LTMerkinės piliakalnio su papiliu teritorijoje (Varėnos r., Merkinės sen., Gardino g. 23) buvo tęsiami 2021 m. pradėti archeologiniai tyrimai. 2022 m. būsimo vandentiekio vamzdžio vietoje ištirta stačiakampio formos perkasa, o vėliavos stiebo vietoje 1 šurfas. Iš viso tyrinėtas bendras 11 m2 plotas [p. 81].
ENIn 2022, a trench and a test pit with a total area of 11 m2 were excavated at the base ofthe settlement at the foot of Merkinė hillfort (southern Lithuania, Varėna district). The excavation revealed an undisturbed 35-cm-thick archaeological layer dating to the 16th-18th centuries which contained Stone or Bronze Age flint artefacts in the lower strata. A total of 17 finds were collected in the trench: an iron knife; a piece of plating; potsherds; a shard from a glass bottle; and flint finds from various Stone Age periods. A 16th-18th-century layer (30-35 cm thick) was recorded in test pit 5 beneath the upper layer dating to the 19th-21st centuries. It contained a piece of slag (iron smelting waste) and pottery sherds.