A preliminary report on the excavations of tomb AS 91at Abusir South (autumn season 2016)

A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 PES XIX/2017 53 Although the original mastaba type tomb AS 91 was considerably damaged, with the help of detailed observations we can at least try to reconstruct its original appearance. However, we have to be careful since the remains are scarce, and that is why a number of deductions are only speculations. This article presents a report on tomb AS 91, describing the superstructure and substructure, and summarising some preliminary conclusions. Two specialized studies, one on archaeozoological remains, and the other on a single destroyed human burial, are added to the archaeological report. Superstructure Tomb AS 91 was built on a slightly southward sloping mound, located to the south of the mastaba of the official, A preliminary report on the excavations of tomb AS 91 at Abusir South (autumn season 2016) Marie Peterková Hlouchová – Dana Bělohoubková – Zdeňka Sůvová – Petra Havelková In the autumn season of 2016, a structure designated as AS 91 was excavated at Abusir South.1It is located to the south of the tomb of the official, Kaaper (AS 1; Bárta 2001: 143–191) and by now is the southernmost mastaba explored in this part of the necropolis. However, at the time of its uncovering, tomb AS 91 was almost completely destroyed (fig. 1). Only several rows of smaller limestone blocks forming an eastern wall were detected, including its supposed north-eastern and south-eastern corners. A southern wall was recorded as being collapsed, and no remnants of a western wall and south-western and north-western corners of the mastaba survived. Thus, it is impossible to designate precisely the overall measurements of the mastaba. Even though the tomb’s state of preservation is very poor, several interesting finds were uncovered there. Nonetheless, no evidence was found that can provide us with a name and titles of its owner. Fig. 1 Destroyed superstructure of tomb AS 91 with opening of Shaft 3 and the destruction of the southern wall in the foreground, viewed from the south. The mastaba of Kaaper (AS 1) is in the background (photo M. Bárta) PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:32 Stránka 53 Kaaper (AS 1; Bárta 2001: 143–191), by the so-called Wadi Abusiri. The orientation of the excavated tomb is north- -south, following thus the general direction of Old Kingdom mastabas. Other tombs in this part of the Abusir necropolis likewise respect this orientation, for instance AS 54 (Bárta 2011), Kaaper (AS 1; Bárta 2001: 143), Ity (AS 10; Bárta 2001: 1), Hetepi (AS 20; Bárta – Coppens – Vymazalová et al. 2010: 6), anonymous tomb AS 33 (Bárta – Coppens – Vymazalová et al. 2010: 57), Iymery (AS 34; Bárta – Coppens – Vymazalová et al. 2010: 189), and also Kaisebi (AS 76), Ptahwer (AS 76b) and other anonymous tombs in its surroundings (e.g. AS 77, AS 78) (Dulíková – Jirásková – Arias Kytnarová 2016; Dulíková et al. in this issue). The only wall preserved more or less in its entire length (24.55 m) was the eastern one, built of smaller nowadays eroded limestone blocks which were originally covered with mud plaster, as other tombs at Abusir South (such as e.g. a yet unpublished tomb of Kaaper Jr. [AS 61]). In front of the wall, a mud floor was recognised. No traces of niches were detected in the façade, which might be a result of the fact that only the lowermost part of the wall was preserved. In the southern part, this wall was stepped back to the west, creating thus a ground plan reminiscent of a reversed “letter L” (see figs. 1 and 2). There are two possible explanations for this architectonic feature: firstly, it was intended in the original plan of the mastaba from the beginning, or secondly, it may be a later annexe. However, the state of preservation of the tomb does not allow us to determine which suggestion is correct. Nevertheless, a certain parallel to this architectonic feature may be found nearby at the same site, in the Fourth Dynasty tomb of Ity (AS 10), located to the east of the mastaba of Kaaper (AS 1) (see Bárta 2001: 15 and Fig. 1.2). In the case of Ity’s tomb, this southern and to the west shifted part was surrounded by mud bricks on the east, south and west (Bárta 2001: Pl. IIIa). Whether a mud brick structure also existed in mastaba AS 91 is unclear because no traces of it were found. It is worth mentioning that Ity’s tomb is within view of mastaba AS 91. Given the overall shape of the tomb, one might speculate that the owner of mastaba AS 91 may have decided to build his tomb in the same form as that of Ity, perhaps in order to express some sort of connection to him. The eastern wall of tomb AS 91 was interrupted by an entrance to a supposed chapel, in 3.30 m to the north of the beginning of the shifted southern part. This room was virtually