Image Details

Pictures of archaeological squares are not easy to decipher, as a quick glance at this picture will confirm. However, with a little care the reader should be able to identify the irrigation channel which the excavator has revealed. The meter stick in the center of the picture lies on a balk or catwalk which separates the squares. Perpendicular to this balk, directly beneath the meter stick, is the left side of the irrigation channel. The channel itself is immediately to the right, bordered on its right by the other side of the irrigation channel. The plaster on the left hand side of the channel is completely intact. Some of the plaster on the right hand side of the channel was broken off, revealing its cobblestone interior. The irrigation channel takes a 90-degree right-hand turn just above the middle of the picture. This particular irrigation channel took the water from the Hasmonean Palace Pool to the adjoining agricultural fields. Behind the squares can be seen the southern half of the Hasmonean Palace Pool, with the steps leading into it. Note the straight, clean walls of the sides and balks of the excavation squares, the sign of a careful, meticulous excavation.