Day 12 Photo Tour
(Click each image for a larger view.) 

[Click to Return to Photo Gallery]

Today's photo tour takes a look at how an excavation site is administered. An extensive record keeping system is necessary to keep track of all site data and special finds. All of the information recorded will serve as a basis for future academic publications and presentations.


Each area is defined - Area 2 (pictured here) is 10m x 15m

Each square is 5 x 5m.

There is a 1/2m balk area between Squares, this area is used to separate each square (so the digging area of each square is 4 x 4 m).


Excavation Continues

Excavation Continues

Excavation Continues

 


As each square is excavated, we begin to see the stratigraphy of the area by looking at the remaining balk walls.

Another example of a balk wall.
By examining the balks it is easy to compare features that continue from one square to another.

Each square is then divided up by feature, or locus (into distinct stratigrapic units). This image and the next represent two separate loci within one square. This is important for record keeping, so that information from one locus is not combined with that from another locus.

Second locus within the same square.

A volunteer recording information on the locus diary - a daily record of important finds and the location of architecture.

When a special find is discovered, careful measurements are taken. 
By using this transit, fixed at a specific predetermined level, a
precise measurement of each find can be taken.

Once the transit position has been set, the head is turned and focused on this stadia rod - used to measure the depth of the find in meters. All of this information is recorded in the excavator's notebook.

This is where Sam Craig and Kim Maeyama come in.  They have developed all of the excavation forms and built a customized computer database.  All information from the forms are transferred to the computer database by the area supervisors.  From this database, one can do a variety of searches.
 

Return to Top of Page