Depositional data for
Unit A6
Discard

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Introduction

In Unit 6, several episodes of intentional discard were documented, ranging from carefully arranged fills to more irregular dumping actions. The fills are mostly linked to pits that were intentionally lined, refilled with decomposed or burnt material, or packed with distinct ash layers, reflecting deliberate practices of closure, leveling, or disposal. In contrast, the dumping activities appear in the form of refuse pits and ash deposits, often characterized by loose, mixed accumulations of pottery, bones, stones, and burnt debris. Together, these depositional events illustrate a combination of structured human actions and opportunistic discard practices within the unit.

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Fill

In Unit 6, the main intentional fillings can be classified into several types associated with different pits. Some pits showed the presence of a pre-formed wall or lining, as in f31, whose wall/lining was composed of coarse red-brown clay with gypsum inclusions and showed evidence of burning, indicating deliberate human fill. Other pits contained decomposed or natural materials, such as f361, located near the northern wall, half of which consisted of disintegrated wood and the other half resembled loose brick material, with a depth of 6 cm, reflecting accumulations resulting from organic decay and building debris.

Some pits represent strongly red and deliberately arranged fills, such as f373, which contained a red deposit rich in stones and non-flat sherds at multiple angles, confirming that it was human-planned fill rather than natural floor accumulation. Pits containing ash of varying colors were also recorded, such as f379, which contained white and gray ash, and f442, rich in chaff-like particles, loose and dark gray, reflecting accumulations of specific materials associated with burning or the use of organic plant matter.

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Dumping

Several pits in Unit 6 can be interpreted as the result of dumping activities, mainly refuse pits with mixed material. One of them is f322, an oval and fairly shallow feature (10–12 cm deep) that contained numerous sherds and bones. While it was initially suggested it could represent a burial, the nature of the loose brown accumulation points instead to a refuse dump. Another significant dumping context is f336 in the SW area. This pit, initially thought to be an ash floor f331, revealed no real surface to follow. Its fill was composed of very loose brown accumulation with abundant sherds, bones, and small stones, reaching a total depth of 70 cm, with a hard packed brown soil at the bottom. The irregular composition suggests multiple discard episodes rather than a single action.

f413 in the SE of k31 represents a specialized ash dump. It showed two distinct layers of bluish ash sandwiching a pinkish-brown accumulation, with the upper ash layer more gravelly due to kiln or oven waste. The presence of blue ash, possibly from burning sheep dung as noted by the workmen, further indicates specific discard practices linked to fuel use.