Unit 1091
Category: layer dug in 1996
Area: South
Interpretive Categories: dump,packing fill in cut
Data Category Information: Location: cut; Description: foundation cut; Deposition: homogeneous
Dimensions: 1.40 NS, 2.40 EW
Discussion: layer excavated from the whole area within cut [ 1040] going below for the first time the area that Jonathan dug last year. that bit was really dry.
Dump layer. part of consolidation packing fill in cut 1043.
Done in a series of dumps that may concur or abut the construction of wall courses within walls 1515 + 1516.
Artificial division between 1091/1092 most likely the same Dry Sieve Information: NB 240L seived as 1091/1092
Execution: Mattock and Trowel
Condition: HOt and DRy
Consistency: Moderatelt strong
Colour: 2.5y 4/3 olive brown
Texture: clayey silt loam
Bedding: Massive
Inclusions: Bone, obsidian, clay ball, pottery, stone, charcoal.
Post-depositional Features: Animal and root activity, cut on the south by cut 1090
Basal Boundary: wavy
Unit Stratigraphy (as recorded in the field):
Dry sieve volume: 480
Total Deposit Volume: 558
Number of Samples recorded by excavator: 8
Number of Related Diary Entries: 1
Settlement Phase:
Associated Mellaart Levels (from Space): VII
Associated Hodder Level (from Space): Unassigned at present
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| Buildings: none | |
Spaces: (Click to view the record)
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| Features:: none |
Finds Room Information:
All material from site passes through the finds room for washing and separating before it is passed onto the various lab teams. The finds room keeps a basic inventory of what is found. A finds material type list is given here. Further analytical detail maybe provided by the Lab Team data below.
X Finds Material: nothing recorded
Finds Material Stored: nothing recorded
Lab Team Data
Please note the list below does not represent everything that might have been found in this Unit, but represents the datasets we have available on-line. Please ArchaeoBots Sample Recorded: No Ceramic Records: No Clay Object Records: No Chipped Stone Records: No Conservation Recorded: No Faunal Records: Yes
Count of records:: 168
Unit description: F141 and F142 subsampled for ZooMS (DCO 2014).
Unit 1091, described as packing fill of a pit, produced a moderate amount of bone. The fauna recovered from the dry sieve was completely recorded whilst the 4mm flotation sample (#2, 100% sorted) was recorded for diagnostics only. The ratio of identifiable bones to undiagnostic pieces is high compared to most units and fragmentation appears slightly lower. Very few of the bones diplay any evidence of carnivore gnawing, but digestion is slightly more common. Additionally burnt bone is very rare and together with the surface condition, these factors seem to suggest that the bone had not been exposed for any significant periods of time. The taphonomic influences that normally alter the bone from more typical midden units did not play as nearly an important role in modifing the material from unit 1091. The range of taxa represented by the bone is more typical with caprine (all identified as sheep where species seperation is possible) being the most dominant and cattle, pig and equid present in much lower proportions. One cattle radius shows the presence of the larger aurochs and a mandibular equid tooth is probably from Equus hemionus. Body part distibution for the caprine material is not typical of most units. Teeth are very frequent whilst long bone and rib fragments are particularly low in number as are phalanges. Meat bearing bones, humerus and femur in particular are more common than in most units. Also intreasting is the age distribution represented by the sheep/goat teeth and by the more limited postcranial elements. It appears that many of the teeth came from a number of animals of the same age (Mni=4 based on upper left M2 [all with minimal wear] and upper right P4 [all unerupted probably from jaw below dp3]). All were slaughtered when they were still quite young, at approximately the time just prior to when P4 replaces dp3 and when M2 has erupted but displays only slight wear. One P4 displayed much greater wear and probably came from an old individual. Two postcranial elements shows the presence of an infantile caprine. Otherwise, the late fusing elements tend remain unfused, whilst those that fuse earlier the life of the animal have already done so. One caprine mandible showed the same pathological condition noticed in other units (eg 5290). P4 is visible in the jaw below dp3, but seems to be too developed for the space inside the mandible causing swelling on the ventral surface of the jaw. The roots of dp3 do not display much resorption suggesting that the condition would have worsened if the animal had lived on. Overall this unit does not seem to be like typical midden material and has higher integrity. This is possibly because it escaped the taphonomic processes that act on bone by being placed in the pit as packing rather than being disposed of in a more typical manner. Even considering this the pattern of meat bearing bones, few lower limb bones (particularly phalanges) and frequent teeth is an unusual assemblage represented neither primary butchery waste or consumption debris. Also unusual is the fact that most of the caprine bones seem to come from at least four individuals, all of which were slaughtered at very similar ages. Last number = F168Figurine Records: No Ground Stone Records: Yes
Count of records:: 1 Heavy Residue Records: No Microfaunal Records: No
Sorry not all of this data is available online at present, please contact us if you are particularly interested microfauna recordsPhytolith Sample: No
Sorry not all of this data is available online at present, please contact us if you are particularly interested phytolith samplesDownload this Units Data
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