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Code
SB16.39
Season
2016
Narrative

Today we walked what will likely be the final two transects in the Kuchak quadrant for the season. We walked Transect 86 about 1.5 Km north and returned with Transect 87 heading south and to the east of the previous transect ending just at the west end of the forest preserve. Along Transect 87 I recorded several instances of isolated architecture. First there was a wall made of piled smaller stones, maybe belonging to a later period. Nearby there was an artifact scatter of obsidian tools in what seemed to be a seasonal stream - this included another mousterian projectile point, the second in this area. Further along I recorded what was either a very disturbed terrace wall, or an anti erosion wall. Near the middle of the transect, just before a large rocky hill I recorded a field clearance wall, and many levels of terracing heading down the previous hill. I was unable to trace each terrace due to a lack of service, but I dropped an isolated architecture point. Finally at the very end of this transect I recorded a several course wall that seemed to line a possible canal. On Transect 87 the first hill had a number of walls running both along the slope and perpendicular to it, which seemed like modern field clearing. Otherwise the transect was mostly empty until the very end which was near the forest preserve. First I recorded a section where two or three walls with two faces seemed to run parallel to each other with only about a meter between them. It may have been an instance of early field clearing efforts in the area. I also recorded part of a canal trace with rocks lining either side that seemed to still be in use as a means of irrigating the forest preserve. During lunch we learned from locals that there used to be a village within the forest preserve. We marked more points along the fence where I recovered a few sherds and obsidian tools just outside the preserve. On the north-east end of the preserve we confirmed the existence of a village that has now become a lumpy area in the preserve. I also investigated a small cave above the site which did not seem to have any visible artifact. It seems earlier artifact scatters in this area are more likely to be related to the village in the forest preserve than the fortress.