destroyed: its walls had completely disappeared and no traces of a false door were found. It was not even possible to determine a shape of the cultic place. However, the chapel had a mud floor that was partly preserved in situ (see fig. 2). The remains of the floor were fairly extensive, ca. 2.80 × 5.25 m, indicating that the chapel may have been quite large. This room, as well as the rest of the mastaba, was covered with wind-blown sand. Concerning the finds, several ceramic sherds (see below) and only two tubular faience beads (4/AS91/2016; 17/AS91/2016) of indeterminate date were discovered there. It was possible to detect traces of the southern wall of the mastaba, located on the sloping part of the hill. Wind erosion might have caused this wall to slip down the hill, and scattered limestone blocks were found in the area to the south of the tomb. Among the collapsed blocks, part of a bovine skull (1/AS91/2016) was uncovered (see below). The core of the superstructure seems to have consisted of a sand layer mixed with limestone chips and pottery which included mainly complete beer jars. They were especially numerous in the western part of the tomb, oriented north-south, with their rims to the south (fig. 3). The stratigraphy shows four depositional layers (see fig. 4). The surface layer (L 1) consisted of sand mixed with pebbles and compact pieces that were maybe created from tafla. The layer underneath (L 2) consisted of sand 5 4 PES XIX/2017 A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 Fig. 2 Ground plan of tomb AS 91; the north-western and south-western corners are only estimated (drawing D. Bělohoubková, M. Peterková Hlouchová, L. Vařeková) PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:50 Stránka 54 A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 PES XIX/2017 55 Fig. 3 Beer jar deposit in the western part of the mastaba core (photo M. Peterková Hlouchová) mixed with small pebbles, which seems to have been created by southern wind. The following layer (L 3) was composed of wind-blown sand, and here it can also be observed that the main direction of the wind was from the south. The destruction layer (L 4) was made from sand mixed with limestone chips and fragments of pottery. This layer is probably the remains of the original core of the mastaba and is similar to the core of Iymery’s mastaba (AS 34; Bárta – Coppens – Vymazalová et al. 2010: 190). As was mentioned above, both corners in the western part of the tomb were not detected. That is why the dimensions of the structure are only approximate: the tomb might have measured 24.55 × 8.50 m in its ground plan, at the least. The length of the eastern wall before its shift to the west is 19.75 m. Substructure Three shafts were uncovered in the core of the tomb.2Shafts 1 and 2 were built in the northern part, ca. 0.6 m to the west of the eastern wall, and they were perhaps out of the axis of the tomb. They were closely adjacent: the space between the northern wall of Shaft 1 and the southern wall of the second one was only 0.66 m (fig. 5). To the contrary, Shaft 3 was located at the far southern end of the tomb in its shifted part, ca. 0.75 m to the west of its eastern wall and 2.55 m to the north of the supposed southern wall. It was probably built nearer to the central axis of the tomb. The openings of all three shafts have similar dimensions (see below). However, two of them (Shafts 1 and 2) were rather shallow without any burial niche or chamber, whereas Shaft 3 was 10.50 m deep with a burial chamber at its bottom. Shaft 1 Shaft 1 measured 1.60 × 1.66 m in its opening, with a depth of 0.66 m. Its walls were built from irregular, but wellworked limestone blocks, connected with mud mortar, and remains of mud plaster with straw were detected on the inner western wall. An uneven floor was cut in tafla bedrock. The fill was compact, consisting of darker sand mixed with tafla, limestone chips, and fragments of pottery. The shaft’s bottom was almost at the same level as the mud floor in front of the eastern wall of the tomb: the floor was ca. 10 cm lower. An irregular block in situ, measuring 29 cm in its length and 10–20 cm in its width, bore a hieratic inscription (Gr1/AS91/2016) in red paint (fig. 6). The piece of limestone was situated in the south-eastern corner of the shaft, at its bottom, and the inscription was on an outer side of the block. Only two hieratic uniliteral signs were written: dand r.3No determinative was preserved, even though there was enough space for another sign on the block. However, the surface is considerably eroded. It can be suggested that it is the Egyptian word dr ( ), which with a determinative of an arm holding a stick ( = D40)4means “to finish, accomplish” (Erman – Grapow 1931: 473–474). When written with two crossed sticks: (×= Z9) and the arm, it bore the meaning “to cover” (Erman – Grapow 1931: 