Dig Day 19 -- Dig Tour

I'm separating out our last Thursday because Liz gave us a fantastic tour of the site. When working on the dig we each focused on our square, ignoring what was happening in the other five. One comment we made to Liz when we gathered that Tuesday night was how beneficial and meaningful it would have been to us if we knew more about the greater picture. 

A site tour was given three times. Once at the very beginning. Then in the middle. Then at the end. 

My notes (written back in our room) say:

 

1) Things have changed. Emily moved one square to the right, and our original square was taken over by power diggers to get to the 9th century BC (successful) and to find the bottom of the pit (jury still out on that one). They were still power digging that day. Other changes include walls were removed so they could see what was beneath the walls, and there were now stairs.

2) Liz was pleased we met their lofty goals. That rarely happens. The 8th century BCE is still a mystery.

3) I was really glad not to be there daily. My team are workhorses and there was no chance I would ever keep up, they were even better at sweeping than I was. I could not keep up, nor could I do it as well. As a result, I felt miserable. At the house I did lots of things and could do them well. Made me think of the Bridge Kids.

4) They found an olive press in Olivia's square. Even to my untrained eye it is pretty awesome. It brought up a lot of questions: one was on top of the other, was it a replacement? did they somehow work together? how did it work? Google Mejido oil press to see one in action. I obviously have the named spelled wrong.

5) There is an overall sense of accomplishment.

6) The church kept rocks that were walls (maybe 10m x10m) and dug in the

center (3m x 3m). They dug down about 70 cms (the height of a tall person). This is as deep as the Israeli government will allow them to dig for safety purposes. Will have to figure out how to proceed in two years when they return.

7) Several pits brought up a lot of 7th century pottery.

8) Some walls that oddly ended up being placed where they decided to put baulks. They have partial walls that don't seem to be connected. Lots of questions. Thought of Josh and the Trent House project. Before I left they were uncovering something they had dug years earlier only to discover large stones disappeared where the kitchen used to be. He saw those stone. He photographed and documented those stones. How odd?

9) Plowing through the pit the Israelis they hired only worked Thursday and Monday. They were not as effective as hoped. They switched to using a few powerhouse people from Team Tel.

10) In the church they found about 10-12 large complete vessels. I labeled some of them.

I was never so happy to get back in a car in my life.

Some more pictures from the dig site (day 19):

The "Princeton" Group