Over the course of the excavation this year and in preceding seasons a recurring theme has been the discovery of large quantities of burnt flint; as such there are a number of suggestions regarding its continued presence. One possibility is that the flint was burnt and crushed as a temper for ceramic production. Perhaps the… Read more » about Day 21 – working hollows and pits
2015
Daily news and discoveries from the 2015 field school
Day 20 – penultimate site briefing
This morning marked the penultimate site briefing; the project directors gathered everyone for an update on the progress of the excavation and outlined current interpretations. Thus far it is thought that the Iron Age material emerging from the two trenches reflect a first century B.C date for the occupation. It has been tentatively suggested that… Read more » about Day 20 – penultimate site briefing
Day 19
The osteological remains of what is currently considered to be cow (likely the predominant bos longifrons), were discovered in the lower context of the terminal of a ditch in Trench B. The remains consisted of several disarticulated vertebrae, as such, it is unclear whether the deposition of these remains are comparable in nature to those… Read more » about Day 19
Day 18 – domestic land use
The finds emerging from both trenches are consistent with a domestic themed land use. The quantity of charcoal, earthen ware sherds and metallurgical debris suggest that this is not an area in which industrial scale processes were conducted; many finds of the middle and upper contexts may be reflective of a scatter of domestic refuse… Read more » about Day 18 – domestic land use
Day 17 – a re-evaluation of the faunal remains
Today, the site was visited by zooarchaeologists, Ellen Hambleton and Mark Maltby, in order to infer a deeper analysis of the faunal remains recovered from the features through manual excavation (in regards to macrofauna) and through environmental sampling of the soil alike (in relation to microfauna). Macrofauna Further depositions of cow, sheep, horse and pig… Read more » about Day 17 – a re-evaluation of the faunal remains