Journal / Summary:D-10-2005-Summary

Area D Trench 10

June 23, 2005

Final Trench Sumary

S. TORPIL

The trench D10 was opened on the 6th of June. The trench D10 is a 5x3.5 m trench. It is located at the slope of the tepe and to the south of trench D8. The trench was opened by Bekir Gurdil, was taken on, on 13  June by Jon Vidar, was closed by Sibel Torpil. The aim of opening this trench was to catch the essential lines of the Ubaid architecture, because one of the Ubaid rooms being revealed in D8 was running towards to the south, so in order to catch the lines the trench was set up to the south of D8. After removing top-soil and sub-topsoil in the south of the trench two large pits had been revealed L4 and L5. Both of these pits were continuing to the west section. On the third day of this trench a rectangular (L7) was unearthed. The western wall of this house was partially preserved. Till that it was thought that L3 was a wall (L3; rows of rock), but it turned out to be clear that L3 was not a wall, but it was a pit filled with rocks and potsherds. But on the other hand it was also thought that L3 was dug through during the 2nd millennium into the Ubaid layer and that it was filled with cobbles and sherds. This pit seemed to  be dug diagonally towards the East adjusting the possible slope of the tepe (mound). In order to be sure of the stratigraphic remarks of the pit, the trench D6 was opened (but the level of D6 could not reach to the same level of D10). Further excavations have proven that L7 (the little room) had a cell plan, and addition to this wall the two rows of mud- bricks being labeled as  L9 were bordering the north wall of the little room L7.

The main aim was to figure out the relationship between the room L7 and the surrounding walls, and how this room connects with the architecture in D8. The further excavations have proved that the wall L9 and L10 were connecting  the structures of D10 and D8 together, which means that the structure in D10 is part of the same structure as that of D8. The main aim of setting up this trench fulfilled the purpose of opening the trench. The room  L7 was enclosed by the walls L10, L12 and L9 and the bottom of the room maws approximately in line with the surface L15, but in later phases the room L7 was filled with a layer of mud-brick being called as L20, and the mud- bricks were enclosed by the wall L14 which was added on the north side. But  it was hard to catch the lines of a possible wall to determine how the north wall of L7 was constructed during the earlier phase. Besides these all during excavations little amount of grin impressions showed up in L19, during articulating the impressions a big grinding stone had been found close to the edge  of L21 which was bordered by L19.

When the trench was taken down to the same level by taking down all the locia that were existing in D10, the entire trench gained a new locus number L30, except for the pits L5, L31 and the feature L32. Since it was the end of the season our aim was to close the trench by bring down each locia to the same level, but on the last day the 23rd of June during scraping L30 the lines of a mud- brick wall came up. This mud-brick wall is L33 and will remain the same until next season, four slabs of the mud-bricks are visible to be observed, hope that the lines will not disappear within the year. The wall L33 is coming from the northwest of the trench, at the south side of the trench it makes a corner and then it heads towards the south west of the trench.

All in all we can say that the trench is going to remain like this until next season.