"Id","UserLevel","dc-creator","Type","Collection","dc-description","dc-publisher","Icon","dc-subject","dc-title","dc-date","Chronology","Redirect","Name"
"Agora:Report:2006 Excavations","","John McK. Camp II","Report","Agora","This summer the 75th anniversary of the beginning of the excavations and the 50th anniversary of the reconstruction of the Stoa of Attalos were celebrated.; Excavation were concentrated on two areas: northwest of the Agora (sections ΒΖ and ΒΗ) and in the old excavations at the southwest corner of the square (section Γ).; In section Γ work continued in the building identified as the Strategeion. Considerable new information about the building plan emerged and evidence gathered suggest that the use of the building was commercial rather than public. The 5th century B.C. as a construction date was confirmed.; In Section ΒΖ excavation continued in the north-south road and in the buildings to the east and west of it. A large round tile-floored cistern was removed and revealed a smaller one immediately below, both dating to the 10th century A.D. Fills associated with the bath from the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D., were excavated, and more of a pebble mosaic floor, Hellenistic in date, was cleared. In deeper layers, a pyre of early Hellenistic date was found. Within the road itself, more of the hydraulic installations were cleared, including a second lead pipe and the drain along the side of the road. East of the road, earlier walls came to light, indicating that the Classical commercial building continued. Two pyres buried beneath the floors of the building were found. More evidence that terracotta figurine production took place in the area were recovered. A remarkable find was a small cooking-pot buried near the Classical commercial building, with the remains of the head and feet of a chicken inside, and lines of lightly-incised letters on the outside.; Section ΒΗ was expanded to the east, following the demolition of modern buildings. Walls, pithoi, pits, a burial, and two wells were revealed, dating to the years around 1000 A.D. The buildings were presumably houses in a domestic area. A poros block, incorporated in a pit, can perhaps be associated with the eastern part of the Stoa Poikile, just within its northern wall.","","Agora:Image:2008.01.0168::/Agora/2008/2008.01/2008.01.0168.tif::4080::3756","Checked","Preliminary Report on the 2006 Excavation Season","13 Jun-4 Aug 2006","","","2006 Excavations"
"Corinth:Report:South Stoa 2016 by Alexandra Daly and Thalia Parr (2016-05-04 to 2016-05-20)","","","Report","Corinth","Final Report: Excavations of South Stoa, Shop 1 Rear, Session 2 2016; ; Alexandra Daly and Thalia Parr; ; DATES OF EXCAVATION: May 4-20 2016; ; COORDINATES: N: N 1090.40; E: E 353.95; S: N 1084.70; W: E 349.60; ; INTRODUCTION; ; This is the final report for the excavation of Shop 1 Rear in Session II of the 2016 season.  Shop 1 Rear is the rear room of Shop 1 in the South Stoa.  It is bounded by four walls built of large, well-worked ashlar blocks: 457 to the east (N: N 1106.51, E: E 356.40, S: N 1086.50, W: E 348.67), 458 to the south (Greek phase; N: N 1086.38, E: E 355.83, S: N 1084.15, W: E 351.81), 459 to the west (N: N 1095.75, E: E 351.30, S: N 1086.60, W: E 347.25), and 461 to the north (N: N 1092.75, E: E 35364, S: N 1090.63, W: E 349.19).  The coordinates of the interior space of the room are: NE corner, E 353.85, N 1092.30; NW corner, E 349.60, N 1090.80; SW corner, E 351.80, N 1084.70; SE corner, E 355.90, N 1086.50.  Our excavation was limited to the portion of this area south of the section line (running from E 350.2, N 1090.4 to E 353.95, N 1088.05) laid at the beginning of Session II; the area north of the line has been saved for microstratigraphic analysis by Panagiotis Karkanas.  Excavation began on May 4th and continued until May 20th.  Guy Sanders (director), James Herbst (architect), and Danielle Smotherman (field director) supervised.  Our team consisted of Alexandra Daly and Thalia Parr (area supervisors), Panos Kakouros (pickman), Marios Vathis (pickman and sieve), and Panagiotis Rontzokos (shovelman, barrowman, sieve).  Photogrammetry has been carried out for every context of the excavation.; ; Shop 1 Rear was first excavated by Oscar Broneer in the 1930s and 1940s, mainly in March 1934 (Corinth NB 139).  During Session I Jiang and Judson removed most of his backfill, and thus everything excavated in Session II seemed undisturbed by his activities.  Broneer's sounding beside the west wall (Wall 459), excavated as Cut 301/Context 298 in Session I, cut through the center of the foundation trench on the east side of Wall 459.  The Neolithic and Early Helladic sherds Broneer found in the fill of the trench were most likely redeposited by the stoa builders from some of the purely prehistoric deposits excavated in Session II.  The fill of the foundation trench to the north and south of Broneer's sounding (excavated in Session II as Cut 507/Contexts 511, 544; Cut 506/Contexts 505, 510, 512) appeared undisturbed by Broneer, since it yielded only ancient material and was overlaid by ancient contexts.  Broneer’s trench along the east and south walls (Cut 509) was probably an excavation of those foundation trenches. ; ; Shop 1 Rear was next excavated by An Jiang and Catharine Judson in Session I of the 2016 season (April 5th-21st).  After removing Broneer’s backfill, they excavated several layers of Roman and Hellenistic fill.  A compact, partially preserved deposit (Context 449) with two cuts for pithoi (Cuts 382, 389) was the only possible surface identified in Session I.  Because of its 4th cent. BC pottery date, Jiang and Judson proposed that this surface had been in use before the construction of the stoa and was repurposed for Shop 1 Rear.  The last context excavated in Session I, a large rectilinear cut (Cut 497/Context 478), was closed artificially at the end of the session and reopened in Session II.; The goals of this session are to find evidence for the date of the construction of the stoa, to investigate activities in the area during and before the use of the stoa, and to prepare the stoa for consolidation, conservation, and presentation to the public.; ; PREHISTORIC; ; Prehistoric activity in the area of Shop 1 Rear may be divided into five phases, all occurring during the Early Helladic II period.  This date is firmly established, with twenty-two of the prehistoric contexts dated to that period by their own pottery.  The remaining eight are dated broadly to the Early Helladic period by their pottery, but seven of these may be narrowed to EH II by their stratigraphic relationships.  Only our last context from this session (Context 551) lacks a precise date within EH.  A larger, unexcavated portion of what appears to be the same surface as Context 551, separated from it by a large bothros (Cut 548/Context 547) and extending to the bedrock in the southeast corner of the section, may yield material with a more specific date when it is excavated in Session III.  ; ; In the first phase of prehistoric activity, the EH inhabitants of Corinth leveled off and trampled down a sandy exterior surface (Context 551, preserved in a 1.00 x 0.50 m area).  Although its full extent is unknown—it is truncated by the foundation trench of Shop 1 Rear to the west and continues under our section line to the east—it appears to be bounded by bedrock to the northwest and southeast.  In the northwest, it lay over a small portion of downward sloping bedrock, as well as some rocky fill.  In the southeast (to be excavated in Session III), it runs up to the edge of what appears to be a deep, anthropogenic cut in the bedrock.  It is clear from the scarp of Broneer’s sounding (Cut 301) that the bedrock, though visible at the level of this surface to its northwest and southeast, drops dramatically in the area below this surface, creating a deep gully that appears to be have been filled deliberately.  For this reason, we believe that this hard, compacted surface may be the result of the EH II inhabitants of Corinth filling this gully and then packing down the fill.  The small amount of pottery in this surface suggests that it was not used or exposed for very long before being covered by later fill.; ; In the second phase, a broad, shallow bothros was cut into this surface and filled with waste (Cut 548/Context 547).  Some of the waste appeared to derive from the collapse of a building nearby: pieces of chopped up bedrock, some stone tools, pieces of lime (perhaps plaster or flooring), several cobbles with faces, and many pieces of mudbrick, one of which had a face.  The bothros also contained 120 pieces of bone, many of which were preserved in rather large pieces, and a great deal of pottery: 458 sherds at 4.64kg.  Among the pottery were an EH II firedog stand knob (C-2016-20) and a Late Neolithic ritual vessel handle (C-2016-19).  The majority of the pottery was EH II and so, along with the bone, might have been the accumulated trash of nearby inhabitants.  The Late Neolithic sherds and chert blade (MF-2016-39) in this deposit may already have been in the soil excavated to create the pit, so that they were redeposited as backfill in the pit.; ; This bothros may be associated with another EH II bothros excavated in Session I beneath Shop 2 Rear (Cut 430/Context 429). Both bothroi were cut into surfaces at relatively similar elevations: the sandy surface (Context 551) in Shop 1 Rear at 80.68-80.49 and the clayey surface (Context 442) in Shop 2 Rear at 80.70-80.59.  