North of Nezi 2010
White Second Session Report (John Tully)

The following summarizes the results of excavations in two areas north of Nezi field during the second session of the 2010 excavation season at Corinth. These areas were:
- the area bounded by coordinates 265.90-270.70 E, 1023.65-1028.00 N. This was known as the 'West Room' in Yellow Third Session 2009, and was excavated from 5 May, 2010, until 14 May, 2010. For consistency, this will here too be referred to as the West Room.
- the area bounded by coordinates 275.01-276.92 E, 1027.53-1028.88 N. This was known as the southwest corner of the 'Well Room', the east room of the Byzantine house, in Blue First Session 2010, and was excavated from 14 May, 2010, until 20 May, 2010. For consistency, this will here too be referred to as the Southwest corner.
Supervising these excavations were Guy Sanders (director) and Martin Wells (field director). The excavator was John Tully, with assistance from supervisors and workmen in the area.
The objective in the 'West Room' was to complete removal of all material occupation traces, focussing initially on the area under 6624, and, in particular, to trace any sign of a possible EW road or pathway in this area. The objective in the Southwest Corner was to trace the ashy deposit noted by Blue Third Session 2010 on the south side of Wall 5631 as continuing under the wall, and to understand better the activity in the area.

Conclusions:
'West Room'
6923, the large deposit of large Neolithic and Early Helladic Sherds excavated last, is strong evidence for Neolithic and Early Helladic settlement in this area.
The juxtaposition of Early Helladic and Hellenistic layers supports previous hypotheses that this area was not a focus for the classical or archaic city.
The juxtaposition of Hellenistic and Byzantine layers provides further evidence for site reorganisation and cutting-back that occurred in this area in the Early Byzantine period.
No additional evidence for an EW road or pathway through this area was found beyond the probable E-W robbing trench of the southern side of the decumanus excavated in 2009.

The Southwest Corner
The stratigraphy in this area was disturbed owing to a tree in the SW corner, and prior excavation in the 1960s. 6972, as the deposit nearest the tree, may have been particularly affected. Nevertheless, its ceramic date, if accepted, gives foundation trench 6704 and its associated wall 6421 a terminus post quem of 5th/6th AD.
The consistency of the dating of the deposits below 6972 excavated suggests that this area represents the results of a single dump c 225 BC.

Future Considerations
Excavation in both areas was prematurely terminated, before bedrock was reached, because of the low quantity of pottery being recovered. As such, both might be productively explored. In particular:
West Room
The area under the redeposited fill of 6887 might lead to a deeper understanding of Neolithic and Early Helladic activity in this area.
the Southwest Corner
The area under 7008 and foundation trench 6707 might be examined to investigate activity prior to the third quarter of the third century BC.

'West Room'
The West Room was excavated in the 1960s by Lattimore and Berg (NB 229, p 180), but most recently in the second and third session 2009. Our efforts in 2010 concentrated on completing the excavation started in 2009. As such, it was a broad, shallow dig, with several isolated parts of the room being excavated for their traces of material occupation.

Early Helladic and Neolithic Occupation
Most Early Helladic and Neolithic material found in this area was found in Hellenistic layers, and small, consistent with being redeposited colluvium washed down from Acrocorinth. 6923, however, was a thick, compact layer, and contained only Neolithic and Early Helladic sherds up to Early Helladic II, suggesting that this was not redeposited.

Hellenistic occupation
Most evidence of occupation found was Hellenistic, in layers also containing much redeposited Neolithic and Early Helladic material. This was primarily found in the higher area to the north of the room under stone structure 6853: 6849 (2nd quarter 3rd BC), 6863 (3rd BC), 6870 (mid 3rd BC), 6875 (1st half 3rd BC), 6887 (3rd BC).
The juxtaposition of Byzantine and Hellenistic layers supports theories of post-Roman clearing and site reorganisation in this area.
The absence of archaic and classical material from these redepositions perhaps supports the notion that this area was being newly occupied in this period, with the focus of the earlier city elsewhere, further to the north. Alternatively, this may also reflect significant site reorganisation and clearing in the early Hellenistic period.

Roman occupation
Roman occupation has previously been traced in this room, eg, in 6673 (1st/2nd AD), the robbing trench to the west of the western bothros. The only additional evidence discovered for Roman activity this year was robbing trench 6893 for wall 6157, previously identified on the excavation of cut 6380 as context 6381. Fill 6894 dated this to the late 1st BC/early 1st AD. It is noteworthy that both of these actions are fills for robbing trenches, and that both are at a lower elevation than the layers dated ceramically to the Hellenistic period (6649 and below). The Roman floor level, if such there was, would thus most likely have been at a higher level, one not here present quite possibly because of post-Roman clearing of the site, rather than because of lack of occupation.

Byzantine occupation
Much previous evidence for Byzantine activity had already been identified in previous years in this room, down to the late 10th/11th centuries (6646). Only two further such traces were found in this excavation.
A feature of seven stones in two rows (6853) was revealed in 2009 by the excavation of 6624 (11th AD NPD). 6868, the fill on which the stones sat, was ceramically Byzantine (NPD), but contained a coin of Romanus I (931-944), indicating that the structure was likely constructed and in use in the Middle Byzantine period, a date also in keeping with that of 6624. This was the only structure excavated or revealed this year.
Deposit 6903, a fill of Byzantine date (NPD), filled cut 6904, a thin cut of the southeast corner of the higher area in the northern part of the room. Only a small section of this cut survives, as it was itself cut by cut 6665 (filled by deposit 6676: late 12th/early 13th), excavated in 2009. Nevertheless, the profile of 6904 suggests a pit rather than a robbing trench. In addition, the looser soil forming 6903 was only identified after excavation of 6875, a context of Hellenistic date. As the edge of the higher area slanted here, it is possible that 6904 did not cut 6675 (1st half 3rd BC). Alternatively, we may have missed 6904 when excavating 6675. In 2009, the excavators believed that cut 6665, a robbing trench filled by deposit 6676 (late 12th/early 13th), cut the layer we this year excavated as 6875. If correct, this would suggest we did miss the cut at a higher level. Alternatively, they may have failed to notice 6904, which was very slender.

Southwest Corner
This area was last excavated by Marty Wells and Rob Nichols, Blue First Session 2010. In exploring the room, they unearthed wall 6421 restricting access to the southwest corner, and excavated its foundation trench (6704: Late Roman/mid-Byzantine). We returned to learn more about earlier activity in this area. Excavations were complicated by a tree in the southwest corner of the room, where walls 54 and 5651 meet. This could not be removed as it was structural, and might imperil them. Its roots had caused some disturbance to the stratigraphy.

Hellenistic occupation
Bar 6972, all activity was dated to the 3rd BC, and involved a large dumped fill in several layers. These layers extended under the walls, and were disrupted by root activity from a tree in the southwestern corner of the area. Hence, each was taken as multiple contexts. There was a significant number of joins not just between contexts forming the same layer, however, but between layers, including between 6993 and 7008, and 6888 and 6993. This may be owing to root activity. Alternatively, given the close dating of the contexts, all to the 3rd century BC (2nd half, 2nd quarter, 3rd quarter, or 225 BC +/- 10 years), we might argue that the fill represents stages of a single dumping or clearance operation. In favour of this may be that all deposits sloped to the NE, suggesting they were all dumped from the same direction.

Late Roman activity
6972, a small patch of fill dated to the 5th/6th AD, was the only additional evidence of late Roman activity found in this area. It is also the latest layer cut by 6706, the foundation trench for wall 6421. As such, it confirms the late Roman/mid Byzantine date ascribed that trench, and wall.