Daily Log

151

Wednesday 23 July 2014

AM

Work began by continuing to define the southern, large rock feature, in order to determine whether it is actually linear and if it is composed of stacked rocks; work focused on the SE corner of the trench, where rocks have not yet been defined. Hand picks and trowels were used to excavate the soil between the rocks, which is medium yellowish-brown and claylike. Soil is hand sorted directly into buckets in the trench, with 1 in 3 buckets dry sieved. While defining rocks, a sherd of ridged impasto (Find #1) and a sherd of incised fineware (Find #2) were recovered.

As rocks became defined, it became clear that the feature of large stones in the southern portion of the trench are positioned just to the south of and downslope from exposed bedrock in the western meters and what also appears to be naturally formed rock in the eastern meters of the trench. These rocks extend across the entire trench, running roughly WNW to ESE. This line is clearly delineated on its southern side and is composed of two rows of robust stones, although in places there appears to be a third row that may have eroded away in most places. It is still unclear whether these stones are stacked

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but this linear feature appears to be parallel to and of roughly the same thickness as a similar rock feature in T57 . Also, a small line of rocks found in T65 may be a continuation of this feature.

Trench diagram .

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While defining the southern linear rock feature, immediately to the south, in T60 , larger stones that appear to have eroded downward from the T59 linear rock feature were removed, revealing a curvature of small stones underlying these larger stones; these smaller stones are arranged in a ring-like arrangement and are situated in a dark brown soil, while the surrounding soil is yellowish and flakey. This ring of small stones in the northern meters of T60 appears to extend to the north into T59 . Therefore, in order to clarify the nature of this ring of stones, a 1x3m sounding will be opened along the southern wall of T59 . Here, some of the stones of the linear rock feature will be removed in order to fully reveal this feature. Opening photos and elevations were taken and Locus 7 declared open in the sounding.

Trench diagram of current loci.

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Opening elevations: Locus 7

• NW corner (94E/42S): 28.70m A.E.

• NE corner (97E/42S): 28.79m A.E.

• SE corner (97E/43S): 28.65m A.E.

• SW corner (94E/43S): 28.68m A.E.

By projecting where the ringlike stone feature in T60 extends to the north, it is apparent that such stones would be located at approximately 94.50E in T59 , therefore rocks in the southern linear rock feature will be left in situ for the westernmost 50cm of the sounding.

Hand picks are used to excavate the sounding, as there are too many rocks to use a pick axe. Soil is the same as in Locus 5 and is a yellowish-brown, claylike soil. Soil is hand sorted directly into buckets in the trench, with 1 in 3 buckets dry sieved. Very little tile but some pottery was found and this was concentrated in the easternmost meter of the extension.

Special Finds:

• Find #1
• Locus 5
• 96.25E/42.86S
• 28.62m A.E.
• Ridged pottery
• Drawing

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• Find #2
• Locus 5
• 96.81E/42.86S
• 28.65m A.E.
• Incised fineware
• Drawing

PM

Work continued in the afternoon in both Loci 5 and 7 . In Locus 5 , soil continued to be removed, beginning at the northern extent of the southern linear rock feature and working north and upslope to the northern rock feature. Soil is medium yellowish brown, claylike and contains many small rocks intermixed among larger rocks. Fair amounts of pottery and bone were recovered but very little tile was found. Soil was sorted directly into buckets with 1 in 3 buckets dry sieved. While troweling, an animal jaw and an associated bone fragment (Find #3), a piece of bronze (Find #4), and a piece of slag (Find #5) were recovered.

In Locus 7 , soil and rocks continued to be removed using hand picks. Soil is a medium yellowish-brown, claylike soil and is loose around the large rocks, without small rocks mixed in like in Locus 5 . Soil is hand sorted in the trench directly into buckets with 1 in 3 buckets dry sieved. Some pottery but very little tile has been found. After dropping the level of the sounding approximately 15cm, more rocks were found underlying the previously exposed rocks, including one very large rock in the NE

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corner of the sounding. These rocks were photographed before being lifted and excavations continued.

As the sounding continued to be excavated, soil became more sterile, with very little pottery recovered. Beneath and around some of the larger rocks in the south of the trench, a denser soil was felt underlying the medium brown soil of Locus 7 . This is likely the same hard-packed soil that surrounds the ring like rock feature in T60 .

Once the floor of the sounding was brought down to the level of the floor of T60 , it was revealed that the ring like rocks in T60 do not extend all the way north into the border between T59 and T60 or into T60 . Instead, soil is flakey with very little material, although some pottery and carbon was found.

Locus 5 :

• Tile: 11 fragments (1 sieved)
• Pottery: 44 sherds
• Bone: 9 fragments

Locus 7 :

• Tile: 14 fragments
• Pottery: 25 sherds
• Bone: 2 fragments

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Special finds:

• Find #3
• Locus 5
• 91.90E/40.46S
• 28.68m A.E.
• Animal jaw bone and associated bone
• Drawing

• Find #4
• Locus 5
• 93.68E/40.97S
• 28.70m A.E.
• Bronze
• Drawing

• Find #5
• Locus 5
• 91.21E/40.07S
• 28.72m A.E.
• Slag
• Drawing

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