| Entry: | Contining from yesterday I started removing the fill of space 238 [10051]. This space was revealed by the presence of a crawl hole in building 45 and the presence of plaster lining on both sides of the western mud brick wall of space 228. The crawl hole appears to have been supported on both sides by timbers which the plaster on the side of space 228 covered. The southern of probably burnt in situ since charred fragments of wood were found in the area. Also the step of the crawl hole probably had a timber beam lying across its threshold on the eastern side which also burnt causing scorching of the mudbrick.
Yesterday we also extended the trench westwards so that the entire of space 238 could be excavated; first this this morning I continued to mattock out the fill on the southern side of the space where the fill is ashy rather than sandy. Just above the floor opposite the crawl hole I hit a concentration of bone that turned out to be a cattle and a wild boar skull. The cattle skull was set into a light greenish grey clay and on the posterior side of the skull this was clearly forming a square block. The cattle skull [10057] itself comprised of the posterior part of the frontal bone and the base of the horncores which is typical of the portion of the skull used for the bucrania installations. Being set into the clay block seems to provide conclusive proof that this was a bucrania installation and furthermore the presence of plaster traces around the horncores bases provides additional evidence. The feature was not, however found in its original location since traces of fill separated the clay block [10059] from the wall and the skull was facing the wrounf direction pointing down the room rather than projecting from the wall. Also there would not have been enough space between the frontal bone and the wall for a complete horncore to have been present. It seems that this bucrania was removed from elsewhere and abandoned in space 238 before the room was filled. It also seems that the horncores were removed before this happened, not only is there not enough space betwwen the skull and the wall for a horncore to have been present on the left side but very little of the right horncore survived
As well as the cattle skull I also found the skull of a wild boar [10058] immediatley to it north. This skull lay upsidedown pointing towards the east and the opening between spaces 228 and 238. At the moment I am not sure if this skull was set into anything like the matrix [10059] that the cattle horncore was set in but it does not seem so. It seems to be a freestanding skull but it was certainly deposited at the same time as the cattle bucrania. These two skull was included together under the description of feature |
