2005 TRENCH PC 27 Caitlin Vacanti, Field Supervisor Martha Reichert, Assistant Field Supervisor  Field Students Steven Colon Susan Hamilton Lauren Jackson Nate O'Connor Field Supervisor Caitlin Vacanti. Assistant Field Supervisor Martha (Marty) Reichert. Opening Report - Week 2: Trench PC 27, initially opened in 2003, is located on the northeastern corner of Poggio Colla's monumental structure. Believed now to be a large, rectangular courtyard with storage rooms to the west, this building is enclosed by terracing walls to the north. These terracing walls may have had the dual function of fortification, and are currently being excavated and studied in Trench PC 20. Poggio Colla trenches viewed from the east at the end of the 2004 field season (PC 27 in upper right; PC 20 begins in lower right; PC 23 in center of photo). Over the past ten seasons of excavation on Poggio Colla's arx, we have learned that at least three different periods of occupation, or phases, occurred there. Based on our stratigraphic, architectural, and material evidence, we have pieced together timelines for these phases. However, there are certain anomalies in the stratigraphy from one area of the hill to the next, which have made it difficult to understand precisely how these various spaces related to each other both chronologically and in function. For example on the northern edge of the hill, where PC 20 is excavated, thick destruction layers of burnt material along the terracing walls provide evidence for Phase I (Archaic ceramics) and Phase III (Hellenistic ceramics) construction. However, this area lacks substantial indicators of occupation during the third phase. In contrast, less than ten meters to the south, PC 23 for the most part lacks the same burn layer which is so prominent in PC 20, yet has an abundance of material from the final occupation and destruction. Southwest quadrant of Trench PC 27 at the end of the 2004 field season. In excavating and studying the stratigraphy of PC 27, we hope to explain these anomalies and to verify our timeline for construction and occupation. We have already identified several sandstone foundation walls and some wall spill in this trench, which separate the various spaces that we are attempting to synchronize. A wall running on a north-south axis divides the interior of the courtyard from the western storage rooms. Interestingly, this wall continues to run north after it meets the northern boundary of the courtyard. In addition, there is a wall perpendicular to this north-south wall which appears to run through the entirety of the trench. It divides both the courtyard from the outer area to the north and a western storage room from the space to the north, which has yet to be interpreted and understood. Since the stratigraphy inside the courtyard and storage rooms has been analyzed and is relatively understood, we will focus instead on excavation of the northern areas in the trench, which are unique spaces, and may relate to the burn layer in PC 20. While at times we find it difficult to find soil in this architecturally-rich trench, we will do our best this season to piece back together a chronology for these anomalies in construction, occupation and destruction. We have a fantastic group of staff and students this season, who will quite literally be the eyes and ears of excavation, while at the same time sharing our various thoughts and theories about the material we are excavating. I look forward to working with this group and to interpreting our findings. View of Trench PC 27 from the north in 2005 Week 2 (votive column base at right).   Week 2: Marty Reichert excavating the votive column base she found in PC 27.   PC 27 team at work in Week 3: Steven Colon, Susan Hamilton, Lauren Jackson, Nate O'Connor, Caitlin Vacanti and Marty Reichert. View of Trench PC 27 from the north in 2005 Week 3.   Caitlin Vacanti and Martha Reichert working on the votive column base in PC 27.   Large blocks running east west below Phase III wall in Trench PC 27 (Week 3).   Nate O'Connor and Lauren Jackson in PC 27.   Susan Hamilton and Steven Colon in PC 27.   Lauren Jackson, Nate O'connor, Marty Reichert, Caitlin Vacanti, Steven Colon, and Susan Hamilton in Trench PC 27, viewed from the north during Week 4.   View of PC 27 from the west in Week 4.   Lauren Jackson.   Nate O'Connor.   Steven Colon.   Susan Hamilton.   Final Report: Steven Colon, Susan Hamilton, and Lauren Jackson working in PC 27 at the end of Week 5. At the start of the 2005 field season, we re-opened Trench PC 27 with the intention of studying stratigraphic relationships between the various spaces on Poggio Colla's arx. In doing so, we hoped to establish a chronology for the phases of construction and to better understand the ways in which the Etruscans used this area from one time period to the next. Having excavated PC 27 in 2003 and 2004, we entered this season with the knowledge that several foundation walls of late construction intersect here. Votive column base and sculpture pedestal in Trench PC 27, viewed from the northeast in Week 5.   