Horbat Rosh Zayit. An Iron Age Storage Fort and Village 965406040X, 9789654060400

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IAA Reports, No. 8

Horbat Rosh Zayit An Iron Age Storage Fort and Village Z. GAL and Y. ALEXANDRE

With contributions by

U. Baruch, Y. Goren, M. Kislev, R. Kletter, L. Kolska Horwitz, O. Lernau, N. Liphschitz, M. Melamed and T. Schick

ISRAEL ANTIQUITIES AUTHORITY JERUSALEM 2000

Publications of the Israel Antiquities Authority Editor­in­Chief: Ayala Sussmann Volume Editor: Shelley Sadeh Cover: Isometric view ­ Stephen Rosenberg Photo ­ Howard Smithline Plans: Natalia Zak

Layout and Typesetting: YaelB overman Printed at the Old City Press Ltd, Jerusalem

ISBN 965­406­040­X © ISRAEL ANTIQUITIES AUTHORITY 2000 POB 586, Jerusalem 91004

Contents List of Plans List of Figures (maps, photographs, pottery plates) List of Tables

i i

vi

PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

1

CHAPTER I: THE SITE 1. THE DISCOVERY OF THE SITE 2. THE SITE ENVIRONMENT 3. THE EXCAVATION METHODS

3 3 6

CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA ­ ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY THE STRATA IN THE FORT AREA STRATUM III: THE PRE­FORT OCCUPATION 3. STRATUM II: THE FORT 1

.

8 8

'

2.

4.

3.1. Stratum lib 3.2. Stratum Ha

12 16

STRATUM I: THE POST­FORT OCCUPATION

23

CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA ­ THE OBJECTS 1.

2. 3.

INTRODUCTION 1.1. Methodologyof the Pottery Analysis 1 .2. Distribution of the Finds 1.3. Vessel Types

25 27 28

STRATUM III: THE POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS STRATA Ilb­IIa: THE POTTERY

30

3.1. Bowls 3.2. Chalices 3.3. Kraters

34 39 39 40 44 53 53 54 61 67 67 68 79 80

3.4. Cooking Pots 3.5. Storage Jars 3.6. Pithos 3.7. Holemouth Jars 3.8. Jugs 3.9. Juglets

3.10. Lamps 3.11. Baking Trays 3.12.Black­on­Red Ware 3.13. Cypriot White­Painted and Cypriot Bichrome Ware 3.14. Zoomorphic Vessels 3.15. Askos 3.16. Kernos 3.17. The Pottery Figures

81 81 83

4. STRATA Ilb­IIa: THE OTHER OBJECTS 4.1.Stone Vessels 4.2. Jar Stoppers and Clay Thong Sealings 4.3. Scrapers 4.4. Iron and Bronze Agricultural Tools 4.5. Weapons 4.6. Weights ­ R. Kletter 4.7. Potters' Marks 4.8. Inscribed Jar Sherd 4.9. Vaira 4.10. Stone, Metal and Small Finds Figures

123 125 127 127 128 1

29

133 133

134

5. STRATUM I: THE POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS 6. STATISTICAL TABLES AND CHARTS OF POTTERY AND OTHER VESSELS

141

146

CHAPTER IV: THE FORT AREA ­ SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

THE NATURE OF THE POTTERY REPERTOIRE A FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF THE FORT THE RELATIVE CHRONOLOGY THE ABSOLUTE CHRONOLOGY A NOTE ON IRON AGE II CHRONOLOGY

149 150 150 151

152

CHAPTER V: AREA A THE ARCHITECTURE THE POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS 3. THE NATURE AND CHRONOLOGY OF AREA A 1. 2.

CHAPTER VI: AREA B 1.THE ARCHITECTURE 2. THE POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS 3. THE NATURE AND CHRONOLOGY OF AREA B

153 155 159

161

167 177

CHAPTER VII: AREA C THE ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY THE POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS 3. THE NATURE AND CHRONOLOGY OF AREA C 1

.

2.

179 82

1

194

CHAPTER VIII: GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 1 .

2. 3. 4. 5.

