Feature 6
Feature 6 was a pithouse located near the south-central part of the property. The feature was first identified in the profile of Trench 8 as a discontinuous band of caliche. Feature 6 capped a large pit (Feature 5) visible in the backhoe trench profile; the floor had slumped into the pit depression and caused an uneven appearance in the trench profile. The large pit had intruded a lower pithouse (Feature 133) that was situated directly beneath the central portion of Feature 6: up to 0.05 m of sediment had accumulated between the two floors. The floor of still another pithouse (Feature 149) was located beneath the western edge of Feature 6; less than 0.04 m of sediment was found between Features 6 and 149. The same series of features was identified in both sides of the trench wall.
Feature 6 had an oval outline with a long axis orientation almost due east to west. No construction pit could be identified from the backhoe trench profile or in the plan view. The feature was constructed in the house-in-pit fashion similar to houses described by Haury (1976) as type S- 1.
The entrance faced north and had been partially destroyed by the backhoe trench. The remaining portion of the entryway was at one level with a moderate slope up toward the opening. The opening had a narrow lip that appeared to be a riser that protruded 0.03 m above the entrance floor; this lip was approximately 0.10 m wide and constituted the only evidence for a step. The junction between the entrance and the house floor appeared to have been more constricted than was the opening. Only one posthole was in association with the entrance near its junction with the house floor. The entrance measured 1 m long and 0.50 m wide, not including the portion removed by the trench. A hearth, Feature 143, was located 0.6 m inside of the entryway. The hearth was 0.23 m in diameter and 0.11 m deep with vertical walls. The hearth walls were well plastered with clay, but caliche nodules were exposed in the base. Oxidation in the hearth was minimal and did not extend beyond the hearth depression.
The interior posthole configuration was difficult to ascertain due to the severe rodent disturbances. However, the western half had two rows of postholes parallel to each other that spanned the width of the feature. Another posthole was located immediately behind the hearth and central to the entire house.