The excavations in the locality of Marzuolo, Cinignano (GR), are part of “The Roman Peasant Project”, developed by Pennsylvania and Cambridge universities.

The first season (2012) uncovered Roman remains suggesting the presence of a large settlement datable to the 1st century B.C. There was evidence for the production of Italian Sigillata pottery on the site and a building in opus reticulatum was also present.

The 2013 season had the following objectives: 1. Determine the stratigraphic relationship between the pottery production area and the opus reticulatum structure. 2. Define the function and size of the opus reticulatum building. 3. Gain an understanding of the area between 10.000 and 11.000. 4. Further study of the site’s morphology to test the hypothesis that there was a road to the south of area 11.000.

The results of the excavations in areas 10.000 and 14.000 determined that: 1. Prior to the construction of the opus reticulatum building the area was levelled with a thick layer of clay. It is possible that US 10.092, a thick layer of clay identified in 2012 in the production area, may be the same levelling. 2. The opus reticulatum building presented several elements that suggest it was never completed. However, it is possible that the structure was robbed before it collapsed. 3. The function of the opus reticulatum building is unclear. However, the evidence suggests it was not residential and was presumably linked to the pottery production situated in the north zone. 4. The destruction layers in area 10.000 overlay the opus reticulatum but were not present inside it. Therefore, the opus reticulatum structure existed when the pottery workshop was in use, but was not necessarily destroyed when the production area burnt and collapsed.

A small sondage was dug south of the wide door of the structure excavated in area 11.000, in order to test for the presence of a road along the site’s southern edge. On the contrary, another courtyard area and a kiln were found. The kiln was larger than those used for firing the Italian sigillata pottery and the raised floor typical of such kilns was missing in this example. However, the fact that the structure’s upper part had not survived makes it difficult to speculate on the presence or absence of an upper chamber.

Area 13.000 was opened between areas 10.00 and 11.000 in order to gain a better understanding of the function and topography of the central part of the site. The archaeological remains lay immediately below the plough soil, and a badly preserved stratigraphy was identified. A wall was uncovered on an NE/SW alignment parallel to those found in other parts of the site (US13007/13011). The alignment of wall 13.007/13.011, parallel to those in the other excavated areas, together with the geophysical evidence clearly indicates that the site was planned with all the buildings on the same alignment.