.bk J03 .fl U914jW.j .fd daily journal for U913 .fn f109, f346-ff348. Edited by jW on 925. tc's moved to file W414jW.j. .ei jW .ed U914 .rd U913 .ri jW -wk Pickman Su'ar Muhammad, shovelman Mizar, and removalman Shadi abdel-Rahman reported for work. -dy We began by thoroughly cleaning the eastern half of k13, a portion of which will be excavated as k110, including the N and E baulks. Because we expected to find cultural material from the LC3 period below f109 as we removed it we wanted to avoid contamination with cultural material from other, later periods. k 110 dy After cleaning around the locus, we began to remove the baqaya glacis, f109, which coated the temple mound. At the dirction of mKB we did not collect sherds because several years of erosion had diminished their value for providing data about when they were deposited. For the following reasons we determined that the baqaya surface, f109, provided an excellent seal to the material below it.
It was contiguous over the entire locus;
It was at least 5cm thick everywhere; When picked it came off in sheets and chunks;
It was extremely hard.
Below f109 was a layer of bricky material, f346, with many of the same characteristics as f109. It was reddish with calcite nodules and it came off in sheets and chunks. In places, particularly in the eastern half, it had been eroded and replaced with an ashy layer, f347, which in turn covered what appears to be baqaya bricks laid on edge with brownish mortar. f 109 ;tc co f346 ar For the following reasons we determined that the baqaya surface, f109, provided an excellent seal to the material below it:
It was contiguous over the entire locus;
It was at least 5cm thick everywhere; When picked it came off in sheets and chunks;
It was extremely hard. dy After thoroughly cleaning the surrounding area, we removed the portion of the baqaya surface which formed the top of k110. Few sherds were recovered. I80 A preliminary analysis of the ceramics by mKB, dated this feature to the LC3 period. nv Took seven elevations with the level to accurately determine the slope. D06 9301 (NW corner) D06 9244 (W middle) D06 9215 (SW corner) D06 9211 (SE corner) D06 9247 (E middle) D06 9294 (NE corner) D06 9244 (locus center) f 346 ;tc co f368 ;df fi ds This fill had many of the same characteristics of the baqaya above. It was hard, came off in sheets, contained calcite inclusions, and was reddish in color. It is posssible that it is the remains of a prior glacis. It is also possible that it is fill to transition from a flat surface to the sloping surface of the f109 glacis. Due to the surface hardness, we could not determine the orientation of the relatively large number of sherds recovered. (Random orientation would imply fill or coating, while a horizontal orientation would imply accumulation above a floor.) In the far NE corner there is a N-S line of baqaya, which may be bricks. I80 A preliminary analysis of the ceramics by mKB, dated this feature to the LC3 period. f 347 ;tc si f347 ;df lb ds We originally noticed this feature as pockets of soft brown soil with occasional smaller areas of black ash. Portions of two burned animal bones were found in the accompanying q-lot, q411. However, as we excavated it further, we can see that at its thickest point it is a relatively thin (10cm) band of ashy soil which extends in a rough pattern bounded by a circle of diameter 1 meter. I80 A preliminary analysis of the ceramics by mKB, dated this feature to the LC3 period. ;tc in f346 ;tc in f348 f 348 ;df w ds This is a horizontal surface of red bricks laid vertically in a brown mortar matrix. As we have only exposed a small portion of its top in the SW corner of the locus, it is impossible to determine whether it is a pavement, a fallen wall, or a wall-top. ;tc re f363 q 410 ds This q-lot contained a relatively large number of sherds, some from large vessels.