Without further ado, work began on the baptistry, since that was the only visible area of the site’s structures. It must be said that the two baptismal fonts were already in a good state of conservation, having been restored by Mn. Aguiló. The excavators, in an attempt to find the floor pavement, discovered several burials within the baptistry area. From a liturgical point of view, it is highly unusual to find tombs inside the baptismal area. The study of the baptistry did not clarify the chronology of the structure due to the fact that no uniform floor pavement was found. The only existing floor covering corresponded to the burial covers.
In this campaign, the restoration of the basilica walls was undertaken. The walls were raised some 60 cms., employing the same type of material used in the two original rows of columns. The two baptismal fonts were also covered with flat slabs of Majorcan sandstone resting on dry stone walls, which in turn were placed over the pavement of the baptistry without mortar or cement.
The discovery of burials is a normal phenomenon inasmuch as this type of church presided over a necropolis, and the tombs of the wealthy were often found inside the nave, especially from the 6th century onward.
The year 2005 saw the commencement of a project launched by the Manacor Museum of History which followed the same philosophy as that applied to s’Hospitalet Vell. The objective of the project is to consolidate and restore the structures at the excavation site so that they may be viewed by the public. The objectives of this first campaign have been:
- The cleaning and consolidation of the western area of the site, where a good part of the rooms are located.
- The cleaning and excavation of the spaces between the rooms, checking to see whether archaeologically fertile layers exist.
- Checking whether or not the original floor pavement exists in situ.
Currently, the material from this campaign is being studied.