| Entry: | The past day have involved the removal of more brick material belonging to B.106. The material of wall F.2427 (Mud-brick U.13797 & U.17254, Mortar U.13755, Plug Plaster U.17255) was completely removed and sampled. The transitional-plastering layer (U.16999), previously identified in the southern part, was also traced in the northern extent. An interlacing construction consisting of three layers of brick was found in the corner to F.2408, which was reinforced using so-called plug-plaster (U.17255). The bricks found in this wall seem to be of a smaller size than those used in the other two walls of Sp.310. Here they seem to be small enough to be carried, which could also suggest that they were manufactures apart from the building itself. Not only the size seems to be somewhat irregular but also the shape, which can be squarish, rectangular or completely irregular and sometimes even just a thin sliver.
Further excavations in the north show a similar type of brick material, although the bricks sizes seem to follow a more regular pattern. Wall F.2408 consisting of one brick type (U.16877) as well as mortar (U.16876) and plug plaster (U.17264), again used as a corner reinforcement, was dug to the second of four layers of brick. Here, as in wall F.2427, the uppermost layer was only partially intact. The top of the third layer was exposed, with the mortar between the second and third layers removed and sampled. Also brick material was sampled. This operation revealed a set of four similar sized brick-slabs lying in two rows of two. Their dimensions are roughly 80x40x10cm with the joins, visible as mortar-lines, not offset but inline in both rows and the long edge of the slabs running parallel to the walls direction. A further brick was placed in the opposite direction to form the corner to wall F.5058 in the west. This brick seems to have the same size although this cannot yet be verified, as the corner has not yet been completely excavated.
The sizing of the bricks in this wall suggests that the people constructing the building formed these slab in their final position. Bricks of this dimension and weight would be extremely difficult if not impossible to transport by hand, also risking breakage from sagging in the middle. Possible planks or other moderately linear straight objects were used to shape the slabs after they were composed on the wall, although this is process seems also to be quite irregular as the thickness of the mortar, especially between the individual bricks of one layer, varies substantially. Possibly they were placed as close as possible next to each other and the remaining gaps filled with mortar. On the other hand, the layers of mortar between the layers of brick seem to be more regular with a thickness of ca. 3cm. Along the northern border of wall F.2408 the edge to wall F.5056, belonging to B.98, was clearly definable. In some spots a small gap, maximum width ca. 10cm, was visible while in other parts the bricks were flush. The general direction of the wall is not straight or in a straight line and therefore this edge was also defined as slanting. |
