The upper view shows the Macellum in June of 1997. The lower view is an earlier photo, with highlighting added to the seam of the repair.

Key characteristics

Area 1 is a deep scooping failure for most of the length of the wall. The shape of the failure indicates that the north shop walls were not effective as buttresses. There is no visible ancient plaster on the repair area, although the west end of the repair area was not visible during June 1997 because of construction. Ancient plaster on a repaired portion of W8.7 (photo below) indicates that area 1 is an ancient repair.

The shop walls were ineffective as buttresses probably because of clay drain pipes located at the juncture of the shop wall with the main wall.

Selected Photographs

W8.7, north gate. Note the ancient plaster on the repair area, which is probably contemporary with repair area 1, to the left of the photo.

Space 7. The repair seam cuts from the upper left.

Space 6. Note the horizontal seam between the black lava and the rubble. The ground plane seems to lower in the shop than the interior.

Space 5. The repair seem cuts up and to the right, and is clearly visible where a portion of the wall covering is absent.

Pipes

Pipe at W4.5. The pipe is filled with dirt and debris, but is clearly visible.

Pipe at W4.5. The interior diameter of the pipe is ~19 cm, and the exterior diameter is ~22 cm. The wall thickness is ~37 cm, so the interior of the pipe occupies approximately half the wall thickness, leaving less than 10 cm of material on either side.

Pipe at W6.7. Many pipes are exposed on the side of the wall, because the pipe occupies more than half the wall thickness, the covering layers to either side are thin, particularly if the pipe is not perfectly centered in the wall thickness.

It is important to note that there is no visible evidence of a pipe at the juncture of W5.6.