Organized as summer workshops, since 1988 the archeological digs have contributed concretely and scientifically to the rebirth of the island, revealing its incredible importance and providing a decisive experience of participatory regeneration of the site.
The digs, conducted in collaboration with Italian and foreign universities, have led to the identification and study of archeological structures, stratifications and deposits, and relics have been found from the period when it was the monastery of the Vigna Murada and the Lazzaretto of the Republic of Venice.
The digs are documented along the historic-archeological visitors’ itinerary, in the open air: clearly visible are the areas of the Furnaces, the Priory, the Rooms and the Church.
The research project currently under way instead focuses on the area of the Cemetery, overseen since 2015 in collaboration with the University of Western Australia, Perth (UWA) - Centre for Forensic Science, with permission to excavate issued by the Ministry of Culture. The importance of the project was underscored by a visit by Margaret Cox, an internationally renowned anthropologist and founder of the world’s first master’s program in Forensic Archeology, as well as the author of publications considered fundamental to the sector.