Extracting Evidence

I was asked to produce some form of statistical weight for my comments last week on roof colour. So I have gone back to my Beirut data to try to provide some evidence. I have taken the opportunity to update the pottery ceramic phasing dates. I have also excluded the material from the Umayyad and later periods

Summarises the Beirut data by phase – with  fabric sorted by colour. I have used the same phase groupings as y thesis rather than the much larger range of ceramic phases that paul Reynolds has given the pottery dates, otherwise we would be here all night.

 The highest levels of yellow tile occur in the Late Hellenistic (22%) and the Byzantine, and post earthquake phases (25% and 27% )  - so I will take this as some support for my theory that yellow is more important n those periods. I think a more detailed analysis of the material in the Roman phases would also help recognise any intrusive and residual elements.

I haven’t the time to do a detailed spatial analysis by phase – I will leave that as an exercise for later – but a simple breakdown is by site:

This table 

Shows the roof tile colours for the Hellenistic phases – There  really isn’t enough material from the Seleucid period to  analyse this way – but where we have largish samples BEY045 – the bathhouse – is higher than the other sites.

The picture is a lot less cleat. There is a high level of yellow roof tile in the early Roman phase – which we can I think pretty safely assume is residual material from the demolition of the Hellenistic public  on that site and its incorporation into the bathhouse. The presence of yellow tile is higher at BEY045 in the next two Roma phases, but not by much, and could still be accounted for by residual material.

Shows us the level of yellow tile in the Byzantine phases . This shows a much higher  level of yellow roof tile in these phases, but not so high in the bathhouse – but very high in BEY006 – where the colonnaded street had been picked out in yellow  - although it should be noted that yellow tile is  present at 28% in the Medieval period at BEY045, compared to 15% at BEY006 suggesting that the Yellow was the defining roof colour of the bathhouse in its final phase.

So some proof that colour is important in the Hellenistic and Byzantine period in Beirut and yellow correlates with public buildings. I will try to drill a bit deeper with the data to look at some specific areas at a later date.