Daily Log Entry for Monday, 30 July 2007

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MONDAY, 30 JULY 2007

AM

We picked several times in Locus 7 & 11 so that we could reach the sterile soil undere the burn layer.  We first picked all of Locus 7 in the area south of the bedrock feature.  Although most of the soil is characteristic of the burn layer - it is still a medium grey in color with lots of carbon inclusions and an ashy texture, some small pockets of galestra are begining to come up with picking.  We also picked Locus 8 in the same pick pass; it continues to remain a lighter brown color and is now extremely hard packed.  The main change in Locus 7 is that much less material was extracted with this pick pass than occurred last week.  Our pick pass in Locus 7 revealed an unusual spindle whorl, whose bottom hole is located within a deep impression (Find #1) and a fragment of iron (Find #2).  We then picked Locus 11, which is still the burn layer, but the pick pass here also extracted fewer bulk finds than last week and no special finds.  Lots of medium-sized (10-15 cm long) rocks were found throughout the locus in no particular arrangement or pattern.  Two large rocks on side of the

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center of the locus also appeared.  Like in Locus 7, a few pockets of galestra began to appear as the soil was sorted.  The soil was much harder-packed and more difficult to pick through trhan it was last week.  We then picked Locus 7 %& 8 again, which remain the same except for more galestra in 2 pockets and fewer finds.  We found a stamped rocchetto (Find #3) and a piece of incised impasto (Find #4).  We then picked Locus 11 again and then Locus 7 & 8 again after that.  While picking Locus 11 for a second time, we found a piece of decorated impasto.  (Find #5)

MORNING FINDS:

• FIND #1
• Unusual Spindle Whorl
• Locus 7
• 187.31 E, 46.98 S
• 26.92 abs. elev.

• FIND #2
• Iron Fragment
• Locus 7
• 186.92 E, 47.34 S
• 26.95 abs. elev.

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MORNING FINDS, CONT\'D:

• FIND #3
• Stamped Rocchetto
• Locus 7
• 186.78 E, 47.74 S
• 26.94 abs. elev.

• FIND #4
• Incised Impasto
• Locus 7
• 186.47 E, 47.48 S
• 26.89 abs. elev

• FIND #5
• Decorated Impasto
• Locus 11
• 185.62 E, 47.78 S
• 26.89 abs. elev.

PM

After lunch we examined the bedrock feature and Locus 8 with Dr. Tuck.  Yesterday's work on Locus 5 and sweeping of the bedrock feature revealed many stones which became loose once defined with a trowel (especially in the west end of the feature) and several pieces of terracotta were lodged beneath rocks in the feature.  This caused us to doubt the feature's status as bedrock, but Dr. Tuck feels that the loose rocks may have been placed there to fill in a gap in the bedrock shelf, thus possibly linking the bedrock

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in T-47 with the bedrock in T-45.

(See trenchbook JRV-I for diagram of trench on pg 133).

• Rock A
• 186.78 E, 47.19 S
• 26.88 abs. elev

• Rock B
• 185.71 E, 47.01 S
• 26.87 abs elev

It seems that dirt was scrapped against the S end of the bedrock feature after the destruction of the Orientalizing Period in order to level the area, possibly for the construction of the Archaic phase buildnig.  Locus 8 seems to be in line with another soil feature which cuts into the burn

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layer in T-46 and may indicate a row os post holes.  In prepartion for drawing the bedrock feature tomorrow, we defined the bedrock's south flank and worked in Locus 5.  We also trimmed the E baulk wall in preparation for drawings and knocked down the dirt in between T-45 and T-46 and the S baulk wall.  We also picked in west half of Locus 7 so we could level the floor of the trench.

MATERIAL YIELDED:

Locus 5:

• 2/3 Bowl Terracotta
• 1/3 Latte Box Pottery
• 1/10 Latte Box Bone
• 1 pc. Bulk Bronze

Locus 7:

• 1  1/4 Bowl Terracotta
• 3  3/4 Latte Boxes Pottery
• 2 Latte Boxes Bone

Locus 11:

• 2/3 Bowl Terracotta
• 2 Latte Boxes Pottery
• 1/2 Latte Box Bone
• 1 pc. Bulk Bronze

Baulk Trim:

• 1/4 Bowl Terracotta
• 3/4 Latte Box Pottery
• 1/4 Latte box Bone

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