.bk A12 .fl K731jl.j .fd assorted notes .ei jl .ed K731 .rd K731 .ri jl v 96 ph This ought to be compared to the clay basin of last season in A10, showing the difference between the natural root structure and the pattern/striations in the surface of the basin. v 105 ph This template is used to illustrate the loci and major aggregates of A12. For clarity's sake, it should be noted that a22 is the horseshoe shaped section, a31 is the doorway, and a32 includes them both. v 104 ph To avoid any confusion, it should be noted that a32 includes them both. v 110 ph v110 shows the W face of the mud ledge as it is being revealed. v110a is essentially the same, but with the camera turned on its side to see f291, the stone in the doorway. v110b is a tight shot of the mud ledge. a 31 nl The relays of all of the steps were very difficult, and so the relays from the center three steps (f315) are inaccurate and should not be used, or used with caution. a 33 ds a33 also includes any features found within k27 this season, since the aggregate is defined by the fissure f321/subsidance of the area, and therefore includes everything that had accumulated before the fissure came into existence. a 35 nr Excavating a35, we discovered that it was very shallow, similar to the pit f325 above it. It was also directly in line with the doorway of the apsidal structure. M1 Presuming that the apsidal structure did have some sort of religious/ritual function, then the installation was probably related to this usage. What specifically it was, however, is still a mystery. It would be worth examining the bones when we have a specialist available to do that. f 258 tc co f259 f 259 tc co f316 f 290 df stair ds f290 is the second to last stair in the stairway leading in to the absidal structure. Last season, it was mistaken for a stone threshold for the structure, but now it is clearly another step. It is the step below f315 and the last one to be contained within the stone walls of the doorway. f 303 H1 Given that we now have evidence that the circle k27 has a deeper elevation than the square k26, it is probable that this apparent vault was created by an inward and downward collapsing of the accumulation in k27. This caused the accumulation leaning against it, in turn, to fall inwards, explaining the vault-like bend inwards. It never needed to support itself; it was resting against complementary accumulation for its whole life. f 304 tc co f305 f 305 tc co f306 f 306 tc co f307 f 307 tc co f308 f 321 tc ab f351 tc ab f347 tc ab f343 f 328 tc co f330 i 89 ds sb did an excellent job cleaning this, enough to discover that it is not an unepigraphic tablet, but instead a tablet envelope, with what appears to be a fragment of a tablet still within it. If so, then this might be inscribed. f 337 ds Since f335 turned out not to be patches of white, but a continuous floor, it was made f337, and the two are equal. f 340 =l f303 f 343 nd Since the tannur soil was only a small pocket, I decided not to make it a separate feature. f 348 nd It turns out that our first impression was right all along. f348 was indeed a plaster floor, and was the first floor of the structure. The sherds beneath, f349, were the leveling material beneath the floor. f 349 nd It seems clear that this is not a floor at all, but the levelling material beneath the real floor, f348. That is why there were so many sherds, packed so closely. f 350 nd In actuality, if f348 is the first floor, then this is the final step of the stairway and is as old as the rest of the apsidal structure. f 347 tc co f351 v 129 ph This view documents our reasons for digging through the sherd layer, f349. The main view shows all of f349, the top of the sherd layer. v129a and v129b each show stones visible beneath the sherds. Since stones are probably a sign of further construction, we will dig further on half of the locus to uncover them.