Like the bothros beneath Shop 1 Rear, the bothros beneath Shop 2 Rear contained large pieces of bone in smaller quantities, a comparable amount of pottery (368 sherds at 6.15kg), and material possibly from a collapsed building: many cobbles, some stone tools, and two EH rooftiles.  The similarity of these bothroi suggests that they were dug and filled at around the same time.  This in turn suggests that their respective surfaces may be two parts of the same large surface, separated from one another by the digging of the foundation trench for Wall 459.  The difference in soil between the two surfaces is attributable to the mixed nature of the packed down fill of which they are composed.; ; The third phase of EH II activity in Shop 1 Rear is represented by the construction, use, and maintenance of an exterior surface over a considerable period of time.  The surface was initially constructed by laying down rocky fills (Contexts 539-546) over the sandy surface discussed above (Context 551) and covering this fill with a lens of clayey silt, which was packed down, over the fill (Context 538, preserved in a 3.85 x 0.75 m area).  This surface was then used for some time, as demonstrated by the significant amount of pottery that had been trampled into it.  Eventually another layer of rocky fill (Context 537) was laid down on top of the first lens, with another compacted clayey lens created on top of it (Context 536 preserved in a 2.60 x 0.35 m area).  After another period of use, a second remodeling, with a third layer of fill (Contexts 532, 534, and 535) and a third clayey lens, appears to have occurred.  The second remodeling is less clear than the first, however, because the center of the third surface appeared to have been eroded away, leaving only two patches of it in the north (Context 533, preserved in a 1.20 x 0.55 m area) and south (Context 531, preserved in a 1.85 x 0.30 m area).  Perhaps the surface went out of use for some time and slowly wore away, or perhaps it was destroyed in a single event such as a winter torrent.  Either way, the eroded portion of the third lens seems then to have been repaired by three layers of fill (Contexts 527, 528, and 530) laid against the eroded edges of this lens.  These repairs were not overlaid by any lens of the surface.  In their full extent the next four lenses (Contexts 517 [1.50 x 0.40 m], 520 [1.20 x 0.65 m], 521 [1.70 x 0.20 m], 529 [1.50 x 0.30 m]) most likely overlay the repairs to the third lens, but these higher lenses were so eroded that they bore no stratigraphic relationship to the repairs  They survived only in a small portion in the south of our area, truncated by the classical cellar to the south (Cut 497), eroded away to the north and west, and running under our section to the east.  They formed directly over the third lens with no fill between them, and therefore appear to have accumulated unintentionally through use of the surface. ; ; We argue that all these lenses and fills represent the construction, remodeling, use, and repair of a metaled road.  Our pickman, Panos Kakouros, who has excavated other roads at Corinth, was the first to suggest this interpretation and has maintained it throughout our excavation.  The character of the surface is consistent with this interpretation.  First, it was very hard and compact, in parts composed of thin, overlying lenses.  Second, it appeared to have been eroded away and repaired several times.  Third, it had cultural material from disparate periods (from MN to EHII), sometimes in equal proportions, trampled into it.  One would expect a much narrower chronological range for the artifacts in other kinds of exterior surfaces, such as working areas, whereas a road could have accumulated material from a wide range of periods through water action.  Finally, the fills below the lenses, especially those below the first lens, contained many stones, generally increasing in size toward the bottom.  The fill below another EH II road at Lerna is similar in composition (M. H. Wiencke 2000. The Architecture, Stratification, and Pottery of Lerna III. Vol. IV. Princeton: 287).  ; ; The orientation of this road is difficult to determine since only a relatively small part of it is both preserved and visible.  If we look to the area below Shop 2 Rear for the continuation of this road, we do find another surface below Shop 2 Rear (Context 388, preserved in a 3.2m x 2.45m area) that lay at nearly the same level as the fourth lens of the road (Context 529)(81.00-80.81 and 80.98-80.83 respectively), but the surface below Shop 2 Rear does not have a series of lenses above or below it as we found in Shop 1 Rear.  It is possible the upper lenses were destroyed during the construction of the South Stoa, since Context 388 is almost exclusively overlaid by Hellenistic fills, but this fails to explain why the first through third lenses of the road under Shop 1 Rear do not appear to continue into the area beneath Shop 2 Rear.  Perhaps the road was  oriented N-S, so that it continues not under Shop 2 Rear, but under Shop 1 Front.  Context 388 under Shop 2 Rear, then, might have been a work area (as it was originally interpreted) beside or at the end of the road.         ; ; After the road finally fell out of use, it appears to have suffered significant erosion, creating a wide, shallow depression running roughly NE-SW across our area.  This depression was then filled in the fourth phase of EH II activity with a layer of cobbles (Context 524-526) with a thin layer of earth and pebbles over and between them (Context 523).  These deposits must have been made at the same time, since fragments of the same Early Helladic black-slipped one-handled cup (C-2016-16) were found in both the pebbly soil (Context 523) and the cobbles (Context 525)..  In addition to this vessel, a few Late Neolithic and Early Helladic sherds and a triangular stone burnisher (MF-2016-30 in Context 526), were found among the cobbles.  Based on the flat, apparently worked surfaces of some of the cobbles, and the pieces of mudbrick and chopped up bedrock throughout, we believe these layers represent the ruins of an earlier structure that were redeposited in the depression caused by the erosion of the road.  ; ; These cobbles may have been laid as a pavement, and they do resemble the pavements identified at Eutresis (J. L. Caskey and E. G. Caskey. 1960. “The Earliest Settlements at Eutresis: Supplementary Excavations, 1958.” Hesperia 29: 126-167).   Fragments of a complete vessel and pieces of mudbrick are more likely to be found in dumped rubble than among carefully laid stones, however, and pebbly soil (Context 523) laid over a pavement is difficult to account for.  More likely, the cobbles and the soil were cleaned up from a nearby area and dumped in this convenient natural ditch by the inhabitants of Corinth.; ; If this layer of cobbles did serve some purpose, it had fallen out of use by the fifth and final phase of EH II activity.  More soil (Context 522) was heaped upon the cobbles as well as upon the latest lens of the road (Context 516).  Little more can be said about these fills, since they were partially disturbed by later activity and partially hidden by our section.; ; Our excavation produced a great deal of prehistoric pottery from purely prehistoric contexts.  Almost every deposit contained a mixture of Late Neolithic and Early Helladic wares, with only a few Middle Neolithic sherds.  ; ; The Late Neolithic pottery was predominated by Grey Burnished (469 sherds), Black Burnished (380 sherds), and Matt Painted (277 sherds).  The paint on the Matt-painted sherds was often very well preserved, especially the Late Neolithic Matt-painted fruitstand in Context 527 (C-2016-17) .  The Late Neolithic ritual vessel handle in Context 547 (C-2016-19) is even more unique: although its triangular section is not uncommon, we have so far been unable to find any comparanda for its undulating ridge.; ; The Early Helladic pottery was most often represented by Red-slipped (725 sherds), Cream-slipped (547 sherds, some with fine incision), and Black-Slipped (400 sherds); the next most frequent ware was EH Lightware (31 sherds).  The EH II black-slipped one-handled cup in Contexts 523 and 525 (C-2016-16) and the cooking pot in Contexts 540 and 543 (C-2016-21) were the two almost intact prehistoric vessels found this session.  24 sherds of an Early Cycladic Red-Slipped vessel (yet to be reconstructed or inventoried) found in Contexts 538, 542, 543, and 544 was also of interest.; ; Two Early Helladic terracotta spindle whorls were also found in Context 538 (MF-2016-35 and MF-2016-36), not upon the surface of the road, but within the fill beneath.  Other important small finds from the fill that so far lack dates include two stone tools (MF-2016-33 in Context 532, MF-2016-38 in Context 537) and an obsidian core (MF-2016-37 in Context 537).; ; The good preservation of the finds and pottery from all periods in our trench suggests that they were probably close to their primary contexts, and that they had not been redeposited many times.  Stone tools, textile tools, and pottery show that habitation layers were close by. At the same time, the solid date of all these contexts suggests that EH II was a period of major renovation of this area, apparently involving the cleanup of some nearby collapsed buildings (Context 523-526 and Context 537).  