Acropolis of Cumae, remains of a church with apse discovered, possibly abandoned after an earthquake

The excavation campaign on theAcropolis of Cumae directed by Professor Carlo Rescigno, professor of Classical Archaeology at the University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli,” has concluded. Since 2011, the Cumae - open excavation project, now in its eighth year and in collaboration with Laboratorio Capys, has focused particularly on the upper terrace temple (called the Temple of Jupiter) and the lower plateau on the eastern slopes. A training workshop for students and young researchers; the new research helped delineate architectural transformations, shedding light on devotional practices and the terrace’s early frequentation for cultic purposes.

Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park director Fabio Pagano pointed out that evidence of Byzantine Cumae was found from this excavation activity. The current excavation campaign stood in continuity with the one held in 2019, when an apsidal structure was identified, regarding which it was thought to be a church. The hypothesis was confirmed because archaeologists discovered on the lower plateau another church with its burial area, which has an apse, an isolated, raised chancel, and a large nave.

The abandonment of this building may have occurred as a result of an earthquake. According to archaeologists’ accounts, in contact with the floor was the roof, then crumbled walls and finally a collapsed column with its Ionic marble capital from the Imperial age. A find that adds detail to the later historical phase of the city of Cumae.

Acropolis of Cumae, remains of a church with apse discovered, possibly abandoned after an earthquake

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