THE THE THE THE THE

APPENDIX 1: APPENDIX 2: APPENDIX 3: APPENDIX 4: APPENDIX 5: APPENDIX 6:

IDENTIFICATION OF THE SITE AND THE OCCUPATION OF STRATUM III FORT STRATA Ilb­IIa. SUMMARY OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE HISTORICAL RECORD HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE FORT LATER OCCUPATION OF THE SITE VESSELS SUBJECTED TO PETROGRAPHIC ANALYSIS ­ Y. Goren CHARRED WOOD REMAINS ­ U. Baruch and N. Liphschitz ANCIENT INFESTED WHEAT AND HORSEBEAN ­ M. Kislev and Y. Melamed ANIMAL EXPLOITATION ­ ARCHAEOZOOLOGICAL ANALYSIS ­ L. Kolska Horwitz FISH BONES ­ O. Lernau TEXTILE REMAINS ­ T. Schick

LIST OF LOCI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS REFERENCES

196 198 199 199

200 202 203 206 221

223 238 240 244

i LIST OF PLANS Plan 1. Stratum III, Phase b Plan 2. Stratum III, Phase a Plan 3. General Plan of Stratum II Fort, Phases b,a, and Stratum I Plan 4. Stratum lib Plan 5. Stratum Ha

Plan 6. Stratum I Plan 7 Area A. Building 49 Plan 8. Area A. Building 400 Plan 9. Area B. Building 100 Plan 10. Area C (phases are indicated in brackets)

LIST OF FIGURES (maps, photographs, pottery plates) I. 1 . 1.2. 1.3.

1.4. 1.5. 1.6.

The location of Horbat Rosh Zayit. View of Horbat Rosh Zayit from the 'Akko Plain (in the centre of the photograph). The 'Akko Plain from Horbat Rosh Zayit. The geographical zones: A ­ the 'Akko Plain, B ­ the low hills, C the Lower Galilee Mountains. A typical stone pile prior to excavation. A general plan of the site showing the excavated areas.

11.13.

11.14. 11.15. 11.16.

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11.2. 11.3.

Stratum Ilia: Locus 81 showing walls W83 and W83a, Tabun 79 and horseshoe­shaped

Installation 82, facing east. In foreground flimsy walls of Stratum Illb and stoppers. A section through Cistern 80 Stratum Ilia underlying the walls of the

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facing east.

W32 (at the centre), facing south. Note the six courses at the juncture with Wall W20. The outer face of the western Fortification Wall W62 (facing east). Water Cistern L3 1 at the base of wall. Central Hall 16/73 partially paved with stones, facing west. Stone­built Basin 25, in Central Hall 16/73, facing east. Isometric reconstruction of the fort.

11.12. Wall

IL17. Ashlars laid in the headers and stretchers technique at the southwestern corner of the main

building. 11.18. Storage jars in Basement Room 23­

IL19. StoraSe Jars in the corner of Basement Room 23­ Notice the stopper in situ. 11.20. Two rows of storage jars in Basement Room 53. 11.21. 'Hippo' jar sealed with a clay stopper in

,"" r, ._ _ 11.4. The fort: a general view facing west. The mainrr TT

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entrance on the upper nght. .,.t ,. Stratum II: view of the fort showing Walls W62 ot (Str. Ha), W70 (Str. lib) and W18 (Str. Ilb­a), J facing south. b The core of the westem Slacis (W70> on the northwestern ashlar­built corner of the main

Basement Room 53. __ ._ o1 11.22. Short­necked jar with a clay stopper in situ in J FF Room 43. TTOQ _ u .u w 7/ WO/1 u1 11.23. The poorly­built Wall W24 blocking the main entrance. 11.24. The doorway between Room 20 and Central Hall 16/73 blocked b stones

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was initiated. Fig. I.I. The locationof Horbat Rosh Zayit.

2.

The Site Environment

Fifteen kilometres east of the town of 'Akko and 152 m above sea level, Horbat Rosh Zayit is located on a narrow irdge which slopes down from the mountains of the Lower Galilee (557 m above sea level) in the east, to the 'Akko Plain (20 m above sea level) in the west. This ridge is part of a chain of low hills which extends from modern Qiryat Tiv'on on the south along the eastern fringes of the 'Akko Plain. The ridge is dissected by narrow wadis with stony slopes and limited

sections of terra­rosa soils in the wadi beds. It forms an intermediate hilly zone between the Lower Galilee mountains and the 'Akko coastal plain (Figs. 1.2­1.4). The ridge on which the site is located, like its immediate surroundings, is of bare, soft limestone bedrock. The hills are covered with natural scrub vegetation, characterised by typical low Mediterranean forest consisting of Pistacia lentiscus, oak and Pistacia palaestina. The stony landscape was of limited

4

CHAPTER I: THE SITE

Horbat Rosh Zayit

Fig. 1.2. Viewof Horbat Rosh Zayit from the 'Akko Plain (facing east).