In light of both these factors, as well as the current lack of evidence for EH I contexts, it seems that the area of Shop 1 Rear was abandoned in the Late Neolithic and only revisited in Early Helladic II.  The Early Helladic inhabitants of Corinth would have encountered an area much altered by their Neolithic predecessors: earth filled with Late Neolithic sherds and tools as well as a deep cut in the bedrock.  In filling and leveling off this cut and constructing their road, they would have mixed their own waste with that of their predecessors, creating a “Mixed Fill,” much like the one found in several places at Lerna (M. H. Wiencke 2000. The Architecture, Stratification, and Pottery of Lerna III. Vol. IV. Princeton: 29).; ; Several previous excavations at Corinth uncovered mixed deposits of Early Helladic and Late Neolithic.  According to Phelps 2004, Walker-Kosmopoulos found Late Neolithic in equal proportions with Early Helladic on the north side of Temple Hill in 1920.  In 1931, Hill likewise discovered Late Neolithic with much Early Helladic on the site of the current museum.  Finally, Weinberg in 1938 found Black and Grey Wares mixed with Early Helladic west of the museum.  It would be valuable to revisit these deposits now that the pottery sequences of the Late Neolithic and Early Helladic in the Peloponnese have been better defined.  Perhaps the Early Helladic material in these contexts is also confined to EH II.; ; CLASSICAL?; ; There is very little evidence of human activity between EH II and the construction of the South Stoa, probably because the builders of the South Stoa cleared and leveled the area before construction.; ; Before that, however, the inhabitants of Corinth dug a long, rectilinear pit (Cut 497/Contexts 478 and 513-515) running E-W that widens slightly toward the west (1.00m wide at the east, 1.40m wide at the west).  Its preserved length is 2.70m, but it was truncated to the east by Broneer's excavation trench (509) and to the west by the foundation trench for Wall 459 (Cut 506).  It is quite deep (0.72m), with vertical sides and a roughly leveled bottom.  Its southern side and some of its base were cut into bedrock, while its northern side was cut into the prehistoric surfaces discussed above.  ; ; The form of this cut suggests that it was a Classical cellar.  Two comparable cellars associated with the Classical Buildings I and II in the forum area of Corinth were excavated in 1971 by Charles Williams (Hesperia 41.2: 143-184).  Both cellars are 1-2m wide (Cut 497 is 1.3m wide), cut into bedrock, and not waterproofed (as ours); Cellar B also widens toward one end.  ; ; HELLENISTIC (LATE 4TH TO EARLY 3RD CENT. BC); ; After the cellar had fallen out of use, it was filled in the late 4th/early 3rd cent. BC or later (Contexts Contexts 478, 513-515), before the construction of the west foundation trench and probably during the initial leveling of the area in preparation for the stoa.  The filling of the cellar was most likely part of the construction process, as joining sherds of the same matt-painted vessel (C-2016-14) were found in the cellar fill (Contexts 478, 515) and the foundation trench fill (Context 505).  Next the foundation trenches were dug, the walls were constructed, and the trenches were backfilled.  The builders then deposited several layers of fill (Contexts 456, 503, 508) over the cellar fill and the foundation trench fill in order to level Shop 1 Rear.  Since none of the fills in the foundation trench itself dated later than the 4th cent. BC, they are all dated by their stratigraphic relationship to the cellar fill, which was cut by the foundation trench, to the late 4th/early 3rd cent. BC.; ; One of the leveling fills over the foundation trench (Context 508) was overlaid by a possible surface (Context 449) into which two pithos stands were cut (Cuts 382, 389).  As stated above, Jiang and Judson believed that this surface predated the construction of Shop 1 Rear, and they therefore interpreted the Hellenistic fill of a large cut in this surface (Cut 493/4/Contexts 424 [first half of the 3rd cent. BC], 436, 438) as the leveling of Shop 1 Rear immediately after its construction.  However, the fill (Context 508) over the foundation trench (Context 511) and beneath this surface (Context 449) makes it clear that this surface postdated the construction of Shop 1 Rear.  For this reason, we believe that Context 449 may have been the original floor of the room, or at least another leveling fill for the floor, since the pithos stands were cut into it.  Cut 493/4 and its fills would then reflect a significant change to the room, perhaps after it or part of the surface had fallen out of use.; ; This interpretation of Context 449 suggests that Shop 1 Rear was constructed and in use by the end of the 4th cent. BC or later.  This date is brought down to the first quarter of the 3rd century BC by a single sherd found in Session I in the fill of the east foundation trench of Shop 2 Rear (Cut 322/Deposit 321)—the other side of the same foundation trench we excavated this session.; ; Most of our Hellenistic contexts contained a great deal of Late Neolithic and Early Helladic pottery.  In the cellar we found a Late Neolithic Matt-painted bowl rim (C-2016-18 in Context 513) and a Late Neolithic Black-burnished roll handle (C-2016-15 in Context 515), as well as a Neolithic figurine (MF-2016-25 in Context 513); in the leveling fill we found an Early Helladic II obsidian blade (MF-2016-21 in Context 508).  The presence of this material is easily explained.  The builders of the South Stoa inevitably dug down into earlier layers while excavating the foundation trenches, and then used this same soil to backfill the trenches and level off the rooms.  The soil in the cellar could have come from the foundation trench of another room that was built before Shop 1 Rear.; ; CONCLUSIONS; ; This excavation of Shop 1 Rear has provided evidence that the South Stoa was constructed in the late 4th to early 3rd cent. BC, which supports the down-dating of the construction of the stoa from the widely accepted date of 338-323 B.C. to the 3rd century B.C. by Sanders, Miura, and Kvapil (2014) and James (forthcoming).; ; Through the discovery of a Classical cellar beneath Shop 1 Rear, the excavation has added to our understanding of this area soon before the construction of the stoa.  Along with Classical Buildings I and II, it indicates that this area was already occupied by structures and probably saw a good deal of activity.; ; The prehistoric layers beneath Shop 1 Rear have shed further light on the prehistoric layers beneath Shop 2 Rear.  Together these layers have provided a wealth of material that promises to open up new lines of research in the prehistory of Corinth.  Although no settlement has been located, the kinds of material culture we have found, as well as its good preservation, indicate that there were probably Late Neolithic and Early Helladic II settlements nearby.  The discovery of the EH II road suggests that the Early Helladic settlement may have seen a good deal of traffic, and some of it (based on the discovery of obsidian, non-local chert, and Cycladic pottery) may have come from rather far away.; ; FUTURE GOALS; ; •    Continue excavation to clarify the nature of the sandy surface (Context 551) as well as the fill below it.; •     Explore the possibility of more connections between the prehistoric layers excavated last session in Shop 2 Rear and those in Shop 1 Rear.; •    Use Panagiotis Karkanas’ analysis of the microstratigraphy to come to a better understanding of the formation processes in this area.; •    Compare the pottery from our excavations with that from other prehistoric excavations at Corinth.; ; ; CONTEXTS: 497, 503, 504, 505, 506, 507, 508, 509, 510, 511, 512, 513, 514, 515, 516, 517, 518, 519, 520, 521, 522, 523, 524, 525, 526, 527, 528, 529, 530, 531, 532, 533, 534, 535, 536, 537, 538, 539, 540, 541, 542, 543, 544, 545, 546, 547, 548, 549, 550, 551; ; MF-2016-21 Early Helladic II Obsidian Blade in 508; MF-2016-25 Neolithic Figurine in 513; MF-2016-30 Triangular Stone Burnisher in 526; MF-2016-33 Stone Tool 532; MF-2016-35 Early Helladic Terracotta Spindle Whorl in 538; MF-2016-36 Early Helladic Terracotta Spindle Whorl in 538; MF-2016-37 Obsidian Core in 537; MF-2016-38 Stone Tool in 537; MF-2016-39 Late Neolithic Chert Blade in 547; ; C-2016-14 Late Neolithic Matt-painted Jar in 505; C-2016-15 Late Neolithic Black-burnished Roll Handle in 515; C-2016-16 Early Helladic Black-slipped One-handled Cup in 523, 525; C-2016-17 Late Neolithic Matt-painted Fruitstand in 527; C-2016-18 Late Neolithic Matt-painted Bowl in 513; C-2016-19 Late Neolithic Ritual Vessel Handle in 547; C-2016-20 Early Helladic II Firedog Stand Knob in 547; C-2016-21 Tripod Vessel in 543, 540","","","Corinthia | Ancient Corinth | Central Area | Forum | South Stoa","Final Report: Excavations of South Stoa, Shop 1 Rear, Session 2 2016","","","","South Stoa 2016 by Alexandra Daly and Thalia Parr (2016-05-04 to 2016-05-20)"
