.bk J01
.fl Q812cvp.j
.fd journal
;.fn Included Q813CVP.j, Q814CVP.j, Q815CVP.j, Q816CVP.j
.ed Q812
.ei cvp

.rd Q812
.ri cvp

-sg The general strategy of this year in J1 is going to follow the one began last year, even if stressing 3 main aims: the first aim is to enlarge the space in front of the terrace wall to the south, i.e. the amphitheatre, in order to have a better general view of the wall; the second goal will be to reach the level of the plaza floor in all the interior of our amphitheatre, at the end of the projected steps; and the third goal will be to link the wall in our k32 with the section that appears in the German trench at its NE. Here the terrace wall seems to have a completely different direction. The wall in k32 goes more or less NS, while the one in the German trench is more or less NE-SW. So, it seems that in the middle we have to find a sharp angle. If this is so, then the temple terrace would be not so elliptical as was drawn by the geophysical survey, but more polygonal.

-wk We begin the season with 12 workers, four of them pick men.

-sf For the first two and a half weeks cVP is going to be the field supervisor of this unit, being substituted by mS around the 26th August. mL and lC are going to act as assistants.

-dy Today is the first day of excavation. dM has already taken some general pre-excavation views. As we don't have yet all the squares in place, we just begin in k3 and k12. k12 is already in place, so we begin to dig here the topsoil. As it was already dug last year, we give the topsoil the same feature number, f174. For the new locus, k3, we give a new feature number to the topsoil, f197. By Jamal counsel, we don't give a q-lot number to the bags of pottery coming from the topsoil. We just indicate ts in the tag. k3 is not set by bWP yet, so we make a fake square by ourselves so the workers could dig at least some 3,50 m inside the probable digging area. Meanwhile, we have some workers cleaning the area of last year excavation, beginning with the top of the terrace wall, but letting in place the nets and bags that are holding more securely the big stones. To enlarge the amphitheatre we are going to open a new row of 3 loci to the south, k2, k3 and k4. We also open a new locus, k2 that is going to be the western corner of the amphitheatre. 

k 12
ds Square already partly opened last year. To dig the rest of the locus we decided to change the name and give it a new locus number, k112.

k 112
ds Renaming of old k12 as we are going to dig just a part of the square, the rest being already dug last year. As we already have that square dug last year, we retrieve the feature numbers.

f 174
;df ts
ds We use the feature number given to this layer last year when named k12.
dy We don’t give a q-lot number to the pottery coming from this features, we just marked the tag as ts, topsoil.

f 175
;df ad
dy after topsoil we begin a new feature, which will be an accumulation similar to the one we had in the rest of the squares last year.

k 3
ds New square opened south of last year k13.
dy after topsoil we begin a new feature, which will be an accumulation ad similar to the one we had in the rest of the squares last year. We give new feature number, f198.

f 197
;df ts
dy We don’t give a q-lot number to the pottery coming from this features, we just marked the tag as ts, topsoil.

f 198
;df ad
ds accumulation below topsoil

k 2
ds New square opened south of last year k12.
dy As we just need the eastern triangle, we just open that, doing the relays to locate it and giving a new feature number for the topsoil, f199.

f 199
;df ts
dy We don’t give a q-lot number to the pottery coming from this features, we just marked the tag as ts, topsoil.

.rd Q813
.ri cvp

-sg I have been commenting with fAB the possibility to make the steps 1 meter deep instead of 2. In this case we would not need to open so much space between the terrace wall and the steps, but he said that actually they prefer to have all that much space and the steps sharper, so we keep to the original idea. The new projected amphitheatre is drawn in sketch J01sk55. Also, we are going to follow last year strategy of making the steps at a given total elevation instead of just at 2 meters from the surface. Thus, in all trenches is the J area the steps would be at the same total elevation. Last year elevations were 9200 (surface), 9000 (first step), 8800 (second step), 8600 (third step). We still don’t have any total elevation this year but they must not be very different.

-dy We are working in the three loci opened yesterday, k2, k3 and k112, where we are digging the deep couch of accumulation under the topsoil.

k 2
dy Yesterday we dug the topsoil and today we are digging the accumulation below topsoil, f200. As we have not yet bP points we are working with the strings set by ourselves.

f 200
;df ad
dy Accumulation under topsoil in k2.

k 3
dy Digging the accumulation under topsoil f198 in all 4x4 meters.

k 112
dy Yesterday we dug the topsoil and today we are digging the accumulation below topsoil. We are letting an artificial baulk of some 70 cm at the east of the locus for safety reasons.