475). Since the inscription is on the outer side, it can be speculated that it should have been covered with a layer of other material. This may lead to another possibility that the signs were a designation for the limestone to be used as a lining block, thus identifying its purpose. If so, it would be an unusual hieratic inscription in Abusir, where usually names, titles, and builders’ marks appear in such epigraphic records (Vymazalová, forthcoming). And hence, even these options have to be considered. Taking into account the Old Kingdom titles, there does not seem to appear any with the dr element (see Jones 2000). Nevertheless, there are several male Old Kingdom personal names that include this group of vocals: _r-Hwa-jb, _r-xsf, _r-smA.t, _r-snD, _r-TwA (see Scheele-Schweitzer 2014: 747, [3802]–[3806], with further references). With the exception of _r-xsf, every one of these names is attested in the Memphite region (Scheele-Schweitzer 2014: 747, PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:32 Stránka 55 56 PES XIX/2017 A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 Fig. 4 Four layers of the profile of the north-south section in the centre of tomb AS 91 (photo M. Peterková Hlouchová, drawing D. Bělohoubková) [3802]–[3806]) and moreover, _r-TwA appears in records of the papyrus archive of King Neferirkare at Abusir (Posener- -Kriéger – Cenival 1968: pl. XCII A, XCIII A). It can be speculated that we have at least part of the owner’s name. Nonetheless, all the above-mentioned names are composed of more signs than the two preserved on the block. Also, the piece was oriented so that the rest of the name should have been inscribed on a lump below, but no traces of such graffiti were found there. A third option must be taken into consideration as well. The inscription might not relate to the shaft and tomb at all, as it might have come from a larger block that was originally located elsewhere. Another hieratic inscription (Gr2/AS91/2016) in red paint, consisting of two convergent lines, a dot to the right of them, and a semicircle, was drawn on a block, measuring 32 cm in its length and 8 cm in its width (fig. 7). The surface on which the signs were drawn is only 28 cm long. It is located in the fifth row (from the bottom) of limestone blocks in the inner western wall of the shaft. It is evident that the inscription was damaged, which makes reading more difficult. Almost nothing was found in the fill of the shaft, and the amount of ceramic sherds was small, too. A tiny circular fragment of copper (8/AS91/2016) was found near the western side of the shaft, at a depth of ca. 20 cm below the preserved crown of the wall. Several small fragments of animal bones (9/AS91/2016) were also collected there, at a depth of 0.45 m from the wall’s crown. They were of rather yellow colour. Shaft 2 Shaft 2 is adjacent to Shaft 1 from the north (see figs. 2 and 5). Its opening is, however, a bit smaller: 1.44 × 1.46 m, and it has a depth of 2.20 m. The shaft has no niche and it yielded no finds. The fill consisted of yellow sand mixed with limestone chips. Similarly, the walls of the shaft were built from irregular limestone blocks, connected with mud mortar, and coated with mud plaster, containing scanty remains of straw to a height of ca. 0.9 m.5An irregular and PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:32 Stránka 56 uneven floor was cut into tafla bedrock, with the southern part cut deeper than the northern one, forming a kind of mound. Possibly the bedrock in this area was too soft and that is why there was an effort to reinforce the shaft by means of limestone casing. Only five sherds of coarse pottery were collected from the fill. Shaft 3 Shaft 3, measuring 1.65 × 1.60 m in its opening and reaching a depth of 10.50 m in its north-western corner, is situated in the southernmost part of the mastaba. Its depth makes it considerably different from the other two. Two layers were detected in the fill: to a depth of ca. 9.5 m, the fill consisted of yellow sand with scanty fragments of coarse pottery and smaller limestone blocks. Thereon, it changed to darker sand mixed with tafla, ceramic sherds and limestone chips. At a depth of ca. 5 m, five bird egg shells (Eco7/AS91/2016) were found. This indicates that the shaft must have been open for a certain period of time. The shaft opening was built of mud bricks (dark Nile mud, 28 × 12 × 10 cm) to a depth of 1.40 m, and at the time of its excavation it was noted that the upper 30 cm were considerably eroded. The mud brick casing on the northern wall was built 24 cm deeper than on the other sides. Below the casing, the remaining 9.10 m of the shaft were cut into limestone bedrock: the top part (1.22 m) was smooth, another 3.44 m left unsmoothed, with clearly visible layers of grey and yellow limestone.6The lowermost 4.44 m were even again (fig. 