"Corinth:Report:Nezi Field 2008 by Sarah Lima (2008-04-07 to 2008-06-13)","","","Report","Corinth","During the second and third sessions of the 2008 season at Corinth, a contingent of Team Green excavated to the W of a 1960s-excavated courtyard within the greater area of North of Nezi. The area of excavation initially consisted of a rectangular space, roughly 6.0 x 9.0 m, bounded by four walls and subdivided by two smaller walls. The coordinates for this space fell between 1030 and1039 N, and 260 and 266 E on the Nezi gridding system. During the last week, the excavated area was expanded as far as 267 E.  The work team consisted of Billy Papanikolao (pickman), Vasilis Kollias (barrow man between 10.05.08 and 06.06.08), and Andreas Oikonomou (barrow man between 06.06.08 and 06.12.08). Alicia Carter and Guy Sanders oversaw the excavations.  ; ; History of Excavation; ; Corinth notebooks relate the extent of 1960s excavation activity in this area, which the excavators referred to as the western limits of the “1961 house.” Charles Williams (NB 253 from 1963) describes the northern and western walls bounding the space, noting that their deepest foundations appear to be Late Roman (Wall nos. 3 and 4, descriptions pp. 23, 26-27, and 29; drawn on pp. 10, 23, 16, 129). Williams also described uncovering the top of an E-W running wall that he called “Wall 6.” The foundations of a wall just to the N of Wall 6 were already visible to Williams when he was excavating, and that was given the name “Wall 5.” He excavated a deep deposit consisting of ash, carbon, mudbrick, plaster, and tiles on edge in the narrow space between the two walls, and speculated that this might represent foundations for a staircase. 2008 excavations around Walls 5 and 6 demonstrated that Wall 5, although truncated, continues eastward, and that the foundations of Wall 6 probably cut a surface much higher than where they rested when we began excavating. These observations make it more likely that the walls represent different phases of dividing the room(s) west of the courtyard, rather than a staircase. ; ; Each of the previously mentioned walls has been given a new number during the course of the 2008 excavations. The concordances between these numbers are: ; ; Wall 3, also given a 1960s number of Wall 58 (E-W wall bounding rooms to N, continues eastward from W limit at roughly 259 E) = Wall 5562; Wall 4 (N-S wall bounding rooms to W, runs from ca. 1039 to 1029 N = Wall 5724; Wall 5 (E-W wall abutting E facing section of Wall 5724, truncated to E) = Foundations: 5604, Wall Superstructure: 5603/5638; Wall 6 (E-W wall ostensibly bonding with Wall 5724, robbed out to E) = Wall 5725; ; The 1960s excavations were also responsible for the excavation of two pits within this space. One lay to the S of Wall 5725, and may have been discovered while excavators were attempting to locate the wall’s lowest limits. The other was located in the very SW corner of the area excavated in 2008, near the junction of Wall 5724 and the E-W wall running across the S limit of the room. This southern E-W wall does not appear to have a structure number corresponding to 1960s or 2008 excavations. This pit was excavated to the level of 84.80, which marks the top of a large cornerstone for an Ottoman building to the W. The construction of the Ottoman wall truncated part of Wall 5724. It is likely that 1960s excavators stopped when they reached the hard cornerstone and did not continue excavating within that space. ; ; 1960s excavations also identified a robbing trench for a large N-S running wall forming an eastern boundary between the courtyard to the E and its associated western room(s). That wall was labeled Wall 71; in 2008, the robbed wall was also given a number of 5473. The first top plan of this area for 2008 demonstrates the location and shape of each of the features described above, along with their elevations. ; ; The phasing of the walls begins with Wall 5562 and Wall 5724 which are demonstrably the earliest based on the depths of their foundations. Wall 5724 also has spatial and stratigraphic relationships with two other E-W walls to the W and N of the courtyard: Wall 5603/5638 (foundations = 5604), and Wall 5725. Wall 5725 appears to bond with Wall 5724 in multiple construction phases, making them contemporary. On the other hand, Wall 5603/5638 is a later reuse of a later foundation event, of which the upper limits do not survive. The robbing trench of Wall 5725 also has a relationship with the robbing trench of Wall 5473. Since the robbing trench of the E-W wall 5725 lies beneath the robbing trench of the N-S wall 5473, we surmise that Wall 5725 must have been robbed well before Wall 5473 was installed. ; ; Late Byzantine; ; Late Byzantine levels were excavated beneath Frankish fill just to the west of the junction between Wall 5562 and Wall 5473, and in the foundation trenches for Walls 5725 and 5724. These levels began at an elevation of approximately 84.85-84.99 to the S (fill 5768), and at an elevation of 84.75 to the N (top of foundation trench fill 5727, fill 5830).; ; The earliest features excavated during this season were the foundation trenches for N-S wall 5724 and E-W wall 5725. Because the walls appear to bond both at upper and lower levels, we expected to find a similar date for both foundation trenches. This proved to be the case, since the foundation trench cuts for Wall 5725 and Wall 5724 cut fill levels with dates in the first half of the 12th century (fills 5727 and 5768, respectively). Within the foundation trench of Wall 5724, a nearly complete jug and two-handled storage jar were recovered, possibly as an intentional foundation deposit within fill 5686. Unfortunately, the overlying levels 5547 and 5509 yielded pottery dating to the 3rd quarter of the 13th century, so the resolution of when the walls were definitively constructed remains rather coarse, within the range of early 12th-late 13th century.  ; ; When lower levels of Walls 5724 and 5725 were revealed during the excavation of the foundation trenches, it became apparent that each one has at least two phases of construction. The excavation of fill 5770 within the foundation trench for Wall 5724 revealed a change in soil strata that corresponded with a visible difference in the appearance of the wall coursing. If the foundation trench fill 5770 represents fill of a second lower foundation trench, then the earlier building event can be dated by a coin to 969-1030 or later. Further excavation is necessary to establish whether the lower level reached in the excavation of fill 5770 actually represents a foundation trench, since it would clearly cut a lower surface than the plastered surface exposed to the E of Wall 5724 at the end of excavations.; ; There also appears to be a robbing event that is Late Byzantine in date. The N-S oriented Robbing Trench 5791 runs from just S of the E-W Wall 5562 to a point where it meets with the robbed out section of E-W Wall 5725, at ca. 1035 N by 265 E. It underlies levels dated to the 12th century (5786), as well as one level dating to the 14th century (5586). The terminus post quem for its construction is context 5830, which dates based on coinage to 1140-1170. The rough terminus post quem from the fills yields dates in the early 12th century (fills 5790, 5840, and 5844). Although it cannot be definitively demonstrated that this robbing event took place during the 12th century as opposed to the 14th century, the dates from the fills seem to point primarily in that direction. The question of whether this is actually a robbing trench also remains open for discussion. The trench is thin, approximately 0.50 m wide, and runs alongside and over a series of small cobbles and tiles set into a line—possibly part of the unrobbed wall. This does appear to be somewhat unusual as a robbing event, though, since it seems more likely that they would have exposed the whole of the top of the wall. Further exploration to the E of the robbing trench as it exists now could be desirable for confirming or disproving the line that we have identified; it may instead represent a continuation of a debris surface that was exposed by Jody Cundy and Megan Thompsen their excavations in the room to the N of the 1960s courtyard. If we have identified a Late Byzantine robbing event of a N-S wall, then a shape emerges of a long rectangular room, bordered by Walls 5562, 5724, a robbed out N-S wall of cobble-tile construction (evidenced by Robbing Trench 5791), and probably also E-W cross wall 5725, which bonds with Wall 5724. The question of how the N room would have been accessed remains in question. ; ; It appears that this area once rested on a higher level than the open space to the E, since we have a difference of elevations at which use surfaces occur. In the courtyard to the E, there is a pebbled surface that appears to be truncated by some kind of division, since the pebbled surface does not occur within the area to the W. Instead, we have identified Late Byzantine foundation trenches cut into a level of Byzantine fill stratified above a plastered floor surface- the only surface that we definitively identified during the course of our excavations in this area. Note: this surface was not excavated in the 2008 season.; ; ; Frankish; ; Frankish periods are well represented to the W of the courtyard. Contexts with Frankish pottery occur between elevations from 85.62 (fill 5581) to ca. 84.55 to the N (contexts 5581, 5583, 5837, 5644), and relatively consistently between 84.95 (fills 5667, 5646; 5509 overlies and is still higher) and 84.55 to the S (fill 5744).; ; During this period, it appears that Wall 5725 was still in place, dividing the room into two halves. The N-S running wall that was robbed during the Late Byzantine period (Robbing Trench 5791) may or may not