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Fig. 1.3. The (Akko Plain from Horbat Rosh Zayit (facing w^5r(

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5

CHAPTER I: THE SITE

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agricultural potential, suitable only for olive groves and vineyards. This ancient land­use can be inferred from the many Iron Age oil presses found at the site (see Chap. VI), and from the Byzantine rock­cut wine presses in the vicinity associated with the nearby Roman­Byzantine sites at Horbat Beza\ Horbat Ya'anin and the modern village of Sha'ab. The vicinity of Horbat Rosh Zayit was also characterised by olive groves in recent centuries, and this tradition, still visible today, is reflected in the Arabic name of the site. The adjacent narrow wadis were probably exploited for the limited cultivation of cereals. However, less than 2 km north of the site lies the wide rivermouth of Nahal Hillazon (Wadi Sha'ab), where an abundance of fertile terra­rosa soils is found,well­ suited for dry­farming. Although this valley lies some distance from Horbat Rosh Zayit, and adjacent to the site of Horbat Ya'anin, in light of the function of the Horbat Rosh Zayit fort as

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a central storehouse, it is almost certain that the produce of these lands was stored at the site (see Chap. VIII: 4 p. 199).

The annual rainfall in the region is 500 mm. There are no natural, stable water sources at Horbat Rosh Zayit or in its immediate vicinity. The water supply was dependent solely on the collection of rainwater in rock­cut cisterns, two of which were located and one of which was excavated. The closest stable water sources are springs in the Arab villages Kabul and Sha'ab, situated2 km to the south and north respectively. Nahal Hillazon, 2 km to the north, did not provide a perennial water supply and water was scarce there in the summer. Horbat Rosh Zayit and its vicinity are currently covered by a pine forest, planted in the 1960s, today blocking the view in all directions. In antiquity, however, the site overlooked the entire 'Akko Plain, from the Carmel Range in the south, to Rosh Haniqra in

5

CHAPTER I: THE SITE

the north, including the ancient harbour town of 'Akko (Fig. 1.3). The site itself is not located on a major ancient roadway; on the contrary, it is somewhat set back from the main route. These geographical factors must be taken into consideration when evaluating the significance of the fort located at the site. Although Horbat Rosh Zayit is located in the low hill zone, it is part of the Iron Age settlement pattern of the neighbouring regions. The major Iron Age sites in these regions may be classified within the following sub­regional zones (Fig. L4):

about 25 dunams. Several piles of stones lay within this area, notably around the central mound. These stone piles are about5m in diameter and 2 m high (Fig. 1­5). From this description it is clear that Horbat Rosh Zayit is not a typical tell. The excavation strategy had to overcome the difficulties created by the forest and the terraced topography, which prevented the implementation of an overall grid. A local grid was set up for each excavated area but in some cases the grid was of limited use. It soon became evident that within the central mound the tops of the walls lay immediately

Zone A: The 'Akko Plain: Tel 'Akko, Tel Birah, Horbat Ya'anin, Tel Kison (Tell Keisan), Tel Aphek and Tell Abu Hawam

below the surface and that the building was Preserved t0 a significant height. Consequently, the excavation was carried out by rooms rather than according to the grid.

Zone B: The low hills Horbat Rosh Zayit, Khirbat Abu Mudawwar Tamra, Khirbat Abu Mudawwar

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CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA ­ ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

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2.2. Stratum III, Phase a (Plan 2) Phase a consisted of a domestic unit of which only a small kitchen area was exposed. The floor of Phase a lay c. 0.25 m above Phase b. This unit was defined by two walls ­ the northern wall W83, 0.70 m wide and exposed for a length of c. 6 m, and the eastern wall W83a, of which the inner face was exposed at the corner with W83. These walls partially underlie the walls of the fort and were cut by the latter during its construction (Fig. 11.3). Wall W83 was preserved to a height of only 0.35 m, W83a to a height of 0.55 m, partly covered by the fill and debris of Stratum II. This room had a beaten­earth floor, L81, on which was constructed a baked­mud tabun, L79, with a diameter of 0.90 m and preserved to a height of 0.95 m. A

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horseshoe­shaped plastered installation (L82) with a diameter of 1 m, was built close to the atbwcr (Fig. II.l). In the centre a complete cooldng pot lay in situ. The installation was, therefore, a hearth used for cooking food. East of this room, the bell­shaped, rock­cut Cistern 80 continued in use. In addition to the excavation of the area of the central hall of the fort, the remains of Stratum III were also reached outside the building, where the northern fortification wall W94 was excavated down to its base. The area of L93 (2 x 0.50 m) was too small to identify architectural elements, but the level of the possible floor was similar to that of Stratum Ilia in the fort, and the few cooking­pot rims on the floor were datable to this stratum. (For pottery, see III.2, pp. 30­33.)

