was much evidence in the area previously occupied by the peristyle attesting the creation of work surfaces relating to the building site for the restructuring of the dining-room, including a large quantity of waste fragments from marble working. It is possible that some of the flooring and wall revetments were removed and reworked to be reused in the floor of the dining-room and other rooms. The construction of a kiln in among the collapse of one of the rooms may be related to the building site phase. The typology and dimensions seem to indicate its use for the secondary working of glass, although no production indicators were found. Moreover, glass production has already been suggested for Faragola in relation to the find of a series of indicators and hypotheses regarding the panels of glass _opus sectile_ and other artefacts. No significant evidence was found that excludes an early medieval date for the workshop, when the site seems to have had a strong craft-working vocation (the manufacture of pottery, iron, lead, copper and bone artefacts). Following a phase of abandonment, attested by the presence of layers of collapsed cobbles and sporadic infant burials, the area seems to have been occasionally reoccupied, attested by hearths, burnt layers and ash-filled pits. The investigations undertaken in a trench to the east of the _cenatio_ complex produced very interesting data regarding the development of the layout and architectural characteristics of the late antique nucleus of structures and subsequent forms of early medieval occupation of the area east of the _cenatio_ and surrounding portico. The excavations brought to light a monumental apsidal structure built of cobbles, only partially investigated. Due to the overlying of the structures from the early medieval phases, the multiple changes in the building’s function and the partial nature of the investigations it is not possible to reconstruct its overall plan or suggest a function.

The ninth excavation campaign on the site of Faragola (Ascoli Satriano) took place in September-October 2012. The research concentrated on a number of areas that are important for defining the villa’s plan, its construction phases and understanding of the functions of its spaces. In trench IV, a monumental apsidal building was uncovered (rooms 104 and 105), in which traces of the original floor were preserved. The overlying early medieval structures, the changes in function and the partial nature of the excavations, made it impossible to complete its plan, suggest function, or propose a late antique or early medieval date. Although the building’s typology and size may suggest the identification of the apsidal hall with a reception room almost coeval or slightly later than the restructuring of the _cenatio_ (second half of the 5th century), other indications, such as the construction techniques and the foundation level, could ascribe the building’s construction to a phase subsequent to the use of the _cenatio_, that is in the full 6th century. Another suggestion is that this building was a church with a single nave, although there is no evidence to support this working hypothesis. From the second half of the 8th century and, presumably following an abandonment phase, the building underwent structural alterations and changes in use, of a domestic-residential nature. These interventions are legible in the modifications of the original plan by the obliteration of the longitudinal room (105) and the construction of dividing walls in the apse (104), creation of beaten earth floors, cooking stands, walls in perishable materials partially resting on pre-existing masonry walls, and tile and imbrices roofs resting on timber posts. Immediately east of the _cenatio_ at least four pillars were identified. Built of cobbles and brick/tile, they could be interpreted as an integral part of a portico, perhaps with a cobble paving, forming a monumental access on the eastern front of the 3rd-4th century villa. This structure seemed to have been blocked at the same time as the _cenatio_ portico was built (second half of the 4th century). In this way, a long perimeter wall to the rural complex was created, which provided access, via a large threshold (identified during a previous campaign), to the residential _centatio_-baths complex. The 2012 campaign also saw the continuation of excavation in trench VI, where in 2006 and 2009 a number of rooms belonging to a building that was topographically distant from the villa but neighbouring to it, were identified. This was probably a service structure, which between the end of the 6th and the 7th century was reoccupied and saw intense craft-working activity (iron and copper working, and perhaps glass making). The last intervention was undertaken inside the _cenatio_, in the gaps created in the floor following the removal of three _opus sectile_, glass and marble mosaics, arranged on axis and centred with respect to the large room’s longitudinal development.

This was the tenth excavation campaign on the site of Faragola (Ascoli Satriano). Further evidence was uncovered regarding the development and plan of the villa and, in particular, the abandonment phases of the late antique residence, the new forms of rural settlement and the characteristics of the residence, built among the structures of the pre-existing architectural complex from the beginning of the 7th century A.D. Occupation, including substantial alterations to the structures, probably continued until the mid 9th century A.D. Work continued on the structures situated on the east side of the site, where research in 2006, 2009, and 2012 had uncovered a number of rooms that were separate from the central part of the villa. Between the end of the 6th and the 7th-8th century, these rooms were reoccupied for residential-functional purposes and, secondly, production activities (iron, copper and perhaps glass working). The excavations concentrated on the central area of the complex. The absence of stratigraphy relating to the original construction phases made it impossible to give a precise date and function for this building. However, its plan and size suggest it may be interpreted as a granary or warehouse. Evidence was also uncovered regarding the early medieval reoccupation when the construction of seven dividing walls created seven rooms around a central courtyard, built reusing the pre-existing perimeter walls. The rooms contained one or two cooking and/or heating plates, kitchen and table wares, containers for dry food stuffs, bells and other equipment for animals, indicating they were multifunctional. There was evidence of metalworking in one period in one room and perhaps also on the west side of the courtyard. The structural characteristics, spatial organisation, and uniformity of the rooms seems to suggest these rooms were inhabited by the servants of the early medieval residence. Excavations were continued in three rooms of the nucleus situated north of the _cenatio_-portico complex, where in 2008 and 2009 a series of large rooms dating to the 5th century A.D. were identified. These rooms were probably kitchens and storerooms, with the upper floor housing the residential rooms. In the early medieval period, the occupation was both residential and productive. Below a clay settling/weathering tank, dated to the late 7th century, a monumental apsidal room came to light. Only the eastern sector was preserved and the original flooring had not survived and due to the many alterations it was not possible to reconstruct its plan. Dated to the 6th century A.D., the preliminary interpretation is that this was a nymphaeum. The excavations in this area revealed the heavy robbing of two more rooms, through the systematic removal of all the elements that were reusable, recyclable, and sellable on the site or elsewhere, from paving and wall revetments, to roofing materials. No traces of late antique occupation survived. A channel came to light in the trench opened east of the _cenatio_- baths residential nucleus. This was aligned with a stretch of the previously identified water channel leading towards the cistern situated in the proximity of the threshold leading into the _cenatio_ complex. The tile covering of this structure was also rebuilt, probably when maintenance was undertaken. The channel’s direction suggests it was linked to a _castellum_ _aquae_ that probably stood on the site’s eastern hillside. Further south, a large tank built of neatly placed tiles with a border of large tiles fixed vertically into the ground was partially excavated. This is interpreted as a structure for settling/weighing and/or weathering clay. The discovery of such a tank and its size confirms the importance, both in the late antique and early medieval periods, of the clay working industry not only for pottery production but probably also roof tiles, no doubt favoured by the availability of clay in this area.