Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.1998, Page 140

I. A. Simpson, k.b. Milek & Garðar Guðmundsson
mine the precise composition of this
layer, its mode of deposition and the
extent to which it had been altered
since its deposition, it was targeted
with seven micromorphology samples
(Pr. 3/1 -3/5; Pr. 4/1, 4/2; figs. 2 & 3)
and ten bulk samples for geochemical
analysis (bulk sample nos. 1-10). In
each case, the bulk sample was taken
immediately adjacent to the micro-
morphology sample in order to
facilitate the integration of results. In
addition, this layer was sampled for
archaeobotanical and microrefuse anal-
ysis by Garðar Guðmundsson. The
quantitative data supplied by the bulk
analyses, coupled with information
about the physical orientation and
distribution of the components and
the microstructure of the sediment, it
should be possible to come to a
conclusion about the function of the
structure.
Context 52 was highly variable in
thickness and did not extend uniform-
ly across the surface of the floor. Close
to the western wall of the structure,
where the floor sloped upwards to-
wards the wall, Context 52 was pres-
ent only as very fine (c.lmm thick),
discontinuous black lenses. On the
western profile of Bruun’s trench,
which was c.80cm east of and parallel
to the western wall of the structure, a
3cm-thick patch was found. Fine
horizontal laminations were clearly
visible within this patch, although
further analysis is needed to determine
their precise composition. In contrast,
the black layer is much more continu-
ous on the eastern side of Bruun’s
trench. As the floor slopes up towards
the eastern wall of the structure, the
black layer divides into thinner lenses,
which have thicker deposits of sedi-
ment between them. The latter consist
of silt loam (7.5YR 3/3 dark brown)
mixed with small quantities of char-
coal and what appears to be aggregates
of Hekla tephra. Since the discrete
black lenses close to the eastern wall
have the potential to show changes in
the use of that area over time, they
were sampled separately for geochem-
ical analysis (bulk sample nos. 4-7),
and one micromorphology sample was
placed across all of them (Pr. 3/5;
fig.2). That there is so much lateral
variability within such a small area
(2x2m2) attests to a complex use of
space, although it is also possible that
this variability is a result of the partial
removal of Context 52 during the life
of the structure. For example, the
greater accumulation of sediment and
debris towards the eastern wall may be
due to the fact there is less traffic
there, and/or that sediment was per-
mitted to accumulate close to the
walls while it was cleared out of the
central areas of the structure. Even
until the middle of this century, the
accumulated occupation debris on the
floors of turf houses was periodically
cleared out to prevent the floor level
from rising (Áskell Jónasson, pers.
comm.).
All of the floor layers in this
structure were capped by „Context
51 “, a soft silt loam containing several
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