| Collection: | Corinth | |
| Type: | Basket | |
| Name: | Nezi Field, context 1235 | |
| Area: | Nezi Field | |
| Title: | Dump fill E of wall 332 and under structure 452 | |
| Category: | Deposit | |
| Notebook: | 1107 | |
| Context: | 1235 | |
| Page: | 0 | |
| Date: | 2013/06/12 | |
| Lot: | Lot 2013-018 | |
| Stratum: | few tiles, carbon, metal, pottery, big pieces of lime, coins, bones, mudbrick | |
| Description: | Top slope of the context is slight down to the N. The soil color is dark reddish grey. The soil compaction is loose. The soil is moderately sorted. It is sandy clay. | |
| Notes: | This is a loose fill deposit overlaying the deposit containing the large well preserved jug (see notes for 1232 for why we are excavating this area right now). The tiles from it are all broken into squares of about the same size. Rossana is finding nicely preserved, large pieces of pottery; after finding three large Byzantine(?) coins (2013-220 in the sieve, and -221 and -222 in situ), she decided to sieve 100%, and we promptly found two more coins in the sieve (-223 and -224) and two in place, laying flat against structure 452 to the south (-226 and -227), and a third (-225) a bit further east. We must have some sort of hoard here, and since the coins do not seem to have been contained in a ceramic vessel, perhaps they were originally in a leather bag. Guy suggests that structure 452 just south of this deposit is a staircase, so this context would be under the stairs; under stairs somewhere to the north was another hoard of metal objects. The coins kept coming, both in situ and from the sieve. At this point, they are localized at the north side of structure 452, in the soil a few centimeters beneath the lowest course of stones, and beginning to go under the structure. 13 June 2013 This morning we begin by excavating the non-coin area of this context, in preparation to possibly remove structure 452. We find another, smaller coin in the sieve (233), which is probably Late Antique to match the few pieces of African Red Slip in the pottery bucket. There is some disintegrated mudbrick flat lying in the sough scarp area both under the east corner of structure 452 and extending east beyond it, further confirmation that it is the same deposit extending under the structure, outward to its north (where we're excavating) and east to the edge of the pit. The more we excavate, the clearer it is that the pot we set out to rescue is a) almost complete, though not intact, and b) set in the same soil deposit in which we are currently excavating, not two strata as we originallly thought, so we are removing the pot as part of this context. Beneath it was a large piece (0.135x0.035) of carbonized wood, which we removed and saved separately. 11:15 After removing the final visible coin (234) in the scarp beneath structure 452, only to find another coin behind it, we have decided to remove structure 452 in order to continue excavating the southern extend of deposit 1235 continuing under the structure and to its east, in hopes of recovering the entire coin hoard. 17 June 2013 Having removed structure 452 and the strip of soil above 1235 to the east of the structure (as context 1243), we are now ready to resume work on 1235 proper. This deposit does seem to continue further south, beyond the southern edge of structure 452, but we have drawn an arbitrary edge here for purposes of time and convenience. 11:00 Panos came over, and we have now decided that this fill under the structure (i.e. more 1235) and the fill under 1243 are different, so we will do the fill under 1243 first before finishing this context. 12:15 We finally begin again on the area of 1235 which was under structure 452. The top layer is quite compact, either from the weight of the structure over time or from an intentional bedding activity to create a good surface. In this area of the deposit, we are getting only small pieces of pottery and not much else after the final few coins (252, 254, 255), unlike the large sherds and abundant bone we found further north. 18 June 2013 We stop digging this deposit when Panos came down on a very similar deposit to 1235 in inclusions and composition, with stones and tiles and rich in pottery. This new deposit is all around the Frankish pits 527 and 528. For this season we have to stop digging in this area. We encourage further excavation here: the numerous coins we found in 1235 can provide a terminus ante quem for this layer exposed beneath 1235. | |
| Context Pottery: | Cooking ware. Collar2 rims. (saved to lot) .thickened rim; Cooking ware. Collar 11 rim. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. Premedieval30 bodysherds. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. measles, slipped slip painted sgraffito (1140-1160), bowl. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. plain glazed, unslipped (800-1100), chafing dish. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware polychrome, plate. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Cooking ware. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware plain, dish. 1 rim. (saved to lot) .with upturned rim; Fineware. White ware plain, bowl. 1 rim. (saved to lot) .with upturned rim; Fineware. plain glazed, unslipped (800-1100), cup. 1 handle. 2 bodysherds. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware, mug. 1 rim. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Cooking ware. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. sgraffito I, slipped painted (1160-1180), dish. 1 rim. (saved to lot) .; Cooking ware. Basin10 rims. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware plain, cup. 3 handles. 5 bodysherds. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. plain glazed, unslipped (800-1100), pitcher. 1 rim. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware slipped, plate. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Cooking ware. Triangular 33 rims. (saved to lot) .; Plainware. Table amphora1 rim. (saved to lot) .with exterior groove; Fineware. glaze painted 2, bowl. 1 rim. (saved to lot) .; Plainware. Pedestal plate1 rim. 1 bodysherd. (saved to lot) .; Fineware. White ware plain unidentified3 bodysherds. (saved to lot) .; Plainware. table amphora3 rims. 1 handle. 3 bodysherds. (saved to lot) . | |
| Pottery Summary: | 260 frag(s) 0.15 kg. (100% saved) fineware. | |
| 760 frag(s) 13.5 kg. (100% saved) coarseware. | ||
| 224 frag(s) 2.81 kg. (100% saved) cooking ware. | ||
| Context Artifacts: | bronze, folded triangle, l 0.024 (saved to lot); metal, small fragments 4, nail shaft?, 3 (saved to lot); glass, clear greenish blue, tubular rim or base, outturned, with ridge underneath, 1 (saved to lot); nail, round shaft, 1, L. 0.08, Diam. head 0.025 (saved to lot); glass, olive green, bs 1 (saved to lot); slag, l 0.65 x w 0.05 x h 0.25, 1 (saved to lot); nail, round head Diam. 0.028, 1 (saved to lot); glass, clear greenish blue, thickened rounded rim, slightly inturned, 1 (saved to lot); glass, clear, colorless, bs 4, rounded rim 1 (saved to lot); glass, clear, greenish-blue, base? with raised ring, 1 (saved to lot); tessera, blue, stone, 1, white stone 1 (saved to lot); glass, clear, greenish-blue, bs 23, one with applied linear decoration (saved to lot); glass, clear amber, bs 2, lump 1 (saved to lot) | |
| Period: | Late Byzantine (1059-1210 AD) | |
| Chronology: | Late 11th-early 12th century AD | |
| Grid: | 264.17-262.77E, 1003.75-1006.06N | |
| XMin: | 262.77 | |
| XMax: | 264.17 | |
| YMin: | 1003.75 | |
| YMax: | 1006.06 | |
| Site: | Corinth | |
| City: | Ancient Corinth | |
| Country: | Greece | |
| Masl: | 86.37-86.73m. | |
| References: | Coins (20) |