Friday, 5 July 2019

AM

We continued working in Locus 21, working to section through the gap in EPOC4’s northern wall. We are excavating using trowels and handpicks. The soil of Locus 21 is medium-to-dark brown, claylike, and compacted. Locus 21 seems to be overlying three different deposits. In the southern part of the locus, underneath where EPOC4’s N wall would have once been, soil is medium grayish brown, highly compacted, and with some limestone and terracotta inclusions. To the north of where EPOC4’s N wall would have once been is a plaster-rich deposit. In the NE corner of the locus is a heavy concentration of charcoal, and soil is heavily mottled with tile and plaster, limestone, and charcoal. This NE charcoal-rich area also is where yesterday’s charcoal samples originated. We will continue working in Locus 21, to fully expose these new deposits.

Soil from Locus 21 was hand-sorted in the trench, then passed through a 1cm gauge sieve. We are recovering high quantities of tile, plaster, pottery, and bone, especially to the north of where EPOC4’s N wall was; fewer materials were recovered from the central part of the locus. While working in the southern part of the locus, we found a diagnostic bone fragment (Find #29), while another diagnostic bone fragment (Find #30) and a tooth (Find #31) were found in the northern part of the locus, along with a crucible fragment (Find #32). 

We continued working in Locus 21, removing the remaining medium-brown deposit. In the southern part of the locus, the deposit seems to be deepest, lying directly atop bedrock in places. However, near where the preserved section of EPOC4’s N wall approaches the newly exposed bedrock shelf, plaster-rich deposits are beginning to appear. This plaster-rich deposit is continuous with the plaster-rich deposit that already has been exposed to the north of where EPOC4’s N wall once was. We are working to expose the southern extent of the plaster-rich deposit and remove the overlying Locus 21 deposit. In the northern area of the locus, there is a charcoal-rich deposit that is positioned higher than the plaster-rich deposit. While working to remove the last of the Locus 21 deposit in the northern part of the locus, we recovered a crucible fragment with adhered slag (Find #33), and in the southern part of the locus, we found two diagnostic bones (Finds #34, 36) and a fragment of odd terracotta (Find #35). 

Once all the locus 21 deposit was removed in the northern part of the locus, we began trimming the northern and eastern baulk walls, in preparation for the closing of Locus 21. Simultaneously, we continued removing the Locus 21 deposit in the southern part of the locus, to the south of the bedrock outcropping. 

Special Finds:

29. Locus 21

    108.02E/ 41.32S

    26.85m A.E.

    Diagnostic bone fragment

30. Locus 21

    108.05E/ 39.13S

    26.87m A.E.

    Diagnostic bone fragment

31. Locus 21

    107.73E/ 39.08S

      26.91m A.E. 

                Tooth

32. Locus 21

    108.05E/ 38.97S

    26.91m A.E.

    Crucible fragment

33. Locus 22

    108.08E/ 38.94S

    26.99m A.E.

    Crucible fragment with adhered slag

34. Locus 21

    107.33E/ 40.95S

    26.91m A.E.

    Diagnostic bone

35. Locus 21

    108.06E/ 40.91S

    29.93m A.E.

    Odd terracotta

36. Locus 21

    106.96E/ 40.94S

    26.88m A.E.

    Diagnostic bone fragment 

PM

We continued working in the southern part of the locus, to remove the last of the medium-brown, Locus 21 deposit. Plaster has been exposed in the SE part of the locus, in between the preserved portion of EPOC4’s N wall and the bedrock outcropping. The northern stratigraphic profile of the 2018 section shows that the plaster intersects with a bedrock shelf and may terminate there. There does not seem to be any plaster to the west of the bedrock outcropping. Instead, it appears that the Locus 21 deposit rests directly atop bedrock. We are using handpicks and trowels to excavate. Soil is hand-sorted in the trench then passed through a 1cm gauge sieve. In the remaining, southern part of the deposit, we are recovering moderate quantities of tile, plaster, pottery, and bone, with higher concentrations coming from the SE corner, where the plaster-rich deposit has been exposed. 

We also continued trimming the northern and eastern baulk walls, in preparation for the closing  of Locus 21. While trimming the northern baulk wall, near the bottom in what would have been Locus 21, we recovered a fragment of diagnostic bone (Find #37). 

Once the baulk walls were trimmed, we scrapped and swept loose soil from the trench floor in the northern part of the locus. Simultaneously, we continued in the southern part of the locus, removing the remaining Locus 21 deposit and exposing the new, plaster-rich deposit in the SE and bedrock in the SW.

Special Finds:

37. Locus 21/ Baulk trim

    107.91E/ 38.31S

    26.99m A.E.

    Diagnostic bone fragment 

Locus 21:

• Tile and plaster: ⅔ bowl
• Pottery: 184 sherds
• Bone: 30 fragments
• Slag: 10 fragments

Baulk Trim:

• Tile and plaster: ⅓ bowl
• Pottery: 23 sherds
• Bone: 1 fragment
• Slag: 1 fragment

Closing Elevations:

• NE corner: 27.00m A.E.
• 109E/ 39.96S: 26.97m A.E.
• 105.14E/ 41.38S: 26.84m A.E.
• SW corner: 26.74m A.E.
• NW corner: 26.95m A.E.