.rd Q814
.ri cvp

-dy First hour in the morning dM take some pictures, from the amphitheater areas as it is this year, and from the area excavated this season. From here we take a general one, and a detailed one from each locus, k2, k3 and k112, where we are digging the deep couch of accumulation under the topsoil.

k 2
dy Digging the accumulation under topsoil f200. 

k 3
dy Digging the accumulation under topsoil f198 in all 4x4 meters.

k 112
dy Digging the accumulation below topsoil f175.

.rd Q815
.ri cvp

-sf Our unit staff has been completed with the addition of lJ and lH, in their first day at the site.

-wk New workman today, Kamiran, as a spade in k3. 13 in total.

-mk Today bWP has finally laid the markers on our two new loci, k4 and k14, finishing also the ones lacking at k2. We have also the markers run in the computer, so we can use some of them (m4284 is 9195) as a reference total elevation to situate the first step.

k 2
dy Digging the accumulation under topsoil f200. At some 170 cm from the surface we stop digging here so we can draw the sections. All is cleansed and dM do the pictures of the soil and both sections. The staff take the measurements to begin the drawings tomorrow. Here we are deeper than in k3, the moment of harder soil has passed and now we have quite the quantity of rodent holes again.

k 3
dy Digging the accumulation under topsoil f198 in all 4x4 meters. Approximately at 140 cm from the surface we have a broken piece of cooking pot, nothing important, but we make an item out of it just to teach the new staff members how to do relays. Near it we have a piece of basalt stone that we left in situ until they finish to dig that pick-layer. Later we found a piece of bronze pin. We decided to make them clean and clear the area, even if does not seem to be any significant change, just some ashes scattered. We will check again tomorrow morning, when we do the pictures. The soil is now harder to pick.
 
k 112
dy Digging the accumulation below topsoil f175. At the end of the morning we begin to dig the artificial baulk, same feature.

.rd Q816
.ri cvp

-wk New workman today, Nizam Assad, as wheelbarrow for k112. 14 in total.

-mk bWP laid the markers for our last our two loci, k31 and k41, that we hopefully will begin excavating tomorrow. 

-sg Site meeting with gB, fAB and jO to discuss digging strategies. First we discuss the pros and cons of keeping the steps 1 meter wide and do the bevel in a 15% of it. This way we would have more space as plaza floor, but we consider that it would be unnecessary time consuming, and we maybe could not reach the goal this season. Instead, if the steps are built 160 cm in horizontal, with 100 cm for the step and 60 for the bevel, the resulting ‘amphitheatre’ will keep the same desired visual effect with the advantages of creating a more consistent and ‘safer’ step and slope, and also safe time, which increase the possibilities of finishing all our goal at the end of this season (see sketch J01sk59 for the new planning). We have some pictures (…) showing the different results of last year steps dug, between the 1x2 meters planned ones (15% angle in the slope) and the “unplanned” ones, left at some 1 m deep, and consequently with the slope in a broader angle. The second question was how to proceed with the excavation to link the terrace wall with the German trench. We are going to lay two squares, k31 and k41 but, as the goal is simply reach the top of the terrace wall in here and try to find the possible corner, we are not going to need to dig the complete loci. We will open first the eastern half of k31 and later we will proceed as the necessity arises.

-dy At the beginning of the day dM takes pictures of the beginning of the excavation in the new locus, k4, and two more of the actual state of locus k3. We dig in k2, k3, k4 and k112.

k 2
dy We draw here the N and E section. Afterwards, the team begin to dig the E baulk. We dig the topsoil and the beginning of the accumulation under the topsoil.

k 3
dy After checking the soil (just some patches of isolated ashes) we begin to dig again the accumulation under topsoil f198 in all 4x4 meters.

k 4
ds excavation unit, that is going to be the E corner of the “amphitheatre”, that is why we are just digging the NW triangle.
dy In order for the staff to draw the sections of k2 we put the workers to dig in this locus. They dig basically the topsoil. Then we stop and wait until they finish the first step of k2.

f 201
;df ts

k 112
dy We finish to dig the artificial baulk.