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Fig.II. 3. Stratum Ilia underlying the walls of the fort, facing east.

CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA

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The fortification system was unusual, consisting of sloping stone walls built as a glacis against the walls of the square main building. The main building was constructed prior to the fortification walls, and its walls served as the construction core for the latter (Fig. II.6).

Fig.II. 4.The fort: a generalview facing west. The main entrance is on the upper right.

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Fig.II. 6. The coreof the western glacis (W70) lying on ther­ ; , , ., * . . .;,. northwestern ashlar­built cornerofmainbuilding (WIO), facing east. Also note thelater fortification wallW62. r

13

ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

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The fortification walls thus consolidated and protected the walls of the building. The well­built ashlar corners of the building, where exposed, are an additional indication of its importance. It is possible that this building stood independently as a free­standing structure before the fortification walls were constructed, and therefore there were three building phases. However, this is doubtful as the fort existed for a short duration and a fortification system would have been necessary from the outset. The glacis wall on the west side, W70, is well­preserved. The wall is approximately 2.30 m wide at the base and narrows to a width of 1m at the extant top, abutting, but not attached to the western wallof the building, W18. The wall was exposed for a length of about 8 m and stands to a height of 1.80 m comprising some 11 courses. It was built of undressed fieldstones with dimensions of c. 0.40 x 0.35 x 0.25 m. The result was a glacis or sloping stone mantle leaning against the

Fig. //. 7. The northern glacis wall, W94, facing west.

walls of the building at an angle of c.

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(see section,

A similar glacis wall, W94, abuts onto the northern wall of the building, W10. Here the glacis was exposed for a lengthof c. 1 1 m and a maximum height of 1 .90 m,

down to its bottom course (Fig. II.7). The eastern end of W94 consisted of only six to seven courses, but on the western side it was composed of nine to ten courses to accommodate the natural slope of the bedrock. The glacis was built of fieldstones of varying dimensions, n r 1r . . , carefully set one on top of another forming a slope with o r an an^le of c­ 55O. The glacis wal1 W94 was built on a thin layer of fill overlying a single course of flattish stones lying on the bedrock. Only a very small area was exposed to this depth and it is probable that these stones belong to a floor of Stratum III (see above). On the eastern side of the building a wall, W46, was found adjacent to Wall W23 of the building. W46 was only excavated in a small area and it was not evident whether it was sloping, but it is likely that it fulfilled a similar function to the walls on the western and northern sides. In effect, the walls of the building protected by the glacis functioned as fortification walls. They originally rose above the glacis wall, the latter providing consolidation of the walls and additional strength against attack. This technique is unknown from other Iron Age fortifications. A larger­scale, similar but not identical, wall and stone glacis dating from the 10th century BCE were excavated at Tel Malhata in the Be'er Sheba' Valley (Kochavi 1972:35). Other 9th­8th century BCE sites which were fortified in a similar technique are the round tower at Rujm Abu Mughaiyir j

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CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA ­ ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

in the Jordan Rift Valley (Yeivin 1992:156; Fig. 4) and the fort at 4En Hazeva (Cohen 1993:593­594). At the northern and southern ends of the western glacis wall, W70, were two perpendicular walls, W29

and W30, which, it seems, belonged to two towers at the southwestern and northwestern corners of the fort. Logically, though tentatively as the relevant area was not excavated, two towers can be postulated at the other two corners. Since W29 and W30 were buried under the later fortification wallof Phase a, W62, it seems that the earlier towers were contemporary with the glacis, but were superseded by the later fortification system. The relationship between W30 of the northwestern tower and the doorway of the main building, as well as the question of how the towers were entered, remains unsolved. A clear join in the southern wall of the later southern tower suggests that the eastern part of the wall (W48) predated the western part (W55), and probably belonged to the tower of the earlier phase (see Plan 5 and Fig. II.8). The southwest and northwest towers (L37 and L47 respectively) were partially excavated, revealing a thick layer of ash overlying the bedrock floor. Amongst the ashes and debris were considerable quantities of pottery lying on the floors, including many vessels of Cypriot and Phoenician origin. The assemblage from Tower 47 is of a special interest, as it includes a large quantity of Cypro­Phoenician pottery and an exceptional kernos which may indicate a cultic function (see below, pp. 81­82: Figs. 111.70, 71 and Gal