8). It is also worth noting that four shallow rectangular cuts, at fairly regular distances and one above the other, were observed in the smooth part of the western wall. Their dimensions were similar, ca. 11 × 7 cm. Another deeper and bigger, fairly square cut (ca. 24 × 27 cm) was observed in the northern wall of the shaft. It is difficult to establish the purpose of these holes. They might have been used for fixing scaffolding or a ladder construction, perhaps for temporary use. Similar cuts were recorded by the Polish mission at Saqqara and they have been A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 PES XIX/2017 57 Fig. 5 North-south section of Shafts 1 and 2 (drawing M. Peterková Hlouchová) Fig. 6 A hieratic inscription (Gr1/AS91/2016) with two signs (d and r) in the south-eastern corner of Shaft 1 (photo V. Dulíková) interpreted as “footholds or supports for scaffolding” (Kuraszkiewicz 2011: 535). The floor of the shaft was uneven. At a height of ca. 20 cm above the bottom, on the eastern, southern, and western walls, other thin, rectangular depressions were PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:32 Stránka 57 detected. It is questionable if the ancient builders planned to extend the shaft, or if they used them for supportive technical needs. At the bottom of the shaft, an entrance, 1.40 m high, to a burial chamber was cut into the northern wall, giving access to the burial apartment. Remains of a blocking wall were preserved to a height of 0.82 m; the rest must have been removed by robbers. The passage leading to the burial chamber was 1.60 m long. The blocking wall was in the southern part of it, 1.10 m thick and built in limestone chips and sand. The northern part of the passage sloped down (18 cm). The rectangular burial chamber, measuring 3.70 × × 3.26 × 1.60 m, was oriented north-south (fig. 9). With its measurements, it is comparable e.g. to a burial apartment in Shaft 1 of the rock-cut tomb of Princess Sheretnebty and her spouse (AS 68c): 3.60 × 3.00 × 1.56 m (Vymazalová 2015: 52). The room of AS 91 was cut in limestone bedrock, interlaced with salt veins, and left unfinished, hence construction details on its both sides can be observed. On the ceiling and walls, there are traces of chisels. The chamber was funnel-shaped (top to bottom), so it can be deduced that the ancient Egyptians cut such spaces from the top. By the eastern wall, there was a regular step, 0.82 m wide and 0.46 m high, with a smaller hollow. In the western part of the chamber, there were several steps whose lower part was diagonal, running from south-east to north-west. The northern part of the chamber was hollowed more than the southern one. Approximately in the middle of the chamber, a burial pit was prepared. The burial pit was also oriented north-south, and measured 1.78 × 0.49 × 0.38 m. It was partly cut into the floor and then built up with small limestone blocks in the deepest part of the funnel-shaped chamber (see fig. 9). The spaces between the walls of the pit and the western and eastern steps in the burial chamber were filled with crushed stones. The pit seems to be in the middle of the chamber in the east-west direction: it lies 1.38 m from the western wall and 1.46 m from the eastern wall. It was constructed near to the northern wall, only 30 cm from it. The dimensions of the chamber allow us to take into consideration the possibility that a sarcophagus might have been intended to be placed in the burial chamber. A parallel can be found e.g. in the above-mentioned Shaft 1 of Sheretnebty’s tomb (see Vymazalová 2015: 51–53 and figs. 11–12). It can be deduced that the pit in AS 91 was a stopgap measure because the owner of this shaft probably died before the chamber was finished. There are many indications that the steps by the eastern and western walls were originally intended to be removed, but there was not enough time to cut them out. The final works in the chamber took place very swiftly since the ancient builders had no time even to entirely cut a burial pit. They only finished it with limestone chips, which was the fastest solution. The place had been robbed, perhaps already in antiquity. Only very small remnants of a human burial were found: the bones were collected in tiny fragments in several layers (see below). Animal bones (21/AS91/2016_a,b) and fragmentary human bones (21/AS91/2016_c) were scattered all over the burial chamber. In the whole burial chamber, only two ceramic sherds were collected. Several more finds were gathered inside the pit: fragmentary human bones, including a bigger piece of human skull (20/AS91/2016_a), small rodent bones (20/AS91/2016_c), beetles (Eco12/AS91/2016_a,b) and egg shells (Eco13/AS91/2016). Moreover, two bird skeletons rested in the southern part of the burial pit (20/AS91/2016_b; see below and fig. 9). They laid with their heads to the