have been replaced at this time, which would leave the room open to the E. The date of the construction of Wall 5473 remains in question, but it probably would have replaced the earlier robbed wall. ; ; In the southern of the two western rooms, two pits were excavated. Pit cut 5767 was created at least as late as the mid 12th century (cutting fill 5768), and was filled in at least as late as the 2nd quarter of the 13th century (filled by 5754). It is SW in orientation, irregular in shape, and appears to have been truncated by the NE cornerstone of the Ottoman house to the W. Pit cut 5723 was excavated and filled in by the mid 13th century. It underlies fill 5667, which gives a terminus ante quem of mid-13th century for its filling; but the surface which the pit cuts (i.e., the plastered floor surface) has not yet been excavated, and refine the dating of this feature. Although these pits have been included in the summary of the Frankish period, it is possible that both of them are actually Late Byzantine in date. A great many features depend on their relationship with the white plastered floor surface, unexcavated as of 13.06.08. ; ; It would appear that during the 13th century, significant leveling activity took place in the room to the N of wall 5725. Several strata consisting of reddish brown fill with tiles were excavated from the area (contexts 5500, 5503, 5513, and 5494). These contexts lay at similar elevations, and reflect a late filling event that may have been associated with a change in function for the room. ; ; A pit was cut into these dumped fills (pit cut = 5498), and it then underwent subsequent filling activity that consisted of the dumping of various strata of debris and construction material inside of the pit (contexts 5516, 5497, 5491, 5481). Additionally, a stratum with a hard, white plaster consistency was deposited within the pit and spread across the majority of the room toward the E (contexts 5499, 5512, and 5537). All of these contexts have been dated to the last quarter of the 13th century and may represent a single filling event, utilizing different kinds of material.  Much later, perhaps as late as the 18th century, pit cut 5498 appears to have been utilized in the construction of a small wall spur (#5478), as a depression for setting the stones. ; ; Pit cut 5717 lay beneath the bottom boundary of 5498, making it the earlier of the two cuts; but the fact that it is filled by two Late 13th century fills must place its terminus of use not long before the construction of 5498. Since the surface that it cuts has not yet been excavated, it is impossible to say how long it has been in use. The fact that a pit was cut twice into the same location in spite of significant filling events suggests that it could be an important feature for establishing how this area functioned during the Frankish period. Three levels of mixed fill lay between the two cuts (5723, 5727, and 5744), one of which contained a gold ring of Roman date. The pit cut also truncates a small E-W wall spur (Wall #5875), which bonds with the highest courses of Wall 5724. This structure only continues for approximately 1.0 m, and its original extent may be revealed by further excavation, since we had not identified its bottom course as of the end of the 2008 season.; ; Fill 5723 also partially covered the Wall Foundations 5604, which lay beneath Wall 5603/5638. However, it is thought by the director that the foundations 5604 were originally cut into a much higher, later stratum. If they do actually underlie fill 5723, then their terminus ante quem is 1260 +/- 10. The cobble fill was also ostensibly overlain by cleaning pass 5547, which yielded pottery of the 3rd quarter of the 13th c. Even if we successfully determine the date of the foundations, it is nearly impossible to say what the date is for Wall 5603/5638, since there is no matrix of soil around the stones and their construction is definitely different from the cobbles of Wall 5604.; If these walls are Frankish, then their truncation must also be explained, as well as their function in a room where there was already an E-W dividing wall ( Wall 5725) in place. ; ;  A well was constructed in the N room during the second half of the 13th century. Unfortunately, the boundary for the top of the well cut was diffuse, making it difficult to definitively establish the time after which it was constructed. Although the director has speculated about a later level for the cut, I propose that the well was dug into fill deposit 5513, which has been dated to the 13th century. We know that the well was out of use and filled in by the 3rd quarter of the 13th century, since it is overlain by dumped fill 5512. Only a single layer of fill was excavated from the well, but there is more remaining if further excavation of that area makes further access practicable. ; ; In the S room, we uncovered what appeared to be a robbing trench for a N-S wall (Cut 5859). This robbing trench is oriented slightly differently from robbing trench 5791 in the N room, which dates to an earlier period. From the stratum that trench 5859 cuts (fill 5744), we know that it was created after the 3rd quarter of the 13th century. Overlying contexts 5735 and 5801 establish a terminus ante quem of 4th quarter of the 13th century for the robbing event. The trench is rather irregularly shaped and its limits were diffuse when we were first attempting to identify its path. In particular, we were puzzled by the fact that the trench did not appear to continue southward further than 1.5 m. If a wall did exist along that line, it does not appear to have been an extensive one. We are continuing to explore the potential boundaries of this wall to the S of cut 5859 (e.g., context 5870), and the possibility exists that its limits may be different from what we have currently identified. ; ; Dividing wall 5725 was also robbed (cut 5546) after the 3rd quarter of the 13th century and before the 4th quarter of the 13th century, if it is safe to assume that the trench was filled around the same time that it was cut. The wall was robbed to the E of where it intersected with both of the two aforementioned robbing trenches (5791 and 5859). The result was a truncation of the remaining exposed E-W running wall section, which remained in place between ca. 261-264.50 E. Therefore, the area to the W of the courtyard would have remained partially divided between N and S after the robbing. The robbing trench 5546 underlies the bottom of the robbing trench for Wall 5473, which presumably also means that the foundation event for Wall 5473 postdates the robbing of wall 5725. It remains in question to what extent these western room(s) were divided from the courtyard during the second half of the 13th century.  ;  ; Yet another robbing pit (cut 5719) was created to the E of Wall 5725 during the last quarter of the 13th century, probably for the purpose of robbing the lowest stones of the wall. It truncates robbing trenches 5791, 5546, and 5859, making it the latest of all four robbing events. There still remains some of this context to be excavated, since the boundary of the cut was diffuse where it overlay the wall 5725, and it was uncertain which strata belonged with the robbing event 5546 and which belonged with the later robbing pit (5719).; ; To the S, we explored the martyr of robbing trench 5893 (i.e., the robbing event of wall 5473). Our goal in examining the line of Wall 5493 was to determine where its W limits lay, so that we might be able to definitively determine whether or not there was ever a full length N-S predecessor further to the W that could have truncated wall 5725. While exploring the robbing trench fill, we also uncovered a foundation trench (#5894) for a later wall spur installation that cut into it. Since we know that the terminus post quem for the robbing event was 4th quarter of the 13th century at least (based on the fact that it overlies the robbing trench 5546 for E-W wall 5725), we also know that the foundation of the small wall spur must postdate that period. ; ; Conclusion; ; Excavation within the area to the W of the 1960s-excavated courtyard revealed Late Byzantine and Frankish construction events that indicate a consistent division of the space into N and S rooms. What remains unclear is whether those rooms were entirely separate and divided from each other, or whether access was readily available between them. According to the data set that we currently possess, it seems most feasible that Wall 5725 existed as a continuous E-W wall during the 12th century, dividing an area consisting of Wall 5562 to the N, Wall 5724 to the W, and another E-W wall to the S. There may or may not also have been a small N-S wall dividing the room to the N from the courtyard and the S room that was removed at this time, depending on how the evidence for robbing trench 5791 is interpreted; if it is regarded as a continuation of the tile deposit visible to the E, then that entire N area should be regarded as a continuous unit stretching from E-W. ; ; These walls may also have Middle Byzantine predecessors, but that question cannot be answered without further excavation below currently exposed levels. The presence of Middle Byzantine pottery within foundation trench fill pairing with a different kind of wall construction along similar lines (Wall 5724, fill 5770) suggests that this is at least a possibility. ; ; The Frankish period seems to have