10th October 2011, 07:25 PM
Sadly the latter, although to be fair we've been hand-digging the same features the 'normal' way since April, these are just the bits in between that are going to get quarried anyway, so they're extra archaeology (and have provided some better sampling sites etc than we had in the hand-dug bits so definitely a bonus).
The old boxing technique for digging stratified sites had some advantages, if only keeping section-drawers employed...and of course there were all those standing sections to refer back to, whatever happened to the unexcavated baulk or has it been retired? Admittedly it was devised so that 'unskilled' workmen could be employed to do the digging and the archaeologists could concentrate on recording and interpretation....no, we'd better not get back onto that perennial chestnut.....
The old boxing technique for digging stratified sites had some advantages, if only keeping section-drawers employed...and of course there were all those standing sections to refer back to, whatever happened to the unexcavated baulk or has it been retired? Admittedly it was devised so that 'unskilled' workmen could be employed to do the digging and the archaeologists could concentrate on recording and interpretation....no, we'd better not get back onto that perennial chestnut.....