Dr. Mark Schuler

The plan for the 2015 season of the Concordia University team at Hippos of the Decapolis is to complete exposure of the final stage of interior of the House of Tyche. Work will concentrate on the un-excavated eastern section of the house, exposing part or all of squares DP40, DP41, DQ39, DQ40, DQ41, DR39, DR40, and DR41.

Initially we will mark out two perpendicular balks: one will be on the line between rows 40 and 41 and the other on the line between rows DP and DQ.

We will initially open and excavate DQ41 and DP40.

Subsequently, our efforts will focus on DQ40 and on exposing enough of DR39, DR40, and DR41 to show some of the east side of W1298 (the east wall of the house) and the line of Cardo 4 North.

Following documentation of the stratigraphy in the balks, we plan to remove them at the end of the season.

Should time permit, we will conduct probes to bedrock under floors in the southeast quadrant of the house.

At this writing, our team for the 2015 is set.  Four Concordia students and six adult volunteers will be in the field starting 19 July. Three of our regulars (Darryl, John, and Jim[Jim]) will be back bringing their significant experience to the team.

Our excavation work in 2015 will focus on the House of Tyche on the eastern side of the site. We will complete work on the domestic space. Part of that work will include probes to bedrock in the southeast corner of the structure, portions of which were in continual use until the time of the destruction of the city. If time allows, we will also open one or more squares on the north side of the Church of the Elderly Woman in order to expose the corner of a building connected to the church.