west and their bones were coloured brown. These finds rested on a layer of limestone chips. After removal of the above- -mentioned finds and stones in the burial pit, other fragmentary human bones (22/AS91/2016_a) with small animal bones (22/AS91/2016_b) were collected. Tiny remnants of the original burial equipment were detected in this layer. These consisted of faience beads (22/AS91/2016_c) and small fragments of goldfoil 58 PES XIX/2017 A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 Fig. 7 An inscription (Gr2/AS91/2016) on a block of the western wall of Shaft 1 (photo V. Dulíková) PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:32 Stránka 58 (22/AS91/2016_d). The beads were of different colours (darker or lighter green-blue, white, pinkish or reddish), and of three basic shapes (tubular, circular, and a semicircle terminal). Some of them were still preserved in a pattern (2 × 2 cm) of a roughly rhombic shape threaded on a green string. They can be dated to the Old Kingdom. A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 PES XIX/2017 59 Fig. 8 Section of Shaft 3 (drawing D. Bělohoubková, M. Peterková Hlouchová) Some of these objects were stuck in a piece of solidified mud since the bottom of the burial pit was covered with a layer of mud. At this stage of the research, it is not evident whether the mud was a part of the original burial, or whether it was the result of torrential rains that entered the tomb after its initial robbery. In ancient Egypt, mud held important symbolic meaning: it was connected to rebirth and resurrection. There are also several examples of burials intentionally covered with mud from the Abusir necropolis, for instance from the tombs of Neferherptah (AS 65; Dulíková – Odler – Havelková 2011: 12 and obr. 5), Nefermin (Shaft 2 in tomb AS 68a; Vymazalová 2015: 50), Neferinpu (AS 37; Bárta et al. 2014: 36, Fig. 3.35). The burial had been looted and the body was so damaged that we were able to collect only very small pieces of bones. However, on the basis of the orientation of the pit, it can be expected that the body was buried there with its head to the north in an outstretched or slightly bent position. Pottery7 In general, the majority of the finds from tomb AS 91 consisted of ceramic sherds and complete vessels (bread moulds, beer jars), being of three main proveniences: in front of the eastern wall, in the fill of the superstructure, and scanty amounts in the shafts. In front of the eastern wall, two bread moulds (1a.AS91.2016, 1b.AS91.2016) were collected. Furthermore, 50 cm to the east of the eastern wall, ca. 6.65 m from its supposed north-eastern corner, a deposit of beer jars (1d.AS91.2016) was also uncovered (see fig. 2). In this area behind the eastern wall, the preserved mouth of Shaft 2 is immediately there. It seems that the deposit might be related to cultic activities. However, we were not able to examine it completely in the field. It may also be supposed that at least some of the jars were tied together with a rope (23/AS91/2016) found there. As was already mentioned above, there were several other beer jar deposits (2a.AS91.2016, 2b.AS91.2016, PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:33 Stránka 59 2c.AS91.2016), which were probably somehow related to the core of the tomb. They were oriented in the north-south direction. Archaeozoological analysis of vertebrate remains During the excavations, zoological material of different origins was recorded: 1. an archaeozoological assemblage connected with human activities found in the superstructure of the tomb; 2. bird egg shells in the fill of Shaft 3; 3. remains of microfauna originated in the owl’s pellets excavated in the burial chamber, 4. and skeletons of birds placed in the burial pit in Shaft 3. Moreover, fragments of beetles and other invertebrates were collected, but these finds will be separately studied later. For the analysis, standard archaeozoological methods (e.g. Reitz – Wing 2008) were applied. The zoological assemblage was examined in Abusir, using osteological publications (Cohen – Serjeanston 1996; Osborn – Helmy 1980; Schmid 1972). For the quantification of the assemblage, three methods were used: number of fragments, weight of fragments, and minimum number of individuals (hereinafter MNI). Animal bones from the superstructure The assemblage of animal bones that was connected to a human activity, was excavated mainly in the area of the destroyed superstructure (except for one extremely weathered find from the fill of Shaft 3). However, the number of finds was low, probably reflecting the damaged state of the building. Altogether, 26 finds of animal bones 60 PES XIX/2017 A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 Fig. 9a, b Burial chamber at the bottom of Shaft 3 before cleaning, with a detail of two bird skeletons (20/AS91/2016_b) visible in the southern