divided the courtyard space from the western space by robbing out Wall 5725 and installing a N-S running wall - possibly one that lay where putative robbing trench 5859 is located. The presence of a new N-S wall would explain the truncation of the E-W wall and the high elevation of Frankish fills within the W rooms. However, we have yet to locate an extensive N-S wall (or robbing event thereof) that would have functioned in this capacity.; ; ; ; ; I. Lotting registry; ; contexts saved: ; # 5481: fill of pit cut 5498, subpacking of wall 5478 (Frankish, 1300 +/- 10); # 5491: fill of pit cut 5498, subpacking of wall 5478 (Frankish, 1270-1280); # 5497: fill of pit cut 5498, subpacking of wall 5478  (Frankish, late 13th century); # 5499: Plaster pit lining (Frankish, 1280 +/- 10); # 5500: Stratum cut by pit 5498 (fourth quarter of the 13th); # 5547:  Fill between walls 5604/5603/5638 and wall 5725 (third quarter of the 13th); ; partial saves: ; # 5503: stratum cut by pit 5498 (fourth quarter of the 13th, needs final weights and counts); # 5512: plaster fill (third quarter of the 13th, needs final weights and counts); # 5516: clayey pit fill (c. 1300, needs final weights and counts); # 5667: fill cut by pit 5723 (mid 13th, needs final weights and counts); # 5675: fill of pit 5723 (mid 13th, needs final weights and counts); # 5686: fill of foundation trench 5718 for wall 5724 (early 12th, 1120 +/- 10); # 5703: fill of robbing cut 5719 (fourth quarter of the 13th, mini lot with 5708, frankish and loomweight held); # 5708: fill of robbing cut 5719 (fourth quarter of the 13th, mini lot with 5703); # 5735: dumped fill to W of 1960s excavated courtyard (fourth quarter of the 13th, needs final weights and counts); #5754:  stony fill within pit cut 5667 (second quarter of the 13th); (# 5778: soft fill within robbing trench 5791 (third quarter of the 13th, glaze ware held for lotting with 5798); # 5798: fill within robbing trench 5859 (fourth quarter of the 13th, saved for lotting with 5778); # 5870: fill to W of 1960s excavated courtyard (late 13th); # 5604: fill within cobble wall foundations; ; saved for mending: ; # 5558: fill covering and filling well 5806 (Frankish, mid-13th c.); ; ; II. Lotting groups for relevant features (saved contexts bolded) ; ; Pit cut 5498; 4th quarter of the 13th c., out of use by 1300; TPQs for construction: cuts 5503 (4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery); 5513 (13th c., pottery); 5500 (4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery); TPQs for filling events: 5516 (1300, pottery), 5499 (1280 +/- 10, pottery), 5497 (late 13th, NPD, pottery), 5491 (1270-1289), 5481 (1300 +/- 10, pottery); TAQs: overlying contexts unknown.; ; Pit cut 5717; 4th quarter of the 13th century; TAQ/TPQ: Underlies and is filled by 5627 (late, 13th, pottery); TPQ for filling: Filled by 5644 (late 13th, pottery); TPQ: cuts same reddish brown tiled surface as robbing trench 5491; TAQ: definitely overlain by 5503 (4th quarter of the 13th, pottery); ; Cut 5806 for well 5876 ; Constructed and filled by the 4th quarter of the 13th century; TPQ for construction: G.S. feels that level of cut unknown, so no definitive TPQ; ; TAQ for filling: out of use by 3rd quarter of the 13th century, because overlain by 5512 (=5499) (3rd quarter of the 13th c., pottery) and 5537 (2nd half of the 13th c., NPD, pottery);; TPQ for filling: Top fill and covering head: 5558 (mid 13th c., pottery), if cuts 5513, TPQ date is 13th century.; ; Robbing pit 5719 (E of Wall 5725); excavated and filled in the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TPQ for filling: Filled by 5703 (=5708), 4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery; ; TPQs for construction of trench: Robbing trench for 5725 is truncated by 5719;;  Robbing trench 5791 is truncated by 5719; 5719 cuts 5735 (4th quarter of the 13th); 5719 cuts 5746 (Frankish, 3rd quarter of the 13th c.); 5719 cuts 5837 (3rd quarter of the 13th c.); ; S. Robbing trench 5859; Excavated and filled in by the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TAQs for filling: 5744 overlies (3rd quarter of the 13th, pottery), 5735 overlies (4th quarter of the 13th, pottery), 5801 overlies (Frankish, 2nd half of the 13th century); cut by robbing pit cut 5719 (4th quarter of the 13th c., TAQ); TPQs for filling: Fill 5798 (Frankish, 4th quarter of the 13th century), 5808 (Frankish, 3rd quarter to mid 13th c.), 5812 (2nd quarter of the 13th, strat. relationship), 5816 (Late Byzantine, Late 11th), 5822 (Late Byzantine, early 11th/early 12th), 5858 (2nd quarter of the 13th, strat. Relationship); TPQs for construction: 5746 (3rd quarter of the 13th century, pottery), Plastered surface; or, if it cuts 5667, mid 13th, pottery; ; Cobble wall foundations 5604; Need to know level of top of cut to know TPQ; cobble fill overlain by 5547 (3rd quarter of the 13th c., rough TPQ); ; Pit cut 5723; excavated and filled in by the mid 13th c. ; TPQ for construction: Cuts plastered surface; TAQ for construction: Underlies 5667 (mid 13th c., pottery) ; TPQ for filling of pit: 5675 (mid 13th c., pottery); ; N. Robbing trench 5791 (N-S); 1140-1170 or later; TAQs for filling: 5786 overlies to W (Late Byzantine, 12th century), 5586 overlies to E (14th c.? or later); TPQs for construction of trench: cuts same level cut by well, same level cut by pit 5717; it’s a flat reddish brown tiled surface.; TPQs for filling:  5778 (3rd quarter of the 13th), 5790 (12th c., NPD), 5840 (Late Byzantine, 1090-1110), 5844 (Late Byzantine, 12th century); ; Pit cut 5767 (the SW corner pit); Constructed 1150+, filled in by 1250.; TAQ for filling: Contexts overlying cut unknown, filled at least as late as the mid 13th.; TPQs for construction: fill 5668 (mid 12th c., pottery) is cut by 5767; TPQ for filling: filled by 5754 (2nd quarter of the 13th century, pottery); ; III. Phasing of features based on pottery dates and stratigraphic relationships; ; Post-Frankish; Corner of Ottoman house (top of cut unknown); Corner of Ottoman house (top of cut unknown); E-W wall spur 5478: 18th century? No foundation for upper part of wall spur; ; E-W wall 5603/5638: Probable reuse of foundations 5604, so impossible to date; ; Foundations of 5604: need to know level of top of cut to know TPQ; cobble fill overlain by 5547 (3rd quarter of the 13th c., rough TPQ); ; ; Frankish; Foundation trench # 5894 for wall spur E of 5473: 4th quarter of the 13th century or later, strat. relationship; TPQ for filling event: fill 5892 (Late 13th, strat. relationship); TPQ for construction: cuts robbing trench 5893 (filled in by 3rd quarter of the 13th c. or later, pottery); ; Robbing trench # 5893 for wall 5473: 4th quarter of the 13th c. or later, pottery; ; TPQ for filling event: fill 5510, fill 5886 (3rd quarter of 13th), fill 5770 (Late 13th); TAQ for filling event: foundation trench 5894 cuts robbing trench 5893; TPQ: overlies cut 5446, which dates to the 4th quarter of the 13th century.; ; Robbing trench # 5546 for wall 5725: Excavated and filled in by the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TAQ for filling: 5837 (3rd quarter of the 13th, stratigraphic relationship); Underlies robbing trench for wall 5473 (4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery); TPQs for filling: Filled after 5852 (Frankish, 3rd quarter of the 13th century); ; Pit cut 5717: 4th quarter of the 13th century; TAQ/TPQ: Underlies and is filled by 5627 (late, 13th, pottery); definitely overlain by 5503 (4th quarter of the 13th, pottery); TPQ for filling: Filled by 5644 (late 13th, pottery); TPQ for construction: cuts same reddish brown tiled surface as robbing trench 5491; ; Pit cut 5498: 4th quarter of the 13th c., out of use by 1300; TPQs for construction: cuts 5503 (4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery); 5513 (13th c., pottery); 5500 (4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery); TPQs for filling events: 5516 (1300, pottery), 5499 (1280 +/- 10, pottery), 5497 (late 13th, NPD, pottery), 5491 (1270-1289), 5481 (1300 +/- 10, pottery); TAQs: 5516 (1300, pottery), 5494 (1275-1300, pottery); ; Robbing pit 5719 (E of Wall 5725): excavated and filled in the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TPQ for filling: Filled by 5703 (=5708), 4th quarter of the 13th c., pottery; ; TPQs for construction of trench: Robbing trench for 5725 is truncated by 5719;;  Robbing trench 5791 is truncated by 5719; 5719 cuts 5735 (4th quarter of the 13th); 5719 cuts 5746 (Frankish, 3rd quarter of the 13th c.); ; We underdug this context and there is still some martyr remaining. ; ; S. Robbing trench # 5859 for N-S wall: Excavated and filled in by the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TAQs for filling: 5744 overlies (3rd quarter of the 13th, pottery), 5735 overlies (4th quarter of the 13th, pottery), 5801 overlies (Frankish, 2nd half of the 13th century), cut by robbing pit cut 5719 (4th quarter of the 13th c.); TPQs for filling: Fill 5798 (Frankish, 4th quarter of the 13th century), 5808 (Frankish, 3rd quarter to mid 13th c.), 5812 (2nd quarter of the 13th c., stratigraphic relationship), 5816 (Late Byzantine, Late 11th), 5822 (Late Byzantine, early 11th/early 12th); TPQs for construction: 5746 (3rd quarter of the 13th century, pottery), cuts plastered surface.; ; Cut for well 5806: constructed and filled by the 4th quarter of the 13th c.; TPQ for construction: G.S. feels that level of cut unknown; I suggest