Above and below: pedestal and votive column base in PC 27. Over the course of the last 6 weeks, we have discovered a variety of exceptional, as well as entirely unexpected, finds in this trench. To begin with, we continued excavation of a burn feature found at the end of last season. This stained earth was packed with finware ceramics and characterized by a high concentration of burnt organic material. Initially I had hypothesized that this feature was the result of an attempt to clean-up the site after a destruction event. However, full excavation of the layer unearthed the top of a stone base, which we affectionately referred to as our "stone sombrero" based on its shape. This stone may have held a small wooden column or post of sorts. Buried within the same layer of sandstone-packed, yellow soil we found an additional two worked stones. One of the stones was a pyramidal shape, with a small aperture in one end that was set with lead, presumably in order to hold a statuette. Conservation of this artefact revealed a twelve letter inscription, which has yet to be translated. The other stone was pentagonal and also had a small opening at the top. A semi-circular stone formation enclosed these finds. It appears that our stone finds were placed in this special, possibly sacred space during the construction of the latest phase of the site, or that they were placed here after the destruction. The burn feature therefore is likely the result of having ritually buried these artefacts. Small pentagonal pedestal for sculpture from PC 27. As we dug into the deeper, earlier layers of the trench we uncovered two new sandstone foundation walls, which are only centimeters apart and run parallel to each other. I believe these walls to be of Phase I construction. Oriented toward cardinal north, they consist of very large, worked rectangular blocks. To the north of the walls we unearthed a series of small stones, fragments of roof tile and mud brick, which were used in conjunction with other destruction debris as fill to terrace the ground for this phase of construction. View from the west of Phase I blocks in PC 27. At the moment I think that we have several phases of construction occurring in this area, yet that it lacks substantial evidence of habitation (very few artefacts came from excavation). Chronologically, we first see the construction of the supposed Phase I walls, followed soon thereafter by fill added between them and to the north as terracing. At the same time, to the south of these walls we find a different type of soil laid out for terracing purposes. On top of this fill we have the remains of a floor level, which I attribute to the first phase occupation. Above this level we find stone rubble, packed with smaller sandstones and enclosing our worked stone finds. I think that this stratum was contemporary with the construction of the western storage rooms, as these walls cut through the layer. Evidence of the last phase occupation is found inside the rectangular enclosure (within the courtyard) as well as in the western storage rooms, but is surprisingly absent to the north, where we solely found very few tile and ceramic fragments. This could be the result of erosion. Lastly, we have evidence of the final destruction in the wall spill that was found on top of the terracing layer, and in the burnt material of the western storage room. PC 27 Team left to right, back to front: Nate O'Connor, Marty Reichert, Susan Hamilton, Steven Colon, Caitlin Vacanti, and Lauren Jackson. Lauren, Steven, Susan, Nate and Martha did an absolutely beautiful job excavating this season. We reached all of our goals despite the delays of consistently finding stones that needed to be defined and documented. It can get quite frustrating to hit stones every time you put your trowel in the ground, but our team persisted with patience and always with enthusiasm. I had a great time and would like to thank them for a successful season! Above and below, Week 5: Marty Reichert lifting the stone pedestal with lead fitting from PC 27.   Caitlin Vacanti and Marty Reichert pedestal the votive column from PC 27 during Week 5.   Neil Tabor, Matt Coonan, Jess Galloway, Michael Thomas, and Larry Lehman lifting the votive column from Trench PC 27.   Above and below: the votive column from PC 27.   Marty Reichert and Caitlin Vacanti celebrate details of the pedestal from PC 27.   Steven Colon, Caitlin Vacanti, and Marty Reichert in PC 27 during Week 6.   View from the north of the eastern half of PC 27 showing parallel lines of large blocks.   View from the northeast of the western end of PC 27 at season's end.   View of PC 27 from the northwest at season's end.   View of Trench PC 27 from the west at the end of the 2005 field season.   View of Trench PC 27 from the south at 2005 season's end.   Wall in south locus of PC 27, viewed from the south in Week 7.   Dark, reused molded block, probably from Phase I, near bottom of wall in PC 27.   View from the east of Trench PC 27 at the end of the 2005 field season.   West scarp of PC 27, above location of votive column base and pedestals.   Lauren Jackson taking levels for final drawings of PC 27.     Co-Directors: Gregory Warden gwarden@mail.smu.edu and Michael Thomas mlthomas@mail.utexas.edu Excavation house phone during the field season: (011-39) 055-844-9834