.bk A14
.fl O715jw.j
.fd daily journal O715 and feature descriptions f257-f260
.ei jw
.ed O714
.rd O714
.ri jw

-wk 30 reported for work. Recommended 7 for bonus payments.

-sf jw did computer work at home for 1 hour after breakfast, with jo on site.  gm worked for 2 hours at home processing objects before lunch.

-sn gm drew the E section of k24. Elevation of string was 8160.

-mt fab suggested that, that to improve safety, we change a wheelbarrow bridge across an eroded gully from one constructed of wood slabs to one constructed of a burlap bag filled with dirt.  This new arrangement is immesurably better.

k 23
dy Spent another frustrating day excavating in this locus, which is in the channel of the ancient and modern gully wash.  Despite occasional moments of homogeneity, there has been a clear differentiation in either soil color or accumulation content between the SE corner and the rest of the locus, which generally have been assigned separate features.  Each feature has had interesting artifacts including beads and animal figurines.
ns The thought occurs to jw that we are nearing the stratigraphic point where the gully first began to form, presumably in Phase 3 when the walls of the palace began to deteriorate and material higher and to the east began to be carried to the west by successive rains.
sg jw recommends that we stop excavating here, perhaps for the season and proceed on the master plan to follow the existing phase 3 and later deposits eastward in squares k4, k3, k2, k1, k13, k12 and k11, to the entrance of the abi.  The strong influence of the gully may also mean that we may not see any architecture from later phases in the part of the sacral precinct which lies to the west directly in front of the abi entrance.

f 255
df a
tc co f257

k 5
dy excavated the brown layer of accumulation, f256, and began to remove the grayish accumulation, f260 beneath.

f 256
df a
tc co f260
P1 O715

k 25
dy continued to excavate the east baulk.  Now within about 50cm of the stopping point of previous excavations of the entire locus.

k 14
dy Began to explore the stratigraphic relationship between the sherd and pebble floor, f253, and the mound of reddish accumulation, f245, in the SW quadrant of the locus.  We want to know if the floor extends beneath the accumulation or if the accumulation is the remnant of a wall that abuts the floor.
sg When an overambitious workman began to remove the E end of the accumulation, gb suggested that we temporarily suspend this activity to ensure that we preserve the full extent of f245 until the north baulk of k24 is removed.  Then we can determine if the southern extent of this accumulation (which lies in k14, k15 and k5)is here or if it extended futher to the south in antiquity and was eroded by the action of the ancient gully.

k 22
dy Began excavating the topsoil/backfill from this locus.

f 257
df a
ds Hard, grayish accumulation in the SE corner of k23.  In some ways it resembles that of f254, which covers the sherd and pebble floor, f253, in k24.  Although we have found sherds and stones they have not been a part of a floor surface.

f 258
df ts
ds Although technically topsoil because it had extant plant growth, it is really the remnant of a dirt pile from a previous season's excavation and gully wash from this past winter.  Pottery and bones from this feature will have no stratigraphic significance, although they may have typological value.

f 259
df a
ds Seen in the E section in k24, but not recognized at the time of excavation as a separate feature.

f 260
df a
ds Gray accumulation in k5 under brownish accumulation, f256, which has sealed in and made it a good candidate for meaningful pottery analysis.