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Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

EXCAVATIONS AND FINDS AT THE SOUTH KURGAN.   I05

On April 8, 1904, the hill was attacked simultaneously at two points—on the plateau-shaped summit and on the northern declivity. At the height of + 5o feet there was laid out, in the direction of the longitudinal axis, a large excavation 25 feet wide by 42 feet long, with two exits for the removal of the débris. By means of terracing this was sunk to the level of + 21 feet 2 inches, and was named the upper digging. By means of a shaft sunk from this level (shaft C), it was possible to determine the culture-strata in the heart of the hill to the depth of — 20 feet. On the northern declivity of the hill an excavation was made (terrace A), 15 feet wide by 3o feet long, and sunk to + 21.25 feet; but here there appeared sloping layers, owing to the transition from the summit of the hill to the tongue-shaped extension above mentioned, while the strata were horizontal in the upper digging. Therefore, in the course of our observations, terrace A was necessarily of importance in the problem of the relation existing between the tongue-shaped extension and the hill itself.

To settle this question, an excavation was laid out 10 feet wide by 22 feet long in an east-west direction on the northwest edge of this extension and called the " outer digging." At a depth of — 1 foot a terrace was made and the excavation was continued to — 4 feet. It was shown by this excavation that the plateau had been formed during the youngest period of the development of the hill and that it corresponds to the uppermost layers of the hill.

On the other hand, horizontal strata were more to be expected in those declivities which were steeper and where the hill had been subjected to greater deformation through the external influence of sun, rain, and wind than on the north side. Therefore, on April 1 1, a third excavation, 19 feet wide, terrace B, was made on the southern declivity. The horizontal layers of the heart of the hill came to light immediately after the removal of the superficial loose earth. The exposure on April 15 of a threshold lying in situ at + 27.5 feet, and on April 18 of a child's skeleton at a level of + 25 feet, prompted an extension of the excavation. Terrace B was widened toward the outside and deepened. Simultaneously a third terrace (C), 22 feet wide, was started at another point to the southeast. Both places were destined to become the most productive points opened.

Terrace B yielded seven skeletons, vessels in situ, a peculiar quadrangle or chest of clay, and lastly, below these, at the level of + 20 feet, more or less well-preserved walls of sun-dried bricks.

In terrace C, between + 26 feet 2 inches and + 18 feet 5 inches there were found in several layers, lying one below the other, hearths and ashes, a skeleton grave, and the remains of a pithos in situ.

On the whole, the analogy of the finds in both terraces to the northern kurgan seems complete. Dwellings built one above the other contained skeleton graves; but the whole culture equipment pointed to a younger age than that of the northern kurgan.

The lowest culture-strata of the southern kurgan, like those of the northern one, could be examined only through shafts. This purpose was served by shaft C in the upper digging; by shaft A, which was begun on April 13, on the southern