Ben Russell and Girolamo F. De Simone (University of Edinburgh; Accademia di Belle Arti di Napoli) Ben.Russell@ed.ac.uk; desimonegf@gmail.com EXCAVATIONS AT ‘LA CUMA’, MONTE RINALDO (COMUNE DI MONTE RINALDO, PROVINCIA DI FERMO, REGIONE MARCHE) doi: 10.1017/S0068246220000148 The 2019 season of archaeological research at the Latin sanctuary site of Monte Rinaldo by the University of Bologna and the British School at Rome had two main objectives: the continued excavation of a range of buildings discovered in 2018 in the western area of the complex (Giorgi and Kay, 2019) and to conduct further geophysical surveys in the surrounding area with the aim of locating other structures associated to the sanctuary in order to understand better the context of the site. As has been discussed elsewhere (Demma, 2018; Belfiori, Cossentino, Pizzimenti 2020 in press), the location of the sacred complex is the subject of ongoing research due to its seemingly isolated position in the landscape (Giorgi, Demma, Kay, Forthcoming). In order to understand this aspect of the sanctuary better, several seasons of fieldwalking have been undertaken since the beginning of the project with the aim of understanding the site within the inland territory. The 2019 excavation at Monte Rinaldo (Fig. 1) continued the investigation of the structures discovered the previous year in the western area (Area 5) and extended the excavation further to the south (Area 6), which brought to light a further three consecutive rooms (C, D and E), in addition to the two discovered the previous year (A and B). The stratigraphic sequence was the same as that identified the previous year, with the structures buried deep beneath an alluvial layer which gradually tapered away towards the south. The walls belong to at least two distinct construction phases which cut through a lower stratigraphic sequence typified by a series of layers rich in carbon, ash, ceramics, and organic material. The predominant class of pottery was black glaze ware, of which the majority of forms are characteristic of vessels used for ritual functions (libation and other offerings). Also present within the contexts were numerous burnt animal bones of varying sizes, probably relating to a ritual practice that has not yet been fully understood in its complexity, but which dates to the second century BC. This material was present within the preparation layers for the building of the sanctuary which sat on the natural geological layers. In the southernmost part of the excavation, at a level significantly lower in respect to the other structures, a section of a containing wall was discovered, which may relate to a terracing of the area in a period prior to the sanctuary. As previously noted, the structures discovered in 2019 belong to two main phases of building activity. The first phase, dating to approximately the mid-second century BC, is characterised by walls with foundations in pebbles laid in a foundation trench which cuts directly into the levelling layers with pottery dating to the first half of the century. The upper parts of the walls, where they survive, appear to have been constructed in opus latericium. The plan of the complex is difficult to reconstruct, in part caused by its destruction and the reuse of material in later building phases. However, it is possible to define a long rear ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK REPORTS 373