The 6th season of the Greene Farm archaeology project began on June 1, 2009. This year our excavations continue to focus on the 17th-century Old House area. Our goals for this season are: to uncover the extent of two wall features excavated in 2006 and 2008, to connect several other smaller architectural features from previous seasons (including postholes and builders' trenches), and to gather a (nearly) complete picture of the Old House area's stratigraphy.
This season we are expanding our excavations from 2008 with three new units (labelled as trenches). Trench 7 revisits part of the foundation wall excavations from 2006 and expands upon these with a 2x3m unit. Trench 8 is a 2x2m unit extending from the northern wall of Trench 4 (2008), and intended to follow the wall feature exposed last year. Trench 9 is a 2x3m unit on the east side of the Trench 4 wall feature. Based on our excavation in 2008, the stratigraphy in this area is rich with 17th century materials and consists of very dark, if not burned, soil deposits compared with other areas of the site. Trench 9 may or may not capture architectural features, but it will certainly tell us much about the histories of the site and its former occupants.
Links to photos of our work and finds from each of the four weeks are below. Enjoy!
Week 1 (below) | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | and beyond (analyses, labwork, findings, etc.)
Week 1
The field season got off to a great start, with sun and seasonable temperatures. This year we are working with a 15 member crew that includes several enthusiastic student archaeologists from Brown, URI, and RIC. As it turned out, the combination of a very snowy winter with the rather large excavation units from 2008 meant that Mother Nature reclaimed some of the previous years' neatly excavated units over the past few months. Unlike many excavations, it isn't possible for us to backfill the units with soil post-excavation. This is because most of our soil is washed downstream during the wet screening process, which is necessary for working in these damp soils. Our week began with the cleanup of the Trench areas next to the areas where we plan to dig this season. It is especially advantageous to have neat and clean walls in certain areas so that we can see part of the stratigraphic profiles in areas where we'll soon be excavating.
Day 1 - orientation. Caroline and Kaitlin show Christina and Meredith examples of artifacts found at the Old House site during previous excavations.
Our winter tarp coverage was no match for Mother Nature. The first day was spent cleaning up wall fall and other debris from inside of the old excavation units. In the foreground is the 2x2m excavation unit from 2006 (this will be expanded into Trench 7). In the background (left) are Trenches 2 and 4 from 2007 and 2008. In the background (right) is Trench 6 from 2008.
A view of the 2x2 from 2006 with the wall foundation exposed. This is what the unit looked like before cleanup, and before it was expanded into Trench 7.
The cleaned east wall of Trenches 4 and 2. In the foreground is the wall feature excavated in 2008 from Trench 4. In the background, the orange flags mark the corners of Trench 9, which will be excavated this season. The wall profile here will be the west wall of Trench 9.
A plan view photo of the wall feature from Trench 4 (2008). Note the drastically different soil colors on each side of the wall.
A view, facing north of the former and current excavation units. Trenches 2 & 4 - left front (the wall feature is protected by the blue tarp, the wet soil surface by wood planks). Trench 9 is adjacent to these units to the east - right front. Trench 8 is adjacent to the north (middle). Trench 6 from 2008 is in the background, the wall fall contained by clear tarps. Impossible to keep dirt neat and clean!!
The surface of Trench 8 in the foreground, and beginning (re)excavations of Trench 7 in the background, left. This photo faces east.
Trench 7 after sod and topsoil were removed. The wall feature in the north of this unit (left) was partially exposed in 2006 - but the season ended before we could identify the directionality of it. We're hoping that this Trench 7 will provide us with these answers.
Al carefully trowels in Trench 7 to expose a posthole feature next to the wall.
This orange fill soil was underneath the topsoil deposit. The wall and architectural features were likely dug into this soil. The deposit contains many small artifacts, including nails, glass, pipe stems, and 17th century ceramics.
Trench 9 surface before the start of excavations.
Trench 9 deposits underneath the topsoil consist of two different soils. The northern 2/3 (top) is a loose fill soil with some small architectural artifacts. The southern 1/3 (bottom) is an architectural midden soil, dense with brick, chinking stones, mortar, nails and a mix of 19th century and 17th century materials. This deposit likely dates to the period when the Old House ruins were covered over in the 1870s.
Jonathan and Elise use a combination of trowel and shovel shaving methods to excavate the southern portion of Trench 9.
A southeasterly view of Trench 8 (front), Trench 9 (background), and Trench 4 with the wall feature, protected by blue tarp, in between.
Trench 8 soil underneath the sod and topsoil.
A beautifully preserved vessel base was excavated during the cleanup of Trench 2. This is a lead-glazed red earthenware ceramic.
Randi moves swiftly through the topsoil of Trench 8. Trench 9 is in the foreground, and Trench 4 to the left. The changing and possibly upcoming stratigraphy is visible in the north wall profile of Trench 4.
A small find from Trench 7 included this tiny clothing or furniture pin wedged into an iron concretion. What a mix!
We had many animal encounters this week - turkeys, frogs, birds, bugs, and runaway goats, which fast became favorite "pets" of the crew. (Un)fortunately, their owner retrieved them after a day.
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | and beyond (analyses, labwork, findings, etc.)
