We are continuing down through Locus 3, using shovels on the western part of the locus and trowels on the eastern part, where the beams are located and there are more rocks. The soil in the SW corner of the locus is mostly medium brown, and in the NW corner, especially in the area where the beam was found, the soil is mottled medium brown and black. In the SE corner, it appears that it might be two crossed beams, laying on top of each other, surrounded by what appears to be burnt clay. The top of the beam is at 2284.95 masl and the burnt clay is at a depth of 2284.72 masl. Out of the NE corner cam some heavily carbonized bones.
Deeper in the NE corner, we hit a layer of clay which was under the black soil in that area, and at the current level, the light tan clay is surrounded by black soil. Because of this discovery, I opened a new locus (Locus 4). The middle section was a bit higher than the corners, but because of the possibility that the clay was part of a floor, I went ahead and opened the locus before making it totally level. Near the clay, I took a piece of charcoal for a C14 sample (Ar/Ge.T31.4.C14.01). The piece was approx. 3cm x 2cm x 2cm and was at a depth of 2284.81 masl. If this is a floor, the sample was not directly on it, but just above it, giving us a terminus ante quem .
While taking down the locus, we exposed more of the beam in the northern wall (the beam from which sample Ar/Ge.T31.2.C14.01 was taken). The top of this beam is at 2285.00 masl and the bottom thus far is at 2284.84 masl. The soil in the NE corner is clayey, which may be a result of floors from above the trench washing down the slope after the destruction of the site and filling in around the collapsed beams. The location of the beams suggests that the trench may be placed in the interior of a covered/roofed space. Near the beam along the northern wall, we found a small ceramic disk (Ar/Ge.T31.4.CO.01) at 2284.82 masl.
The beam in the northern wall is Locus 6 and the beam in the eastern wall is Locus 7.