Appears the first burial in the double tomb

The excavation work while following their normal course in the cemetery there are the first moves. The excavation of the double tomb have appeared in the footsteps of the first burial of the two possible. For now, only recognized the skull and some part of the lower extremities, continuing along these days to fully document their cleaning.

The presence of other lower limb in the tomb reveals that there are two burials, although the latter has not yet appeared. It seems that this could be a tomb restored in transit between the ancient and the modern phase of the necropolis. It is too early to confirm that the work already underway.

The settlement of Ifach before it was Ifach

Second lecture of July program, back to back beyond the medieval period. And this time, we will discuss one of the other sites, for the past found in Ifach. This time we go to the Iberian period to see how was the Iberian settlement of Ifach between VI and III century BC.

We have gone hand in hand with Enric Verdú Parra, a member of the project and specialist responsible for the study of archaeological materials, and realities of the Iberian period, apart from MARQ colleague and companion, who has moved to the Iberian period to show what could be oppida de Ifach, a large settlement that do not yet have structures but is leaving a huge reservoir of archaeological material very interesting to know the organization of this location at this time.

Enric has a good look at the type of materials on the excavations showing some developments that were documented in the last campaign of 2010, being a work that has been welcomed by the volunteers and generated an interesting discussion.

First positive results in Ifach East Wall

Perhaps cutting east wall, a ditch polling 10 x 2.5 meters was the biggest unknowns offered at first sight. The court directs Roberto Ferrer, is an unexplored area to date, and had offered to archaeological material surface in 2005, but little more. The massive collapse of Ifach Palace hotel was under, extended and distributed at the time of the bombing of a hotel in 1987. For aerial photographs was an area we knew where it had built anything, so finding rates were higher.

From the outset, this week alone have left debris. Just 1.80 meters of rubble. Lots of it is the most abundant of all the areas we have touched. But when we were about to resign and zoning, the layer has changed a brown coat offering untouched. They are the first archaeological layers beneath the layer of rubble. There is life under the mountain of rubble and slabs. Now, the cut should be extended, opening more to see if we can get a broader view and dig those layers to see what appears. We'll know soon.

The foundations of the Palace Hotel Ifach complicate the archaeological works

Again, as we came up with the interior of the church of Our Lady of the Angels of Ifach, the structures of Ifach Hotel Palace, built in the years 50-60 of the 20th century on the slopes of the Rock and demolished in October 1987, reappear complicates the task of excavation. This has happened in the court of the South Chapel, where we expanded the work area to document if there is another space in the hood than the one we had occasion to discover in the 2009 campaign.

Well, the reality, sometimes stubborn, has again insisted on showing evidence of contemporary human action on the remains of the medieval city. Usually Ifach is a complex field and hard to be removed as much soil layers that are on agricultural residues. Moreover, in areas of North Wall towards the East, we must ride with an enormous mass of debris that are deposited there, resulting from the destruction of the hotel.

If this were not enough and you need to get around the foundations of the hotel, who are still there and were not eliminated, complicating the tasks of documentation of archaeological remains, because in most cases, have altered the strata and at worst, have damaged and even destroyed some of the remnants of the population, as has happened with the pavement of the church of Ifach. Now turn round the pillar, and keep digging the rest of the strata, looking for ways to remove it, no easy thing because you will need a mechanical action.

Discovered a new tomb in the medieval necropolis

The work of expanding the work area in the necropolis of Ifach and are taking the first positive results with the finding, as we suspected, a tomb more to be added to the 20 tombs existing and documented in previous campaigns. This expansion with positive finding to suspect that the necropolis spans an area greater than that observed now, headingsouth.

On the other hand, have already started work cleaning the double grave, where it has been shown that indeed there are two graves inside. Work will now be digging for documenting burials.

Digging up Ifach: The excavation reopens the medieval necropolis

With the start of the week, news is that we review all sectors for this year and are open and operating with the reopening of the work in the medieval necropolis in front of the gateway to the church. While this year we will not have our favorite paleoanthropologist, Steffania Malagutti, who dug all the graves in the necropolis to date, will be the archaeologist Miriam Parra, who is now a fellow of the MARQ in these next three weeks will be responsible for documenting two tombs that were still pending last year and explore a new area, looking for more possible remains.

The necropolis of Ifach to date has provided more than 20 burials recorded in its 16 tombs waiting to find more remains in the future. It has also offered a very high amount of data as well as the best radiocarbon dates that have helped to clarify even more if possible, the chronology of the rest of the population. In the coming days we hope to have the first new, including the tomb which has been offered twice last year remained unexcavated, first found in Ifach. You will have surprises? soon know.

Planimetry and topography archeological practices begins in Ifach 2011

Along with talks of training volunteers will be receiving throughout this campaign VII, this year we introduced as one of the strongest practices archaeological surveying and topography in the next successive Saturdays and throughout the month of place in August will Ifach 2011.
This year, we divided the team into three groups: Planimetries, Sections and Surveys, so they can understand what the graphic documentation necessary archaeological and maximum accuracy and discipline in execution. Therefore, the practice and the challenge of undertaking complex situations is what will help them better understand what it takes to have a good flatness and topography of the site. For example, the challenge of surveying equipment was to determine the elevation difference between the level where we work and the elevation of the existing tower located in the Mirador Cavanilles a few meters above the current level of the reservoir.
To do this, they should move and move the base station to reach the height of the tower in a gesture memorize repetitive movements pursuing techniques and practices for the future.Everything matters, from plant level, balanced, to the position of the rod into the socket. Imports plummet, its verticality, making the measure that gives us the position of a stone within a structure, or proper disposal of the tape when triangular object within an excavated area.
Currently, in addition, there are many other technological means where many of the things volunteers will go out alone exercise. But it is important to learn the basics, how to do it by hand, the old, to understand how and why it should then be able to do with the current mechanisms. So after lunch the efforts were directed to show you how just scanning the field work and with what tools we can carry it out. Practices will continue to do most Saturdays, either in full-time, although only two hours by the coexistence of a chat.