Phase C

Overview

Phase C, the latest habitation, contains twenty-four structures, not all of which are clearly identified with the same level. Among these buildings one finds some of the more well-preserved houses typical of the phase, such as houses 3 and 10. Their rectangular layout consists of a wide corridor running down the center of a north-south axis from a main entrance on the north some 75 cm. wide, opening to three adjacent rooms divided by relatively thick stone piers on the left and right-hand sides. Typical of PPNB architecture, the house is part of a larger complex of buildings and is semi-subterranean (although later remodeling makes it impossible to know the depth of the original floor).

The walls of these structures are remarkably well preserved, in some places reach their original height. Constructed of stone blocks and cobbles, with occasional chinking stones, the walls range from 50 to 80 cm. thick. The broad piers typical of the corridor-style house significantly reduced the potential living area inside the rooms, but they easily compensated for the deficiency by supporting an upper story, evidenced by wall fragments found especially along the eastern perimeter wall. In one house a row of three slabs was found, which seem to have been situated above the entrance to the east-central room and which probably served as supports for an upper story. In many cases these slabs were found with plaster on one face and mud on the other.

While the earthen lower floor contains no discernible features, several interesting artifacts have been recovered, most notably a quern (a set of grinding implements) and some smaller stone slabs. Probing beneath the floor of one of these houses, excavators uncovered a series of burials containing six infants, the interment of which may predate its construction.