2004 DIRECTORS' DIARIES P. Gregory Warden Michael Thomas Week 3 - Michael Thomas: Bradley Schneider and Krishawna Brown excavating Kiln 1 in the Podere Funghi As we approach our mid-season break, I could not be happier. The students have turned into seasoned excavators and the trenches are producing. We are moving along nicely in the Podere Funghi. The discovery of a foundation trench underneath the floor level of the building defines not only the initial level of construction, but also, what seems to be the previous level of occupation, an occupation that should be contemporary with the use of the kilns that predate our buildings construction. Jeff Edwards and Fiametta Calosi excavating in the black layer of PC 20. On the top of the hill we have been blessed with an immediate window into the early history of Poggio Colla. PC 20 keeps producing evidence that points to the presence of elite Etruscans at Poggio Colla during the 7th and 6th centuries BC. Bucchero wing-handled cups, chalices, and spindle whorls are among the numerous finds discovered within the deep dark stratum we assume coincides with the first phase of construction at the site. Stitched panorama view from the east of Poggio Colla during the second week of excavation. In PC 23, the continued deep excavation in the northern loci of the trench has confirmed our previous reading of the stratigraphy. There seems to have been terracing for the Phase I construction. Moreover, we can now read what seems to be a significant Phase I occupation, followed by a destruction, clean up, and terracing of the top of the site. This second terracing was a significant event that preceded a long occupation during the second phase. The Phase III building must have stood for a shorter time as its floor level is defined by only a small burned interface. Our theories were somewhat corroborated by a visit on Wednesday by geologist Frank Vento who pointed out that our profile preserves two buried paleo-soils, or occupation levels that lasted long enough to leave evidence of weathering. He pointed out the especially thick stratum we associate with the Phase II occupation as an example of an active level that must have been in use for a couple of hundred years. Deep strata from the earliest phases of the site visible in trench.   Director Michael Thomas in the Podere Funghi.   Estelle Reddeck Thomas checking out the scene on Poggio Colla.   Week 1Week 2Week 3Week 4Week 5Week 6 Week 7 - Final Report Special Page Director, Gregory Warden gwarden@mail.smu.edu Director, Michael Thomas michael.thomas@tufts.edu While the team is in Italy during the summer field season, send e-mail to: mvap3@dada.it To email an individual on the team, enter the person's last name in the subject heading. Excavation house phone: 055-844-9834, or, when calling from the US: 011-39-55-844-9834. Introduction | 2004 Field Season | Poggio Colla Field School | What’s New | Staff | Students Site History | Directors' Diaries | Student Diaries | Excavation Friends | Facilities | Conservation | Surveys Robert Belanger | Katherine Blanchard | Josh Moran | Caitlin Vacanti | Ivo van der Graaff | Robert Vander Poppen QuickTime VR | Site Set-Up | Dig Daily Life | Excavation Process | Field Manual | Lectures | Season's End Archives | Finds | Research Projects | Publications | Bibliography | Mugello Area | Home