Kourion Complex Apollo (extracted from McFadden's notebooks) (1 of 2)

Diary Page 1250 con't

notebook. In cave immediately to south of bath dug down through a clean undisturbed stratum of fallen pulverized chavara to a level where a considerable amount of dark gravel occurs. In opinion of sub- foreman Michalis, a mason, this is fallen plaster in a decomposed condition.

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If this is so it is good evidence that the cave was once used as a cistern which would have catered to the bath over it. Eight men only today.

27 April 1949 Mr. Hill removing earth below level of floor in hypocaust of room 3, bath. Have finished clearing mosaic floor of large plunge bath south of southeast room. In northwest room, removing example of debris left in southeast corner. See film 120-32. Full of stones of varying size, and brown earth, a little harder here [handwritten: 1/4/] in corner than elsewhere. Digging earth out among stones and worked blocks in room south of west bay of room 3. Dark brown soil. Finished removing stratum 4, bath, southeast room. See sections pages 1225and 1227. See also film 129-36. This was a hard stratum of decomposed building matter (debris) with few small rough stones and few worked blocks showing in photo. (room 10). See film 121-1. It is rather soft and very consistent. The yellowish color may

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be due to chavara but this is not certain. Mekmet and Michalis - subforeman and ex-mason, think it was a deliberate fill. Hardly any sherds came out of stratum 4 but more are coming out of 5. Removing surface soil in area west of bath, trench 9 zeta-theta, north 14-20, dark earth with a good many stones of varying sizes. Removing stratum 2, northwest room, bath, in southwest corner. See section page 1237. Digging small trench east of small plunge bath and north of large plunge bath. Began digging below level of mosaic floor in south portion of central room * section page 1221-4. See film 121-2 and 3. Soft reddish dark brown earth with only small rough stones mostly less than fist size.

28 April 1949 Removing worked blocks from stratum 5 of southeast room, bath, to trench 9, o-pi, south 2.00 m. immediately south of room and east of blocks piled up (mu-o) from central room. See film 120-36, section page 1225. One of these blocks after turning over proved to be a jamb block matching somewhat [handwritten: diary page 1256] the one used as a threshold in the late south doorway in situ. Have placed this block beside the other where it may have belonged. Removing fill under stone blocks - stratum 5 (section page 1225). This stratum is quite uniform in character and depth over entire room. It was very probably a deliberate fill to serve as a floor after the mosaic floor which, presumably it once had, was removed. In central room (room 9) south portion, began removing stratum 5 on east side. Stratum 5 appears to be a foundation for the floor with a great many small rough stones. See section page 1221 and film 121-11 and 12. Mr. Hill removing debris south of south bay or room 3. See film 121-13 and 14. Began removing second stratum of room south of northwest room (room 7) and south of west bay of northwest room. See section page 1255 (opposite). Removing large fallen blocks in stratum 1 here. See film 121, 4-7 inclusive. Mr. Hill directing removal of stoneblocks here. Some of these found to be rotten and are being destroyed to facilitate removal. Finished removing portion of stratum 5, d Page 1258

central room (room 2) south side - east end - down to bed rock. Many rough stones averaging 15 to 20 cm. in size coming out - reddish brown soil. This appears to have been a deliberate fill. See film 121 - 19 and section page 1221. Continued street 1, Omega-A', west 2-6, depth 0.10 m. to 0.45 m. - brown earth and small rough stones - no worked blocks, good number of sherds coming out this area. Began removing x-omega, west 2-4 stratum 2, depth 10 to 45 cm. Bath, northwest