Letter·34 CDF art. 175·31 May 1948

Letter from Schaeffer to Béquignon and Demargne with an article for Charles Picard's Mélanges d'ArchéologieClaude Frédéric-Armand Schaeffer

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Typed in French. Every line is transcribed and translated, and the English sits beside the scan.

Scan 5 of letter 34 CDF art. 175 (Letter from Schaeffer to Béquignon and Demargne with an article for Charles Picard's Mélanges d'Archéologie), typed in French. The transcription and translation follow.

Scan: Collège de France, Paris, 34 CDF art. 175, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

Unnumbered pageScan 5 of 14

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of the enclosure wall is not equal everywhere; some sections have 2m 50 in diameter, others 3m 50.

The blocks of vacuolar limestone forming the outer face much more voluminous than those of the inner face, are all of large dimensions, fig. Some of them, truly colossal, reaching 3m 50 in length by 1m 50 in height, with a thickness of 1m 50; the weight of such a block can be extenu estimated at fifteen tons. The transport and handling of materials of such weight represent a considerable effort and presuppose the organisation of trained and well-directed teams. The transport and the setting in place were facilitated by the proximity of the cliff which served as a quarry and which overhangs the ground slightly on a slope.

The blocks are all set upright vertically on the large edge and carefully wedged by smaller stones which are often wedge-shaped, fig. The outer face of the blocks has been summarily levelled as at Tiryns̶thе (1), so there is no question here of uncut blocks, but only roughly dressed, fig. Erosion having hollowed deep cavities in the limestone, fig. has caused the flat face to disappear on many blocks, which has survived only at the base, below the level of the ancient ground.

There no longer exist today any traces of mortar that could have served as a bond between the large blocks, or fill the joints vertical, generally well fitted. The considerable weight of the blocks probably made this precaution superfluous. However the second course and the superstructure of the enclosure having everywhere

(1) [handwritten: Cf. Tirynthe - - p. 3/8.]

Handwritten: 4

65 figures hard to readstruck struck outadded written in above” jug ditto, and what it repeatsword reading not certain

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