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Tuesday, July 11 2023

AM

We began working in Locus 45, the darker gray, less compacted, mottled deposit that likely is associated with the abandonment and destruction of EPOC4’s walls. We are excavating with handpicks and trowels, hand-sorting soil in the trench, then passing soil through 1c and 2mm gauge sieves. We also are recovering higher quantities of material culture, especially pottery, from this Locus than we did in previous deposits.

We are removing the soil deposit of Locus 45 to expose the underlying plaster-rich earthen floor surface of EPOC4, which was uncovered in prior seasons to the north of Locus 45 and is visible in a baulk wall made by sounding through EPOC4’s floor to the east of Locu 45. Therefore, we are starting to excavate Locus 45 from its north and east sides and are pushing south and west. While working in the northeast corner of the locus, we recovered a crucible fragment (Find #13).

Based on the baulk wall visible along the eastern edge of Locus 45, the plaster-rich surface of EPOC4’s earthen floor slopes downward from north to south; Locus 45 appears to be about 5 cm thick along its northern end but appears 20 cm thick in the south, where

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It abuts EPOC4’s southern foundation wall. Additionally, while the plaster of EPOC4’s porch is visible both in the eastern baulk and in the easternmost meters of the Locus, it does not seem to extend to the western meters of the Locus. While revealing EPOC4’s plaster rich floor in the northeastern quadrant of the locus, we recovered a tile fragment with adheared slag (Find #14) and an odd terracotta fragment (Find #15), both of which were resting atop EPOC4’s plaster-rich floor. While working along EPOC4’s southern wall, we recovered a fragment of worked bone (Find #16).

Special Finds

• Special Find #13

• Locus 45

• 106.00 E/44.91 S

• 26.47m A.E.

• Crucible fragment

• Special find #14

• Locus 45

• 105.74 E/44.95 S

• 26.41m A.E.

• Tile with adhered slag

• *resting atop EPOC4 floor

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• Special Find #15

• Locus 15

• 105.45 E/44.97 S

• 26.42m A.E.

• Odd terracotta fragment

• *resting atop EPOC4 floor

• Special Find #16

• Locus 45

• 105.67 E/46.61 S

• 26.37m A.E.

• Cut bone or antler

• PC20230004

PM

We continued excavating Locus 45, using trowels and handpicks to remove the mottled soil of the deposit and expose the underlying floor surface of EPOC4. Soil is looser in the east and more compacted in the west. We are also recovering high quantities of plaster, pottery, and slag, especially in the eastern meters of the Locus. There we recovered a crucible fragment (Find #17), a possible full profile of a vessel (Find #18), and a rigged impasto rim (Find #19), along with another crucible fragment (Find #20).

In the northeastern portion of the locus, we are continuing to reveal the surface of EPOC4’s plaster-rich floor. The surface

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seems to be sloping downward both from north to south and from east to west; we still have not uncovered EPOC4 floor in the western half of the locus.

Locus 45:

• Special Find #17

• Locus 45

• 105.68E/45.12S

• 26.42m A.E.

• Crucible fragment

• Special Find #18

• Locus 45

• 105.54E/46.59S

• 26.37m A.E.

• Possible full profile of vessel

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• Special Find #19

• Locus 45

• 106.13E/44.92S

• 26.40m A.E.

• Ridged flaring rim

• Special Find #20

• Locus 45

• 106.17E/45.26S

• 26.37m A.E.

• Crucible fragment

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