| One of the final tasks is taking samples - these boxes are for taking a vertical column of soil through the deposits. These will be examined by a process of thin sectioning once they have been hardened by resin impregnation (soil micromorphology), this work will be done by Dr Charly French at the University of Cambridge. Charly is an old friend of mine who has done a lot of work on Neolithic Orcadian midden composition and soils. With a bit of luck his analysis will be able to reveal what the different layers of soil actually relate to, e.g. whether they are squashed turves, an old turf-line, or a deposit of organic refuse. |
