| Entry: | 17/07/2004
I continued with 8869 or the next arbitrary layer in the street but I guess its basal boundary is close to one of the layers in the midden since as much as I can see in the W section they are rather flat and leveled at this depth. I have to admit they also become more homogenous and compact (at least in the W part, close to the section) so this might be close to what we are looking for, a walking surface. We told this to the specialists during the priority tour and the mutual feeling is to make this the next priority unit as soon as we finish it. We also got preliminary results for 8864 but I will wait ‘till Monday for this.
Ian came around and we agreed that the midden in the proper street should be our priority till the end of excavation. I am glad we are not any more 'blindly' taking off layer after layer of whatever looks like midden and that according to the sequence we have so far we are able to do this. Namely, the proper midden in 'the street' (meaning the strip along the main S wall) is the latest; then the construction rubble/nivelation layer (U:8863 which is not yet finished) in the N and E part of 'cul de sac' of space 226, which also partly fills the pit U:8862; and then finally the 8870 (first layer of it, named but unexcavated) or the 'middeny packing'/activity surface/nivelation which now covers most of the space 226 or the entire 'cul de sac'. It is a beauty how midden pops off the steep edge of 'middeny packing' leaving a clear line of separation. I am just sorry we could not notice these 2 different areas before and we took the top layers of 'middeny packing' together with the proper midden.
Ian also suggested that since it would be difficult to reach the bottom of 'the street' before the end of the season, we should do a sounding slot somewhere and investigate how deep it goes. This will also give us a section and the opportunity for the specialists to go through the entire sequence of the midden before the next season.
Tanja is working in the cut/construction rimed by white plaster in the middle of our area. We noticed before that this is the feature that might have cut the SW return of the 2 double walls (F. 1453 and the unnamed wall meeting the main N wall at the right angle) of the space (or is it?) in the NE quadrant of our area. . . . . . . .TANJA ????????
18/20/2004
It’s only me and Tanja again, Ona did not show up in the morning and I found out she is helping someone around a presentation of some sort. We finished U: 8869 or the next arbitrary layer of the midden in the proper street. However, it wouldn’t be midden if all went well. As easy as it was to follow the line of separation between the midden and the more compact nivelation/packing/activity area to the North (U:8870), this was not the case in E part of the unit. The extent of it was mostly defined by the change in deposits i.e. the brown color and hardness of the 'middeny packing' of the activity area (however, there seem to be more midden-like or at least charcoal-full layers here also which were not visible in the W section but that will have to wait).
The texture of the midden layer also changes towards E, becoming dry, more friable and ashy, even sandy in places, and more mixed with construction rubble, especially in the vicinity of walls (main S and double wall (F.1453) in the middle). But this is also the area where we are getting close to where the surface was. Interestingly, the northernmost of our main S, triple wall begins to float on the midden in places but I guess that is understandable considering how patchy and ad hoc it looks. With at least 5 different types of bricks or actually brick fragments in it, it might very well be the case that it was added later on to the N side of a double wall when the pressure on it from the midden in the street became too strong. But why didn’t we notice any foundation cut then?
Tanja finished cleaning of the structure/cut . . . . . . .
At the end of the day, while cleaning and removing some remaining mud-bricks (U: 8866) from Feature 1452 ('disturbed burial lined with mud-bricks') I also cleaned an animal hole at the base of it. And, voila, a bone looking like human scull appeared deep down underneath the level of what we thought was the base of it (partially lined with mud-bricks). Scot and Basak came and confirmed it was human, and Scot offered a theory which we will try to prove tomorrow, that this is a type of 'false bottom' burials which he sees in Egypt. Supposedly, in order to fool looters, they would bury a body in a deep pit, then place a false bottom of mud-bricks and finished the burial as normal, together with side-lining bricks which we initially saw. This would be the first burial of this type at Catal and we, especially Scot, are looking forward to excavate it tomorrow.
19/07/2004
Unfortunately, we could not continue with the midden today, i.e. the next unit in the 'street' since we have nowhere to stockpile the soil which needs to be dry sieved. We had only Hulusi of the workers for the most of the day and then just as Osman appeared both were sent off somewhere. However, they cleared one of the tarps so the first thing tomorrow morning is to continue going deeper in the midden and try and clear as much of the SW section of the area so Wendy can take samples before she leaves. It was also agreed with Ian and Shahina to do a sounding slot in the westernmost part of the street, to include about a meter from the section in the narrowest part of the street or the 'corridor'. Towards this goal a started a drawing of the entire W section of the area since it will soon be destroyed by sampling.
Priority tour proved more or less what we expected and preliminary heard about 8864 on Saturday: no trampling traces on any material, pottery is ascribed to level 5 but some of the shapes, especially whole-mouth jars, look later than what we had in 8854 which was much higher above (coincidence or erosion/sliding?), more different taxa of animals than in higher units and among them a large bird, and richness with plant remains, even for a midden layer. All in all, a typical, non-trampled midden.
We cleared the construction rubble to the S of the double wall in the middle of the area (F. 1453) and, not to our surprise, found that there is no wall behind it. Just floating brick fragments. I thought that this could be a foundation trench for this wall since the rubble was mixed with mortar and the whole agglomeration looked substantial in plan, but all of it (rubble and S of the two walls) floats on the midden. I hope the N one proves to be real.
Scot helped us a lot today (we are again alone, Ona is not here again) by exposing the whole of the 'false bottom' of burial F.1452 and planning it (who better than him). It does look very nice now when it’s seen in complete and we all look forward to see what lies underneath the bricks.Entered By: Pedja Dakic |
