Lo scavo nella particella 50 (demaniale) di Civita di Tricarico, nell’area recintata sulla cd. acropoli, ha consistito nell’aprire saggi a fianco del tempietto scavato all’inizio degli anni ’70. Lo scavo ha iniziato proprio dal punto dove era segnalato un troncone di muro a sud ovest del tempio, che è stato puntualmente ritrovato. Due lati di un ampio edificio sono stati messi in luce, ossia una vasta costruzione approssimativamente di 18 x 28 m, cioè oltre 500 m2, che le sue dimensioni designerebbero come un edificio comunitario piuttosto che domestico. Lo scavo ha anche permesso di acquisire dati importanti sul tempietto stesso. Si è messo interamente in evidenza, fino al piano di posa, il muro di sostegno meridionale della scala d’accesso al podio. Una ricognizione geofisica (elettrica – metodo ARP) si è svolta sul sito di Civita di Tricarico a ottobre 2013, nelle particella catastale 14, ad opera della società Geocarta L’indagine geofisica rivela l’esistenza – finora insospettata – di un “quartiere” interamente nuovo, con due file di case, per una larghezza complessiva di ca. 55 m e una lunghezza di almeno 100 m, dunque una superficie minima di 5500 m2, ma verosimilmente di più. Una strada sembra dividere le due file di case. La maggior parte degli edifici sembra presentare, come detto sopra, una planimetria simile a quella della casa delle matrici (o della casa M), ma con apertura a sud est.

Excavations on the site of Civita di Tricarico (MT) reopened in 2013. A second campaign took place in 2014, as part of the _Ignobilia_ _appida_ _Lucanorum_ project. The new trenches were put in on the temple uncovered in 1973 on the so-called acropolis. The aim was to investigate the relationship of the sacred area with the surrounding urban fabric and look for evidence of any phase pre-dating the temple. A wall of large limestone ashlar blocks was uncovered in the trench opened in the south wing of the podium (fig. 1), cut by the podium’s lower course, while the south wall of the cella, with shallower foundations, rested on it. The wall’s foundation trench was cut into almost sterile yellowish clay that in turn overlay a bank of natural marl. The layers covering the wall contained pottery dating to the 4th century B.C. (elsewhere in the podium fill later pottery was found, dating to at least the late 3rd century). This wall did not continue either to the north or to the south of the podium. The temple therefore completely covered the structure of which only this one wall is known for the moment. To the west of the building behind the tempietto, there was a wall bonded with cement mortar (2nd century B.C.) that probably formed the border of the sacred area, separating it from the road leading to the north-east gate, a distance of only 70 m. A parallel wall, quite clearly visible on the geophysical survey results, but not visible on the ground, perhaps formed the other side of a portico. The wall with mortar was followed for over 18 m, up to the point where it joined the supporting wall of the acropolis’ upper terrace. However, the resistivity survey indicated that it must have been at least 50 m long. The excavation also acquired important data for the tempietto itself – a typical example of a so-called Etruscan-Italic temple with _alae_. One of the blocks from the entrance staircase was reused and presented a cyma recta on its short side. This moulded block was probably cracked before being put into position (or during this operation) and, for this reason, was discarded and substituted with another. It must have been part of the upper cornice of one of the rear corners of the podium. The 2013-2014 excavations recovered six new tile stamps, with the abbreviation _Ve.Kar_, identical to the 12 examples already known from the acropolis and the excavation of the tempietto. The six stamps come from surface layers, or from the interface between the latter and the _in_ _situ_ archaeological levels, therefore it is not possible to say whether they belong to the first or second phase.

The acropolis of Civita di Tricarico has a curtain wall that encloses an area of 2.5 hectares. The only part of the area that is almost perfectly flat is the summit terrace of about 4,500 m2. It was supported, at least on the southwest side, by a containing wall the lower course of which was made of reused limestone blocks. The late date of this structure is attested by the use of cement mortar. Three main buildings stood on the terrace: the temple, the _domus_, and building P, all built on top of earlier structures. The 2nd – 1st century B.C. _domus_ overlay earlier houses: house U had an 11 m facade and was in turn covered by house V, the south side of which was c. 15.40 m long. Excavation of the temple reopened in 2013. The temple was built in the middle of Building T, discovered during the first campaign. In 2014, a trench opened in the temple’s south wing revealed a wall that passed underneath the _cella_ foundations. In 2015, new trenches identified not only the continuation of this wall, but also exposed two more sides of the structure. The short side measured 3.30 m but the length of the long sides can only be estimated (5.5 m) as they disappear below the facing of the temple podium. Overall, the occupation levels and associated materials had not survived. However, some residual fragments related to the cult sphere (stem of a _thymiaterion_, base of a _louterion_). The loss of most of the stratigraphy pre-dating the temple was caused by a pit dug in the _cella_ in antiquity. It cut through the floor (_opus_ _signinum_ with white tesserae) of which numerous fragments were found dumped in the fill.

The 2016 excavations made it possible to gain an understanding of the function and plan of the building, a basic _pastas_ house, underneath the temple on the acropolis of Civita di Tricarico. It was over 20 m long, c. 11.60 m wide and divided lengthwise in two equal parts: the _pastas_ was to the south-east with the rooms that opened onto it to the north-west. House T opened to the south-east. It was on the same alignment as house U and all of the southern quarter of Civita, discovered in 2013 from aerial photographs and geophysical survey. The orientation of the quarter of the “house of the monolith” and the “house of the moulds” is different, the houses facing south and west. House V and the _domus_, overlying house U, also open to the south and west, turned by 90° with respect to the preceding phase. House V measures 15.10 x 12.80 m. As research stands, it appears to be another basic _pastas_ house, which largely follows the canonical layout (_pastas_ to the south-west; lengthways partition dividing the house in two; rooms to the north-east), but it has some variants. The _terminus_ _post_ _quem_ provided by the pottery and coins gives a probable date of c. 100-90 B.C. for the destruction of house V. A large quantity of grey ware pottery, coins, and forms typical of the 2nd century B.C. was recovered from the surface layers covering the structures in sector Pi, north of house V. This area was first excavated in 1996-98, and was gradually enlarged to cover an overall surface area of c. 290 m2.