1993). In the southwestern Tower 37 there was also fine ware pottery (Figs. 111.72, 73). No entrance was found in the fortification wall. It is possible that the entrance was not excavated, but it is more likely that there was no entrance through the fortifications and that entry into the fort was via ladders.

The Building The main building was built partly on the bedrock and partly overlying Stratum III (see above, p. 10). The stratigraphic relationship between Stratum III and Stratum lib is evident from the foundation trenches (L91 and L75a) of the Stratum lib walls W41andW 12, which cut into the earlier stratum (section in Figs. 11.9, 10). The building was almost a symmetrical square, measuring 15.50 x 16 m. The outer corners of the building were built of huge, carefully­laid ashlars measuring c. 0.90­0.95 x 0.30 x 0.40 m, of which 10­ 11 courses were extant at the southwestern and northwestern corners. The outer walls of the building were 1.45 m wide and the inner partition walls were 1.10 m wide. The walls were built on the bedrock and are preserved to an impressive height of c. 3 m. The architectural and stratigraphic evidence indicates that the building was two storeys high and it may have originally stood to a height of 5 m. The main entrance into the building was on the upper storey and entry into the basement rooms must have been via ladders or steps from the floors of the upper level.

Fig.II. 8.The join in the southwestern towerwall, facing south.

CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA ­ ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

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Fig.II. 9. A south­north section in

Fig. 11.10. A section across Central Hall 16/73 showing

Central Hall 16/73, facing east.

Stratum III(lower part), Strata Hb­IIa (right side) and Stratum I (upper part).

The walls of the fort were constructed in the earlier phase, lib, and continued to serve, with only minor changes, in the later phase. Evidence of the nature of the earlier fort is to be found mainly in Rooms 56, 59 and 60, and in the central hall or courtyard (L78), where the walls were exposed down to bedrock. The entrance into the main building was through a doorway, 1.60 m wide, located in the northwest corner of the building (Fig. II. 11). Since no entrance was found in the outer fortification wall, it is probable that the fort was entered by a ladder lowered down from the wall of the northwestern tower, adjacent to the entrance into the building. The doorway led into an entry room, or lobby, from which there was another doorway to the right, leading into the central hall or courtyard. The entry room was

not excavated below the Phase Ha floor, but it is probable that the plan was similar in the earlier phase and the dimensions of the room were c. 6 x 3.50 m. The central hall was a long room with dimensions of 9 x 3.80 m and was in use in both phases. There is no evidence to indicate whether this was a roofed room or an open courtyard. The finds in the hall in the later phase, namely the relatively large proportion of cooking pots and all of the few baking trays found in the fort, indicate that this central hall may have been an open unroofed space used for cooking and other activities. The stratigraphic evidence shows that the central hall, as opposed to the other rooms, did not have a basement storey, but directly overlay the ruined walls and debris of Stratum III (sections in Plan 5; Fig. 11.9).

Fig. 11.11.The fort looking west after consolidation and backifllingof the rooms.

CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA ­ ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

16

The central hall had doorways leading into wings on three sides: three doors into the two rooms of the northern wing, three into the rooms of the southern wing and two into the eastern (back) wing (Figs. II.4, 11.11). The walls were constructed mainly of rubble but the entrances were well built of ashlar masonry l^d m headers­and­stretchers technique, and had stone thresholds. These doorways were set out symmetrically, with the doorways on the southern side facing the ones on the northern side. The wings consisted ofground­ storey rooms with basements below them (see section in Plan 5). It appears that after the destruction of the Phase b fort some 0^ tne rooms were cleaned out and the floors were reused )Room 8/23). The architectural evidence for the earlier phase consistsof two walls, W31 and W32, which were the continuation of the two east­west walls of the courtyard (W41 and W12) and were part of the main

