All in a day’s work…
After yesterday’s weather put a stop to the excavations at The Cairns in the late afternoon, we arrived on site this morning to a clear and bright day. With warm weather and light wind, spirits were high.
At the end of the day, I went around the trench at The Cairns and was informed of what “went on” during the day.
In the cells, Ole and Deryck held off excavating more of Structure U2 in order to have the wall properly recorded. Instead, they focused on a context just behind the wall of U2 in hopes of finding out more about the way Structure U1 is running next to U2.
In previous weeks, there has been much work in Structure U4. Today, this continued with further excavation of the patchy organic-rich contexts, which include carbonised wood (twigs) and clay. This involves careful work, and the day mostly been focused on paperwork and planning, taking advantage of the good conditions. Ole has been doing this and described it as a steady time for writing the records in the heat.
Continuing to Holly’s area, she was joined by Isaac, Dan, and Craig (who often ran tours of the site for visitors). Isaac and Dan have continued to uncover the souterrain entrance area and rubble just outside the broch wall. Animal bone, including some articulated and teeth, were discovered. They also uncovered some stone tools and a quernstone, built into the souterrain wall. This quern appears to include an indented pivot on the surface facing upwards, which would have most likely been used for a door (a sign of good recycling, I’d say!).
A pottery rim from Structure O today. (📷 Martin Carruthers)
Dani and Cath were in Structure O, and, following on from yesterday, lifted the paving stones. They are also uncovering rubble in Structure O and, at the same time, revealing more of the base of the walls.
In the “Overburden” (aka Ross’s area), there has been much development.
Claire has led the supervising this year and has done a cracking job, teaching me a lot about the various little things necessary on site (mostly the paperwork details!). Nathan and I started the day taking photographs of the paved flooring uncovered in the main structure of the “Overburden” in the last couple weeks.
After this was completed, we worked to take down a rubble layer on top of the remaining paving in the eastern side of the structure. During this endeavour, four worked stone tools were discovered as well as a piece of metal slag, which is not uncommon in the surrounding areas. Underneath the eastern rubble layer, yet on top of the paving, is a shell midden. This was a nice surprise. and the area seems to only be getting more active. Charcoal twig was also uncovered and sampled.
Nathan worked to clear more of a deposit which showed that the north wall of Structure O connected to the rough wall found last week in the “Overburden”. Lewis also worked on a different rubble layer at the other end of the “Overburden”, discovering some bone and charcoal while further excavating around a large orthostat. Carrie sampled a nice “ashy grey” deposit, while more rubble was removed just outside of the broch wall by Claire. They found burnt shell, pot boilers, charcoal, and bone.
In the broch, there has been careful excavation and sampling of a black occupation layer in the south room. In the south-east room, Amanda has uncovered the clay deposit that underlay the hearth slab in the “main” hearth, and metal slag and copper alloy fragments were also uncovered from a dark carbon-rich layer, perhaps indicating metalworking in the broch.
Thore planned the surface of the south room and the surrounding area, including the large hearthstone that emerged here. After planning, they will sample and excavate further.
Carrying on in the west room, Travis and Chris have worked further to grid sample the large hearth mound and Jem has revealed a large heat-affected hearth slab to the south of the mound. This work continues with no major revelations – just a day’s work in the broch at The Cairns!
All in all, it has been a hot day of work, yet, of course, a rewarding one as well. It was a nice change from the thunderous downpour yesterday.
My fingers are crossed in hopes that the sun will continue to shine on The Cairns over the next few days.
Django Bennett-Clarke
Volunteer
