.bk A15
.fl L730jlw.j
.fd daily journal for A9 assistance to A15 on L730
.ei jlw
.ed L730
.rd L730
.ri jlw

-wk 7 picks and 18 in support reported for work.  Kamiran complained of a severe headache all morning. Gave him aspirin. When that didn't help, sent him home. Muhammud Hammud had an abrasion on his shin. Patched it and he returned to work.

-sg the overall strategy is to dig as fast as possible in k5, k13 and k15 to reach the level of the palace, Phase 2. We will document, then remove features as they are encountered. We do not expect to encounter anything of major significance because the loci are in the deep part of the gully that formed after the palace was abandoned. At the levels where we presently are, we are seeing lots of Khabur pottery.

k 15
dy at the beginning of the day, we cleaned thoroughly the floor, f322, and the wall, f323, in preparation for photographs. After the photograph, v151, we removed them. Beneath the floor, was accumulation, f325. After digging about 20 cm, we began to encounter much harder material, f328, along the northern edge, which abutted the much softer accumulation, f325, to the south. We originally thought that this may have been a wall.  However on the last pick run, the features seemed to merge into material that more resembled f325. We found no traces of a wall. Due to confusion between a volunteer student and her supervisor, a separate pottery lot was not assigned to f328.

k 13
dy began to remove the west baulk, which in actuality is the east baulk of k3. Cleaned a patch of bricks, f356, in the middle of the west half of the locus. (From time to time yesterday we noticed isolated pieces of partially baked bricks in the far SW corner.) The bricks were unusual in that they were laid edgewise, and with an orientation that suggested that they were not a part of the palace or Khabur architecture. The bricks were laid in a roughly rectangular pattern that suggested a grave. After relaying, we began to excavate the structure.  The top layer of most of the bricks disintegrated almost on touch. About 5 rows on the east side were better preserved. Just a few centimeters to the south there was a partial ring of vitrified clay. Now it appears that the feature may actually be part of a pit kiln, with a diameter of about 1 meter and perhaps having an auxiliary chamber to the south, which may have been the source of the brickish chunks. Upon cleaning object q657.1, found in the vicinity, we discovered that it was a mold for casting bronze tools, strengthening the notion that these are the remains of a small industrial complex.
sg tomorrow, L731, we will define the perimeter of the kiln and clean it thoroughly in the morning for photography. Afterwards it will be removed.

f 324
df bk
ds line of bricks apearing in section in the middle of the north baulk of k5.
tc si f326

f 325
df a
ds accumulation under floor, f322, to the west of wall, f322 in the north half of k15. Relatively soft except for a harder pocket along north edge, f328.
co light yellowish brown
tc co f328
tc ab f328
tc co f335

f 326
df a
ds accumulation under accumulation, f304, in k5.
tc co f336
tc co f330

f 327
df a
ds accumulation in a roughly two-meter diameter cylinder between two organized layers of mudbricks laid vertically, f356 above, and f352, below. Pieces of vitrified clay and at least one misfired piece of pottery found within the accumulation.
tc co f352

f 328
df a
ds accumlation under floor, f322, to the west of wall, f323, in the north half of k15. Relatively hard compared with the adjacent accumulation, f325. Resembles a hard pocket in otherwise softer material, but there were no bricks to support our initial idea that this was a wall.
nr due to a misunderstanding between a student and her supervisor, a separate qlot was not established for this feature.  Artifacts were combined with those from f325 in q658
tc co f335

q 659
nr contains material from f325 and f329 in k15.

f 356
df bk
ds a layer of bricks laid edgewise that in retrospect appear to have been part of a pit kiln, perhaps a30, in the middle of k13. The bricks are not burned although there is a ring of pottery slag just to the east at the same elevation. Some of the bricks disintegrated when touched by the small pick, while others were more or less intact. Photographed, v152, and removed L731.
tc co f327

-sg at the end of the day, gb and jlw updated the excavation strategy for the last few days of the excavation. Discovery of the foundation stones for a large wall just to the west of k13 and several meters below, means that it is even more important to excavate k13 to that level. So, we will temporarily abandon work in k15 and shift the crew to double team the excavation of k13. Excavation of k5 will continue as we are only about a meter above the level of the foundation in that locus.