Methodology

CA91 will be excavated stratigraphically.  Loci will be used to distinguish distinct contexts in the archaeological record. New loci will be created upon the recovery of  new soil types, architectural features, and noteworthy changes in the materials. Such changes will be recorded in the trench book and a new locus opened, including measurements, plan drawings, photography, and documentation. Additionally, regularly maintaining the baulk walls with trowels and clippers will better reveal stratigraphy.

The primary method of excavation will be to use pickaxes and hand picks to break up and loosen soil. Trowels will be used to remove soil, level the surface, and define potential features. Soil then will be sorted by hand before disposal. If architectural features, burials, or other instances of human activity are discerned, the soil of those loci will be passed through a 1cm gauge sieve. The first five buckets of soil from each securely contextualized locus will be screened through a 1cm gauge sieve and then collected for flotation.  Sorted soil will be discarded in a dirt dump located approximately 10 meters to the north of the trench.

Terracotta roofing tile will be counted by bowls (diameter of 28 cm and depth of 12 cm) unless so few as to be more representative when counted individually. Once counted and documented, these will be discarded in a tile dump approximately 4 meters to the north of CA91.  Any pottery or bone found will be counted on-site and brought down to the magazzino in latte boxes for cleaning and further study.  Fragments of slag and vitrified terracotta will be documented in bulk. 

Special finds will be recorded with master grid coordinates, elevations, and locus from which they were recovered. A fixed elevation datum point will be established in a tree located to the west of the trench, with an elevation of 29.72m A.E. A plumb bob, line level, and meter tape will be used to measure depth, and a meter tape and plumb bob will be used to record measurements from the closest trench wall. They will be drawn in the trench book on-site and then sent to the magazzino for cleaning, analysis, and potential cataloging. Special finds will include chronologically diagnostic artifacts, metals, weaving equipment, full profiles of ceramics, decorated pottery, cut or worked bone, diagnostic bone fragments, or any other artifact deemed noteworthy. Any artifacts selected from bulk materials for cataloging will be made supplementary finds.

Excavation methods may change throughout the course of the season, as the types and amounts of material found, as well as the geology and topography of the trench, ultimately determine the best excavation method.