Locus 3 closing totals:

Terracotta: ½ bowls – BF 31 Pottery: 20 - BF 32 Bone: 0 – BF 33 Locus 3 closing elevations:

Corner #1 28.04m AE Corner #2 27.99m AE Corner #3 28.06m AE Corner #4 28.09m AE Corner #5 28.11m AE Corner #6 28.08m AE

July 11th 2024

AM: we started off by evening out the elevation throughout locus 3, balking the walls and clipping roots to prepare to close the locus. We threw a pickpass against the western edge, between the stump in the NW and the balk wall. We did so because the soil up against the root was very compact and would not budge. The soil layer we have reached and are getting exposed throughout is a brown green color and has a texture akin to clay. In the Munsell book, the color of this soil is on page 2.5y and is very dark grayish brown (3/2). Finds remain consistent as we prepare to open locus 4. After photos were taken and locus 3 was sketched, we broke ground on locus 4. We started pickpass in the NE corner of the locus and moved west. In the northern meter, about half a meter from the E edge we removed a large, well preserved flange and cover tile fragment. This pickpass revealed much more terracotta and pottery than present in the previous locus. The soil is coming loose in about 3cm compact clumps. Some large stones are being revealed by the N edge. This soil is more compact and slightly moist and sticky. While removing the tile and pottery that came loose, we identified a large (15 cm) pithos base fragment. Roughly 30 centimeters SW of it, in locus 2, is the pithos rim we identified yesterday. We are now consistently finding tile and pottery fragments. We found a tooth and a bone fragment as well.

PM:

While sifting one of the buckets of loose soil we gathered prior to lunch we found a spindle whorl fragment.

SF5 - Sf-t108-2024-4-5 - Spindle whorl fragment - 216E/33.78S - Locus 4 - 28.05m AE As we were defining the pithos fragment, we recognized a carbonized material to the NW of it. To the NE of the corner about half a meter away. In addition to the potential pithos, part of a flange and tile appear to be rested over a package of more tile and pottery.

SF6 - Sf-t108-2024-4-6 - Handle - 219.62E/33.46S - Locus 4 - 27.98m AE We removed the NW stump and leveled out the soil below it. The western balk wall was then knocked over as T108 borders with T106 and we will soon reach the same elevation. We chose to knock the balk wall before reaching their exact elevation to simplify cleanup later on.

Closing elevations:

1. 27.97m AE 2. 28.01m AE 3. 27.97m AE 4. 27.99m AE 5. 28.01m AE 6. 28.05m AE

Closing totals:

Terracotta: 2 ½ bowls – BF 34

Pottery: 61 – BF35

Bone: 2 – BF36