part of the burial pit (photo V. Dulíková) PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:33 Stránka 60 weighing 800.6 g (30.8 g per fragment) were analysed; these remains belonged to at least five specimens from four animal species. Domestic cattle (Bos taurus) was represented by four finds: part of a skull (frontale with the basis of processus cornualis, fallen apart into many fragments; 1/AS91/2016), a molar fragment (18/AS91/2016), a distal part of humerus (2/AS91/2016), and a calcaneus bearing cutting marks (18/AS91/2016). While the last example belonged to a subadult specimen, the others probably came from an adult specimen. The remains of the skull indicated that the cattle were of longhorn origin. Moreover, four fragments of large ungulate ribs were recorded, probably belonging to cattle, too. One of these fragments (7/AS91/2016) bore a series of transverse cutting (fig. 10). As the field experiments indicate, the cutting marks were probably made with a non-metal instrument, for instance with a flint knife (?) as we know from iconographic sources (so-called butchering scenes, e.g. in the tomb of Vizier Ptahshepses at Abusir; see Verner 1977: 197, no. 26),8and the find can be related to a funeral feast. One fragment of an adult sheep/goat (Ovis/Capra) ulna with cutting marks (11/AS91/2016), one piece of medium- -sized mammalian rib and three bone fragments of undetermined mammals were recorded as well. Furthermore, other vertebrates were found, too: one piece of an undetermined bird, one of a goose (Anser sp., 5/AS91/2016), and 11 finds of fish bones, probably belonging to a sharp-nosed fish (Mormyrus sp., 9/AS91/2016). Geese were favourite birds for victual offerings (e.g. Ikram 2006), while the so-called elephant fish was connected to religious beliefs, mainly the Osirian myth (e.g. in Oxyrhynchus; Parsons 2007). No marks of burning or gnawing were recorded, whereas decalcification of the material was rather high. Salt crystals were found on several bones; however, it is not clear whether it originated in salt preservation of the meat or from the surrounding soils (more likely). Shaft 3 Fill of the shaft At a depth of approximately 5 m, five bird egg shells (Eco7/AS91/2016) were found in good condition of preservation (fig. 11). The eggs most probably belong to a Barn Owl (Tyto alba), a frequent occupant of deserted tombs and other buildings (Obuch – Benda 2009). It is possible that the owls were temporarily nesting in a niche when the shaft was open, after it had been robbed in antiquity. As the eggs hatch in 2–3 day intervals, they can be thrown out from the nest by older siblings, but other options cannot be excluded either. The clutch size is two to nine, so it is possible that the eggs came from one clutch (for the nesting behaviour of the Barn Owl, see e.g. Shawyer 1994). Assemblage of vertebrate microfauna from the burial chamber The burial chamber was situated at the bottom of Shaft 3, at a depth of 10.50 m. The archaeozoological finds were scattered around the burial chamber, with most of them A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE EXCAVATIONS OF TOMB AS 91 PES XIX/2017 61 Fig. 10a, b A find of a large ungulate rib with cutting marks can be connected to a ritual feast (photo Z. Sůvová) recorded in the burial pit (see above). The fragments of microfauna probably originated from the decomposed owl’s pellets, which are usually regurgitated before the evening hunt. In the case of such small finds, only MNI was used for the quantification. The assemblage of the small vertebrates contained hundreds of post-cranial elements of rodents and shrews, which are difficult to determine. Due to this, mainly the cranial parts of the mammals were analysed only. Finds of rodents constituted the dominant part of the assemblage (tab. 1) with the remains of House Rat (Rattus rattus, 40.7% of MNI) more abundant than the remnants of House Mouse (Mus musculus, 27.1%). The number of white-toothed shrews (11.8% altogether for both large and small species, Crocidura sp.) was quite low. Moreover, one specimen of small bat species (cf. Pipistrellus) was recorded, too. Apart from mammalian fauna, bird bones (16.9%) were collected as well. Remains of singing birds (Passeriformes) show the variety of species: two specimens of small-sized birds (Sylvidae), one of sparrow size, and one of blackbird size were recognised. Other bird fauna contained three specimens of small-sized rails (Rallidae), two of smaller gallids (partridge?), and one of smaller duck (teal?). Other finds were recorded too: beetle fragments (Tenebrionidae probably) from the owl’s diet, egg fragments (from the same species as detected in the fill of Shaft 3), and a small fossil tooth of a shark (probably originating from the local marine sediment of Tertiary origin). PES XIX_2017_reports_3-89_PES 14.12.17 9:33 Stránka 61