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The Fortiifcations

The later phase of the fort was fortified by a massive stone wall on the west, W62, which was built of undressed fieldstones, similar to those of the building, measuring c. 0.40 x 0.35 x 0.25 m (Fig. 11.13). This defence system, if it encompassed the entire fort, would have created an almost square fort, measuring approximately 24 x 24 m. It is unclear, however, whether this outer fortification wall did exist on all four sides of the fort. The western wall wasc.2 m wide and was constructed after the partial destruction of the earlier glacis wall, on top of the stone piles of its ruins. Constructionally, this new wall had a solid vertical outer face, but in some places its inner face was set on the stones and the lower courses of the earlier glacis wall. There seems to have been a small cross wall, W98, incorporated into fortification wall W62, and leaning on

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CHAPTER II: THE FORT AREA

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ARCHITECTURE AND STRATIGRAPHY

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1.2. Distribution of the Finds

Table 111.3 illustrates the number and percentage of each type of vessel found in each of the major loci in the final phase of the fort (Stratum Ila). Fig.HI. 123 presents the data in graphic form. The fort can be divided into three main areas of activity: the central hall (Loci 16, 73 and 25), the ground floor rooms (Loci 18, 20, 40, 43, 44, 86 and 88) and the basement rooms (Loci 23, 52 and 53). As a result of the violent conflagration the ground floor and all its contents collapsed into the basement, and it was not always possible to ascertain whether vessels originated from the ground floor or from the basement. The picture that does emerge very clearly is that the basement served as a storage facility and was packed with hundreds of storage jars. In total, c. 250 vessels were found in the three basement rooms excavated. Storage jars representc.61^0 of all the pottery vessels in the basement rooms. Other vessels included bowls

28

CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA

(296), cooking pots (696), jugs and dipper juglets for pouring liquids (1096), unused lamps (396) and stoppers (996). The stoppers were used for sealing the Jars, and the lamps were probably used as lids on jars whose sealed stoppers had been removed. In addition to pottery vessels, also found in the basement were five ploughshares, two sickles and some other tools. Each basement room contained several different typesof jars, but, as was evident at the time of excavation, Basement Room 53 was packed with a row of 4hippo' jars (3096 of the jars in the room), whereas Basement Room 23 housed mainly short­necked jars (4490 of the jars). On the ground floor, the distribution of the finds indicates that several activities were carried out here. In the central hall or courtyard (Loci 16/73, 25), probably unroofed, were found bowls (1396), baking trays and cooking pots (1896), jugsand juglets (1096), jars (3396), lamps (596), stoppers (1296) and special vessels (796). All the jars were fragmentary, probably broken as a result of day to day use in the courtyard (pouring, filling, etc.). The variety of the vessels present in the courtyard indicates that it served as a central room where various activities took place. The absence of complete storage jars is evidence that it did not serve as a storage room. The rooms located around the central hall contained a large quantity and a great variety of vessels. Whereas Rooms 20, 86 and 88 contained relatively few finds, Rooms 18, 40, 43 and 44 were packed with vessels. The unused cooking pots seem to have been kept predominantly in Room 43 (2596 of all the cooking pots in the fort, including several complete vessels) and in Room 18 (1996). There were also several agircultural implements in Rooms 40 and 43, including eight ploughshares and seven sickles, as well as a large number of bowls (43 bowls or 2796 of the bowls in the fort). Room 20, on the other hand, contained 12 axeheads (8096 of all the axeheads in the fort), a ploughshare and two sickles, suggesting that the room served as a tool room. It is thus clear that an analysis of the distribution of the finds may provide a basis for understanding the different activities that were carried out in the vairous rooms in the fortified storehouse. These functions are summarized in Chap. IV.2 (p. 150).

­

THE OBJECTS

1.3. Vessel Types A list of the vessel types classified in the pottery discussion of Stratum II is presented here for the convenience of the reader.

Bowls B I:Medium­ sized carinated bowls with flat thickened irm. B II: Small to medium carinated bowls with cut rim. Variation: Red­slipped and burnished carinated bowls with cut rim and high ring base. B III: Small to medium carinated bowls with simple irm. B IV: Small rounded bowls with tapered rim. B V: Small fine carinated bowls with pointed rim. B V Variation: Small fine bowl with bar handles. B VI: Small to medium straight­sided bowls, or plates. Bar­handled bowls (too few to define types). Bichrome­painted bowls (too varied to define types). Red­slipped bowls (too few to define types).

Chalices (no types deifned)

Kraters K I: Large kraters with ledged rim. K II: Kraters with thickened rounded rim. Cooking Pots CP I: Cooking pots with triangular rim. CP II: Globular cooking pots with handles, or cooking jugs. CP III: Cooking pots with ridged rim.