that it cut level 5513 (13th century); TAQ for filling: out of use by 3rd quarter of the 13th century, because overlain by 5512 (3rd quarter of the 13th c., pottery) and 5537 (2nd half of the 13th c., NPD, pottery);; TPQ for filling: Top fill 5558 also covers head (mid 13th c., pottery); ; Pit cut 5767 (the SW corner pit): mid 13th; TAQ for filling: Contexts overlying cut unknown, filled at least as late as the mid 13th; if 5509 overlies, then the TAQ is the 3rd quarter of the 13th c.; TPQs for construction: 5668 (mid 12th c., pottery) is cut by 5767; TPQ for filling: filled by 5754 (2nd quarter of the 13th century, pottery); ; Pit cut 5723: excavated and filled in by the mid 13th c. ; TPQ for construction: Cuts plastered surface; TAQ for construction: Underlies 5667 (mid 13th c., pottery) ; TPQ for filling of pit: 5675 (mid 13th c., pottery); ; Late Byzantine; ; N. Robbing trench 5791 (N-S): 1140-1170 or later.; TAQs for filling: 5786 overlies to W (Late Byzantine, 12th century), 5586 overlies to E (14th c.? or later); TPQs for construction of trench: cuts same level cut by well, same level cut by pit 5717; it’s a flat reddish brown tiled surface, cuts 5830 (1140-1170); TPQs for filling: 5778 (3rd quarter of the 13th), 5790, 5840 (Late Byzantine, 1090-1110), 5844 (Late Byzantine, 12th century); ; N foundation trench, Wall 5725 (cut #5721): 1st half of the 12th century; TPQs: cuts 5727 (early 12th, NPD, pottery); TPQ for filling: 5727 (early 12th, NPD, pottery); 5711 (Late Byzantine, late 11th); TAQ for filling: 5547 (3rd quarter of the 13th c.); There are other fill levels to be excavated, but they may relate to an earlier phase of wall. ; Wall 5725 bonds with Wall 5724.; ; S foundation trench, Wall 5725 (cut # 5720): 1st half of the 12th century; TPQs for construction: Cuts (at least) 5768 (mid 12th c., pottery); ; TPQ for fillingFilled by 5680 (12th c., NPD, pottery); possibly we missed a 2nd layer of fill. ; TAQ for filling: to the best of our knowledge, overlain by 5509 (3rd quarter of the 12th c., pottery); Wall 5725 bonds with 5724.; ; Foundation trench, wall 5724 (cut # 5718): 1st half of the 12th century; TPQs: At least cuts 5768 (mid 12th c., pottery); TPQ; TPQs for filling: 5686 (1120 +/- 10 or early 12th, pottery); lower fill 5770 (969-1030, coin; late 10th/early 11th, pottery) may relate to an earlier construction event.; TAQS: to our knowledge, overlain by 5509 (3rd quarter of the 12th century, pottery); Wall 5725 bonds with 5724.","","","Corinthia | Ancient Corinth | Central Area | Nezi Field","Western Suite of Rooms in the 1961 Byzantine House, Late Byzantine and Frankish Levels","","","","Nezi Field 2008 by Sarah Lima (2008-04-07 to 2008-06-13)"
"Corinth:Report:Temple E, Southeast 2015 by Rodríguez-Álvarez, Emilio, Lorenzová, Alžběta with additions from Larkin Kennedy (2015-04-21 to 2015-04-28)","","","Report","Corinth","Introduction:; This is the final report for the first session of excavations in the 2015 season for Rooms 4 and 6 of Unit II in the area of Temple E SE. Room 4 was last excavated by A. Rohn in July and August of 1997 (See NBs. 895 and 907). Room 6 was last excavated by S. Rous and R. Worsham in April of 2014, although the southernmost part of it was last excavated by J. Rife and B. Olsen in April of 1996 (See NB. 864 p.57-119). Dr. Guy Sanders (Director) and Larkin Kennedy (Field director) supervised. Alžběta Lorenzová excavated in Room 4 while Emilio Rodríguez-Álvarez excavated in Room 6.; ; Excavation in Room 4 aimed at exploring any undisturbed graves remaining after the 1990s excavation. In two places, cleaning revealed the bottom of the cut from previously excavated graves 1997-43 (1069.70-1070.70N; 114.35-116.10E) and 1997-13C (1069.25-1069.90N; 114.65-116.25E), as well as the tile bedding for the heads of the skeletons interred in those graves, but not any undisturbed material (cf. NB 895). Alžběta Lorenzová excavated the one undisturbed grave (2015-02) abutting the rubble baulk at the north wall, about 2.25m away from the west wall and 2.20m away from the east threshold of the room. The south side was further bounded by a baulk (1070.80-1070.60N; 118-27-117.57E).; ; Excavation in Room 6 took place in three specific spots, the south side of NB 864 pit #10, the surface of the south side of the room, and a deposit in the west of the room along the wall (Wall Structure 58), all of which had been identified previously as possibly containing human skeletal remains. The general area of the excavation was delimited by the west wall of the room (Context 58; formerly Wall 13 of NB 864) (1076.94–1083.30N, 117.20–118.12E), and by the east wall of the room (Context 59; formerly Wall 11 of NB 864) (1077.48–1084.33N, 119.64–121.55E) and the associated robbing trench (removal detailed in NB 864). The south boundary was effectively a pedestal surrounding the reused Hymettian orthostate at the entrance to the narthex of the church to the south (1076.5N). The north boundary was arbitrarily established in a line at 1080.20N as excavation focused on the south segment of the room, much of which had remained unexcavated in the course of previous examinations of this area. However, despite its reduced size, work did not take place on the whole surface of the demarcated area.; ; ; Goals of the excavation:; Room 4 and Room 6 are grouped in this report since they share common research goals as well as the same problems in addressing them. Although excavation was carried out in the northern and central portion of Room 6 during the 2014 season, the defined area, as well as the whole of Room 4, were last excavated in 1996 and 1997 respectively. The goal for both rooms was to explore a series of features visible on the surface that had the potential of being unexcavated burials cut into the otherwise exposed surface visible in both rooms. As excavation methodology in the 1990’s made use of a grid system with baulks, current consolidation efforts in the Frankish quarter required further excavation according to open area excavation methodology, including the removal of baulks between areas excavated in the 1990’s (e.g. Context 595).; ; Frankish Period (AD 1210-1450); ; Room 4:; During the Frankish period, Room 4 was used as a cemetery. In the 1990s more than 200 skeletons were excavated in relation to this phase of activity (Williams, Snyder, Barnes, Zervos 1998, p. 239). Interments were placed in E-W trenches through the floor of the room, with graves 1997-43 (1069.70-1070.70N; 114.35-116.10E; Context 896; cf. NB 895: 172-175) and 1997-13C (1069.25-1069.90N; 114.65-116.25E; Context 897; cf. NB 895: 83-86) each the western-most burials in two such parallel trenches. Grave 2015-02, a tile grave (Contexts 592, 615, and 623; Cut Context 630; 1071.30-1070.95N; 117.10-116.01E), underlies Graves 1996-17, 1996-28, 1997-4, 1997-5, and 1997-46 (NBs 864, 895). This rectangular grave, oriented E-W, was the earliest (H 85.29m) and easternmost in an E-W trench along the north wall of Room 4. The tiles, mainly broken terracotta and one stone, were arranged in a tent coffin (Context 615; 1071.21-1070.67N; 117.30-116.03E) 1.18 m long x 0.40 m wide. This small size indicates the grave was intended for a small child. At the west end several boulders may also have formed part of the structure. Plaster was present between some tiles and many fragments of white painted plaster have been found in the whole grave, suggesting the coffin was at least plainly decorated. The tiles were arranged in two layers, with flat tiles on the inside (max. dim.: 30x0.24x0.03m) and curved tiles on the outside (max. dim.: 0.18x0.16x0.0.25m). Even though the position of the tiles indicated an undisturbed grave, no skeleton was present in the grave fill (Context 623). In the west end of the grave was a curved pillow tile (at an elev. of 84.53m), propped up from the grave cut with stones and fill. The upper grave fill (Context 592) contained few human bones, most likely related to other, previously excavated burials in the room, and yielded a fragment of gouged sgraffito bowl dating to the second quarter of the 13th century, providing further evidence for the Frankish use of this area as a cemetery.; ; Room 6:; In the later part of the 13th century, a refuse pit (partially excavated as pit #10 in 1996) was dug in the southern portion of Room 6.  