In 2005, the OEAI resumed research activities at the Burgstall in the Lavant Valley after a hiatus of nearly 80 years. The first investigations at the Burgstall had been carried out by R. Egger in 1927, in the course of which a temple of Celtic-Roman type with surrounding porticoes was excavated. The temple is located in a large area measuring at least 27.4 × 27 m., in the centre of a trapezoidal plateau extending over ca. 4 ha.; the Lavant river meanders past this plateau to the west. From the Lavant, steps, followed by a path, lead directly up to the temple sanctuary on the plateau. To the east of the temple, remains of a wall and of underfloor heating have come to light through ploughing. It is unclear whether a settlement and a cult sanctuary, or only a sanctuary with temple(s) having surrounding porticoes, existed on the Burgstall. The Roman road did not run cross the valley at the east, in the region of the Burgstall, but on the western side of the valley, where its traces can still be recognized half-way up above the valley floor.
The temple with surrounding porticoes at the Burgstall belongs to a group of cult buildings characterized by a large, almost square cella and narrower porticoes often of differing widths. Comparable structures, in addition to those at Colatio-Stari trg and Celeia-Celje (Temple 2) come predominantly from Gaul and Raetia. The sanctuary, which is identified in an inscription as "navale", was dedicated to Mars Latobius. The term "navale" need not necessarily refer to the cult building, but might also refer to the incubation halls where people sought healing sleep. The building inscription of the 3rd century A.D. refers to the restoration of this structure, which at that time was already dilapidated due to age; the original construction of the temple can therefore certainly be ascribed to a much earlier date, probably still in the 1st century A.D. The new investigations at the site should shed light on the building structures and the history of construction at the Burgstall. In 2005, as a first step, a systematic survey was carried out, including the collection of surface finds, and geophysical prospection using radar and magnetic imaging, in cooperation with Archeo Prospections®.
The first results from the survey have provided new information concerning the buildings in the cult area, the chronological dimension of the sanctuary, and the development of the plateau. Based on the measurement data, additional structures could be identified which are probably to be interpreted as cult buildings. The remaining constructions are consistent with elements of a hill-top settlement, which originally extended over the entire plateau.
Noteworthy is the evidence, brought to light by surface finds, for a late Celtic usage of the area in the 1st century B.C. Finds from the early Imperial period, that is, up to the late 1st century A.D., are comparably numerous and can be paralleled by the repertoire of objects found on the Magdalensberg. Finds from the mid-Imperial period are also well represented; these can be compared to the excavated material from the burial ground at Meier am Hof, in the immediate vicinity. Up until now, however, evidence from the late antique period is under-represented.
The results of the survey were confirmed by excavations at the Burgstall in 2006, and, after the analysis of the finds is completed, should be presented in the "Sonderschriften of the OEAI".

Picture Captions
Fig. 1: The excavations of 1927 on the Burgstall (© OEAI)
Fig. 2: Topography of the Burgstall (© OEAI)

Bibliography:
R. Egger, Der Tempelbezirk des Latobius im Lavanttale, AnzWien 64, 1928, 4-20.
St. Groh - H. Sedlmayer, Der norisch-römische Kultplatz am Frauenberg (Österreich), Protohistoire Européenne 9 (2005) 84-86.
St. Groh - H. Sedlmayer, Der Kultplatz des Latobius Maromogius auf dem Burgstall bei St. Margarethen im Lavanttal, in: F. W. Leitner (Hrsg.), Götterwelten. Tempel, Riten, Religionen in Noricum, Katalog Landesmuseum Kärnten (Klagenfurt 2007) 31-34.