Storage Jars SJ la: 'Hippo' storage jars with bulbous body and ridged neck. SJ Ib: Storage jars with ridged neck. SJ II: Storage jars with short neck. SJ II Variation: Storage jars with short neck and flattened base. SJ Ill: Storage jars with high neck. SJ III Variation: Storage jars with high neck and flattened base. SJ IV: Storage jars with button base. SJ V: Small storage jars with high neck.

CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA ­ THE OBJECTS

Holemouth Jars HM I: Holemouth jars with everted rim. HM Ha: Holemouth jars with plain inturned rim. HM lib: Holemouth jars with ribbed inverted rim.

Jugs J I: Wide­necked jugs. J la: Wide­necked jugs with simple rim and pinched mouth.

29

JT lib: Small egg­shaped juglets with handle from rim to shoulder. JT III: Small bag­shaped juglets with handle from mid­neck to shoulder. JT IV: Small juglets with button base and handle from mid­neck to shoulder. JT V: Double­handled juglets. JT Va: Double­handled piriform juglet. JT Vb: Double­handled globular juglet.

J Ib: Wide­necked jugs with simple rim and trefoil mouth. J Ic: Wide­necked jugs with ridged rim and pinched mouth. J Id: Wide­necked jugs with grooved rim and pinched mouth. J I Variations. J II: Narrow­necked jugs. J Ha: Plain jugs with narrow ridged neck. J lib: Bichrome jugs with narrow ridged neck. J lie: Jugs with narrow ridged neck and painted decoration on the neck. J lid: Jugs with narrow ridged neck and mushroom rim. J Ill: Painted jugs. J Ilia: Painted jugs with concentric circle decoration. J Illb: Painted jugs with horizontal band decoration. J IV: Red­slipped jugs. J V: Jugs with strainer spout. J VI: Jugs with short narrow necks. J VII: Local Black­on­Red jugs.

Juglets JT I: Cylindricaldipper juglets. JT la: Regular cylindrical dipper juglets. JT Ib: Squat cylindrical dipper juglets. JT Ic: Cylindrical dipper juglets with conical neck. JT Id: Cylindrical dipper juglets with cut­off rim. JT I Variations: Red­slipped cylindricaldipper juglet. Cylindrical dipper juglet with spout. Cylindrical dipper juglet with strainer. Roundeddipper juglet. Large dipper juglet (?) with holes. JT II­JT V: Container juglets. JT II: Small juglets with handle from rim to shoulder. JT Ha: Small cylindrical juglets with handle from rim to shoulder.

Lamps (No types defined) Baking Trays (No types defined)

Black­on­Red Ware BOR I: Black­on­Red bowls. BOR la: Black­on­Red open bowls with round out­flaring sides. BOR Ib: Black­on­Red deep rounded bowls. BOR Ic: Black­on­Red delicate ridged bowls. BOR II: Black­on­Red jugs. BOR III: Black­on­Red juglets. BOR Ilia: Black­on­Red ridged­neck globular juglets. BOR Illb: Black­on­Red ridged­neck conical juglets. BOR IIIc: Black­on­Red rounded juglets with tall out­flaring neck. BOR Hid: Black­on­Red rounded juglets with short out­flaring neck. BOR Hie: Black­on­Red basket­handled juglets with spout. BOR Illf: Black­on­Red conical vessel.

Cypriot White­Painted and Bichrome Ware White­Painted bowls. White­Painted barrel jugs. White­Painted jugs. White­Painted amphora.