It measures 0.90 x 0.45 m. The depth is unknown yet since the excavation conditions of Context 595 (fill of the cut that remained unexcavated in 1996) required work to be ended before exhausting it. This pit also cuts through an earlier pebble surface of the room which remains unexcavated.; ; After a period of compaction (related to Floor 6 excavated in former seasons), this area was used for burial activity during the late 13th to early 14th centuries (1996-6, Grave 2014-02, Context 621). A cut by Structure 58 during this time period (Context 633; 0.98 x 0.23 x 0.33 m), though presenting a rather irregular shape that required further analysis, contained an accumulation of disarticulated bones (Context 621), both animal and human, though oriented in a NW-SE axis parallel to the wall. A shallow burial (1996-6, NB 864 p.112-113) overlaid this context, the fill of which seems to correspond with the matrix and inclusions from Context 621 (a very soft soil with a mixture of infant and animal bones). The bone pile removed as context 621 is therefore probably related to Grave 1996-6 or Grave 2014-05 (Rous and Worsham 2014).; ; Conclusions:; Room 4:; The nature of Grave 2015-02 conjures more questions than answers. The burial was not disturbed, possibly truncated only on the very edge of the cut, yet not even a disarticulated skeleton has been found. Finds from upper levels were most likely related to other burials (young adult and adult teeth have been found, irrelevant to the currently investigated grave due to the small size) and are probably the result of animal disturbance. The fact the grave was intended for a child is very interesting in combination with the missing corpse. One possible explanation is that this was a symbolic burial. Cenotaphs are common for soldiers who died battling in distant lands and whose families built a mock tomb to honour their memory. Since this grave is way too small for an adult, the child could have died at sea (possibly in a shipwreck), or in the mountains – in both cases it is nearly impossible to retrieve the body for a proper burial. Another option is that the child could have been victim of a highly contagious illness and in that case cremation would be the safer option for the community. The author does not dare explore possible religious reasons to explain the absence of a corpse.; ; A mock child burial can be considered exceptional. In medieval times, child casualties were common, and common folk would most likely not put the effort and money into building a cenotaph for approximately a 3 year old. On the other hand, although upon examining the size of grave 2015-02, one would instantly call it a child burial, it may have been intended for the cenotaph of an adult, since it would serve only as a symbolic tomb and not as the actual grave. While common for soldiers, cenotaphs may also have been used for merchants during the medieval period, and especially in connection with the Frankish area in Corinth, which was probably wealthy according to other material finds. Therefore it could be a mock burial for a member of a mercantile family who disappeared on one of his journeys. ; ; The above interpretations are based entirely on material remains of the grave 2015-02 (which were very poor in cases of pottery and other small finds), and general characteristics of Room 4 and the Frankish area. Speaking of the graveyard in Room 4, one particular question comes to mind: why, in a heavily used cemetery with over 200 cadavers scattered over the whole room in nearly any position so they could all fit into such a small space, remained an unused grave? If the community using this burial ground have had no problems moving and manipulating the earlier burials, why was this one left undisturbed? It does not seem it was separated from the other graves in any unapproachable manner; was it then left forgotten? Since this grave was earlier than the others, maybe the community had not resolved to disturbing older burials at that point of Room 4 usage, and only started that practice when the number of the dead increased – this observation may be supported by the fact the cemetery was actually subdivided and organized in sections, each for a different family (Williams, Snyder, Barnes, Zervos 1998, p. 242). Relationship between social and economic circumstances and the nature of burials in Room 4 allow yet another view of grave 2015-02 and would deserve further study.; ; Lastly the dates must be discussed. The church and the row of rooms (A-D) N of the church, starting with Room D (the Frankish “Room 4”) in the east, were constructed in the first third and damaged by the end of the 12th century (Williams, Snyder, Barnes, Zervos 1998, p. 237). At the beginning of the 13th century this section of Unit 2 was partially restored, but the most significant change happened in the mid-13th century, when only the church and Room D continued to be used, serving the new purpose of a grave chapel (Snyder, Williams 1997, p. 21). Destruction of Room 4 is to be dated to around 1300, most likely connected with a great earthquake (Williams, Snyder, Barnes, Zervos 1998, p. 239). Grave 2015-02 probably dates to the very beginning of the Frankish usage of Room 4: the coffin contained a marble tile, and perhaps this stone slab was originally part of the nearby church that underwent reconstruction by the mid-13th century; another grave, excavated in 1997, thus being in the immediately following level after grave 2015-02, contained a similar marble slab (Williams, Snyder, Barnes, Zervos 1998, p. 240). Upon considering the stratigraphical relationships, the overall chronology of the room, and the little pottery that was useful for establishing at least a terminus post quem, grave 2015-02 probably falls to the mid-13th century.; ; Room 6:; The limited amount of time devoted to excavation this session and the state of the area restricted the outcome of the work. The transition in the excavation methodology from the Wheeler-Kenyon method to Open Area and the time span of almost two decades between interventions in the area made necessary a careful study of former notebooks and reports before resuming work.  However, and despite these issues, this limited intervention has been able to link past and present results in the area and provide a more coherent picture of the stratigraphic sequence. ; ; As of the end of Session 1, there are two clearly identifiable layers visible in Room 6. The study of NB 864 seems to indicate that these layers were defined in the past as Floor 5 (Basket 56), a compact dark yellow soil characterised by the presence of major inclusions of shards and stones, and Floor 6 (Basket 62),  a compact light yellow soil with no visible inclusions (NB 864, p.117). These surfaces were dated respectively to the 1260-1270 and the middle of the 13th c. The effects of weathering, however, prevent us from establishing a more direct connection, since many of the surfaces and the boundaries of these baskets could have been lost by exposure to the elements. Context 611 could be the surface defined as Floor 7 (NB 864, p.117) that was exposed but left unexcavated in 1996.; ; The results of this intervention reinforce the chronological interpretation of Floor 6, which covered the burials excavated in the room, given by S. Rous and R. Worsham. They excavated in 2014 a portion of what they interpreted as Floor 6 (Context 90) and dated by pottery to the late 13th–early 14th centuries. Although the original excavators in the 90's dated this floor, based also on pottery finds, to the middle decades of the 13th c., the fill of Grave 2014-02 (late 13th to early 14th centuries) and of Context 621 (4th q. of the 13th c.) support a much later use of the area for burial. Wall 58, against which the later graves were excavated (e.g. Grave 2014 02, Context 621), was constructed not later than the 4th quarter of the 13th century. ; ; Pit # 10 and the burials of the area seem to belong, based on the material recovered, to the same period. The mixture of human and animal bones in Context 621 could be interpreted as an almost simultaneous use of the space for burial and garbage deposition. A possible interpretation of these results is that the area had a primary use as a garbage deposit and that a specific event demanded the area to be re-adapted as a burial ground. But this hypothesis is based only on the limited area cleaned this session  with the problems indicated above. Further research in the north sector of the room, which still retains surfaces belonging to later periods, can not only increase the dataset available but also clarify the stratigraphic sequence of the different depositions.; ; ; Recommendations for Future Excavation:; Room 4:; Exploring the surrounding area, especially the truncating tile, could yield some more evidence of the early Frankish usage of Room 4. However, one must remember that this room had been thoroughly explored in the 1990s. Cleaning of graves 1997-43 (context 896) and 1997-13C (context 897) yielded pottery, tile, and human and animal bone from the lowest level of fill in the grave cut, but this material was fragmentary and the information available from such scrappy material may be limited. The human skeletal material will be compared to that excavated in the 1990s in an effort to rejoin elements for osteological analysis.; ; Room 6:; Future work should aim at continuing to stratigraphically unify the whole area of excavation. As the excavation of Context 611 demonstrated, the removal of layers related to exposure and weathering of the area can greatly enhance its interpretation and facilitate correlations between previous and current excavations. As stated above, this context could be a portion of Floor 7 left unexcavated in 1996 (NB 864, p.117). However, the effects of two decades of weathering and trampling affected negatively the visibility of the stratigraphic relationships among context.; Finally, the removal of the layers referred to as Floor 5 and Floor 6 is the next logical step in the stratigraphic sequence, after removal of any burials cut into these surfaces. Finally, Graves 1996-5 (Basket 63) and 1995-2 (Basket 60) (NB 864 p.107) require further examination in order to assess whether these burials were completely excavated.","","","Corinthia | Ancient Corinth | Central Area | Temple E, Temenos | Temple E, Southeast","Final Report Unit 2, Rooms 4 and 6. Session I 2015","","","","Temple E, Southeast 2015 by Rodríguez-Álvarez, Emilio, Lorenzová, Alžběta with additions from Larkin Kennedy (2015-04-21 to 2015-04-28)"