As part of the research programme _”Ignobilia_ _oppida_ _Lucanorum”_ promoted by the Ecole Française in Rome in collaboration with the Archaeological Superintendency of Basilicata, excavations took place on the so-called acropolis of Civita di Tricarico. Sector II, north of the _domus_ and tempietto, now covers a total surface area of 620 m2. Its excavation has revealed the overlapping of two important phases, the first dating to the 4th-3rd century B.C., a second to the 2nd- early 1st century B.C. So far, the first building identified in the area (II 1) is attested by the facade, at least 8.60 m long, with a wide threshold (5.10 m) and central sandstone column (diam. 53 cm). At 2.30 m a sidewalk of large limestone slabs ran in front of the facade, which probably also functioned as a stylobate, as indicated by the apparently empty spaces present at regular intervals, surrounded by a semicircle of smaller slabs. Thus, five columns can be reconstructed, with an intercolumniation of c. 2.75 m, and a total length of 13.70 m. House II 1 was destroyed and razed to the ground; a basalt road, an average 3.80 m wide, was built on top of it. To the south-west the road was aligned on top of a partially robbed wall, which may correspond with the perimeter wall of house II 1, and to the north-east with the southern facades of two small buildings (II 2 and II 3), which at this stage of the excavation seem independent one from the other. The stone slabs of the basalt road abutted the wall of building II 3 (the building furthest to the north-east), showing its construction post-dates that of the building itself. There were one or two buildings on the other side of the road. II 4 (to the south-east) must be contemporary with II 2 because their facades on the “arx road” were exactly aligned – or it was a single facade, as a large stone block forms a link between the two. However, the sides of II 2 and II 4 that face each other were not parallel, which caused the road to narrow. II 4 was almost twice as long as it is wide: 18.36 x 5.50 m. It was divided into three rooms of almost equal width: from north-east to south west, 5.35 m, 5.47 m and 5.50 m. The northern room occupied the entire width of the building (8.30 x 5.50 m). It appears that the entrance to the building from the “arx road” was situated in this room. The excavation of the collapse above house V continued this year, recording the roof in detail (for example the overlapping of the tiles and imbrices, still preserved where they fell, or the presence of numerous iron elements). A new _terminus_ _post_ _quem_ were provided by new pottery and coin evidence (for example, a _semis_ of Rome 5396.34). However, when this sector was extended at the beginning of the campaign an unexpected situation was revealed. The north wall of the building (5424) did not extend beyond the south-west/north-east dividing wall 5423, and it is the latter that appears to become, towards the north-east, the building’s perimeter wall. It should be noted that wall 5423 is on almost exactly the same line as the long wall 5210, further south-west, which seems to delimit the _temenos_ of the Etrusco-Italic podium temple. In any case, a linear structure relating to the road network on the acropolis has now been documented to a length of at least 98 m.

After several years of investigating the acropolis of Civita di Tricarico (2013-2017), the excavations moved back to the “lower city”, investigated between 1988 and 2005. In 2018, the large kiln for _pithoi_ and tile underlying the warehouse was re-exposed in order to complete its excavation and date the last fired load using archaeomagnetic dating and the service pit in front of the kiln mouth was excavated. An area of 400 m2 was opened behind warehouse R. The aim was to see whether house Z1, identified in 2007-2008 by the geophysical survey and apparently adjacent to the warehouse, was actually connected to it, therefore whether the warehouse was an annex of house Z1. House Z1 is a typical “casa a pastas elementare”: almost square (12 x 11.25 m), and with two rooms facing onto the “pastas”. They are equal and have the same width as the “pastas”. Two dividing walls are situated at the centre of the house walls. The dividing wall between the “pastas” and the rooms to the rear divided the house into two equal parts and should correspond with the ridgeline of the roof. This dividing wall supported a simple system of beams without trusses. House Z1 is similar to houses D, E, and Q in the same quarter, while house M, which belongs to the same phase, is of similar width but occupies two lots. However, unlike the other houses, house Z1 opens to the east, not to the south. The entrance, badly preserved, may have reached 2.5/2.7 m in width. In this case, it would have been off-centre. Basoli were present in front of this presumed entrance. One of them, sub-circular, perhaps supported the shaft of a _louterion_, as at the entrance to house D, about 50 m to the west. House Z1 underwent limited extension and restructuring that has not compromised the reading of the original plan. A square room (5), with a wide opening to the west, was added abutting its north side. To the south, the perimeter wall of Z1 was doubled. A possible vat (4) abutted the façade. Other transformations divided the internal spaces. A light partition wall cut room 3 in half, while a rectangular room (4.7 x 2.7 m internal measurements) (1 bis) was created at the northern end of the “pastas”. The new space was surrounded by a belt 20-30 cm wide formed of fragments of large overlying imbrices, forming a drainage channel. Therefore, it was shown that warehouse R was completely independent from house Z1. Not only were the two buildings separated by a walkway and were non-communicating, but house Z1 faced east. When it was extended, it was towards the east and north as if there was no space towards the south, the direction in which the other houses in the quarter extended. Therefore, the warehouse was separate from the residential area and clearly faced towards the road and the small sanctuary P.