Zoomorphic Vessels Askos

Kernos

,

30

CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA

2. STRATUM III: The POTTERY AND OTHER OBJECTS

The pottery found in Stratum III is limited, both in quantity and in variety. Altogether there are about fitfy vessels that can be attributed with certainty to this stratum, and a similar number of vessels f™m the fin between Strata III and nb which maY belong t0 either stratum. Although two phases were distinguished architecturally within the stratum, no distinctions can be made in the pottery. The repertoire from Stratum m is domestic in character, including mostly bowls and cooking pots, a few storage jars, jugs and lamPS, a chalice, a holemouth jar, a pilgrim lfask and the base and rim of a Black­on­Red bowl­ The pottery consists mainly of sherds and four complete, or almost­complete vessels: a bowl, two cooking pots and a Jug­ The conclusions that can be drawn on the basis of this repertoire are therefore limited. The forms show affinities with the pottery of the subsequent Strata nb­IIa' differing onlY slightly. Bowls (Fig. 111.1:1­10) Eighteen bowls, mainly rim sherds, were found­ A single complete bowl has rounded sides, a flat, 1ow disc base and a very high carination just below the rim (Fig­ 111.1:1). The rim is slightly out­flared and the interior is painted in bichrome style with a red band and two black lines (see below, p. 38 for a discussion of the bichrome bowls in Stratum II). The other rim sherds are similar to the bowl types in the subsequent fort stratum, including a flat, thickened rim, a cut rim, although not sharply cut, a simple rim and a thin­walled bowl with a pointed rim (Fig.III. 1: 2­10; see discussionof bowls below, pp. 34­ ~o, n nru u , , u 1 38). The walls or the bowls seem, however, to be less f J Jt ' . , ' TT cannated than the standard bowl torms in the Stratum 11r^ fort. As regards the decoration and the fimsn' some sherds have red painted decoration, including a red band on the rim (Fig. 111.1:1­2, 5, 8­9), a few have red slip and a single tiny rim sherd has irregular hand burnish on the exterior (Fig. III. 1:10). The ware of the bowls seems to be slightly grittier and redder in colour than that of the bowls of Stratum II, a feature that is also observed

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THE OBJECTS

Cooking Pots (Figs. III. 1 :12­19; III.2) The thirteen cooking pots, including two complete vessels, are comprisedof two different types. Oneof the complete cooking pots, and all the sherds, belong to the open cooking pot type with a carination and a triangular rim. This vessel type is described in detail in the pottery of Stratum II (see below Type CP I, pp. 40­42). The profiles of the pots are fairly similar to those from the Stratum II fort, and likewise exhibit some variety in form. The carination is usually fairly sharp and the single complete pot is shallower than the standard pot from the fort. The triangular rims are slightly overhanging or horizontal, and there is only one example of the pinched triangular rim which, by contrast, is very common in the following stratum. The ware of the pots is similar to those from the fort, and all the pots show signs of use. The maximum diameter of the cooking pots ranges from 32­40 cm. On the basis of the available evidence it is not possible to point to any clear­cut chronological development in the cooking pots from Stratum III to Strata Ilb­IIa. The walls of the pots of the earlier stratum seem to be slightly thinner and the almost total absence of the pinched triangular rim may have some chronological significance. Parallels to cooking pot Type CP I are brought below in the discussion on the pottery from the Stratum II fort (pp 41­42). Fig. IIL1 No. Vessel 1 .

2. 3­

4. 5. 6.

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Locus

Reg. No.

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1996­2425

1996­2426

CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA ­ THE OBJECTS

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CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA ­ THE OBJECTS

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from the rim to the upper part of the body. The pot is large with a height of 30 cm, a maximum diameter of 26 cm and a capacity of 6.5 litres. The ware contains many white calcite grits. This cooking pot is an early form in the tradition of cooking jugs with one or two handles (see discussion of Type CP II, below, pp. 42­43).

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Storage Jar and Holemouth Jar (Fig. 111.3:1). The few small storage­jar rim sherds conform to the jar types from the Stratum II fort and include a couple of short­necked jars (SJ II) and a couple of high­necked jars (SJ III) (see discussion, below, pp. 48­51). There was one holemouth jar with a very short neck

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Fig.III. 2. Two­handled cooking pot (see Fig. 111.1:19).

A single and complete cooking pot of a different type, with signs of burning from use, was found standing in the hearth (L82) of the Stratum III building (Figs. 111.1:19; 111.2). This cooking pot has a deep globular body with a low carination and a rounded base giving it a rather squatbag­ shaped form. It has a fairly straight neck and plain rim with two handles extending

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Holemouth Jar Pilgrim Flask Lamp Jug Bowl

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Jugs and Pilgrim Flask (Figs. 111.3:2, 4; III.4; 111.5). The sherds of a few jugs and one almost­complete vessel were found in Stratum III. The almost­complete jug has a basically globular body, slightly squashed at the mid­body carination (Figs. 111.3:4 and III.4). It has a ring base, gently depressed at the centre. The ware is reddish on the inner and outer surfaces, and fairly brittle with a grey core, similar to the ware of some of the

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Locus 83

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Reg. No. 1209/3 1765/3 1714/1 1757 1714/3

Scale

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CHAPTER III: THE FORT AREA

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