Walkover intervals, shovel-test grids, and a written background against the license file and historic maps. We will also say when a trench would not answer the question. Positive tests are clustered, photographed, and recommended for evaluation or closed with no further work.
A Phase I is a question about whether cultural material is present, and whether it is worth evaluating — not a season of trenches. In Jerusalem that usually means a desktop against the license file and historic maps, a walkover at posted intervals, and tests where the surface is not enough. The output is a recommendation: evaluate, avoid, or close. It is not a license, and it is not a promise that later work will be small.
License file, historic maps, and what is already known about the parcel or corridor. If the papers already answer the question, we say so before anyone walks.
Posted intervals. Tests where visibility is poor. Screening as the research design requires — not invented on the day.
Positive tests are clustered and photographed. Negatives are closed with no further work. The recommendation is written so another crew can pick it up.
A first note does not need a full brief. This is enough to start a scope.
Said here so it does not have to be discovered on the trench.
Regional places only. Site numbers stay in the project file.
Old City circuit, Jerusalem. Pedestrian survey and tests on a proposed access corridor around the walls.
Abu Tor, Jerusalem. Walkover and tests on a proposed stair and path across the Abu Tor slope.
Hinnom Valley, Jerusalem. Walkover ahead of a landscaping plan on the Hinnom valley floor.
It depends on access, vegetation, and how much is already on file. Write with acreage or corridor length and a deadline. We will say what fits, not what sounds impressive.
No. Where the surface is readable a walkover may be enough. Tests go in where visibility is poor or the design requires them. That choice is written before the first test.
Site or district, what you already know, and a deadline. We reply by email from Jerusalem.