Fureidis Cave Excavation Reveals Six Layers of Prehistoric Occupation

Excavation of Fureidis Cave began after Passover 2026 on a stony hillside at Fureidis just north of Caesarea. Kobi Vardi and Amit Gabay of the Israel Antiquities Authority are leading the work with Ron Shimelmitz of the University of Haifa, Haaretz reported. The project started after tractors began removing parts of the mountain for a new road in November 2025.

Shimelmitz, Tamar Rosenberg-Yefet and Amit Muallem visited the site that month and called Vardi, who arranged the salvage excavation with Anan Azab, the IAA Haifa district manager. Authorities later decided to route the road over the cave on a bridge. The team has identified at least six layers of occupation: five from the Acheulean-Yabrudian complex and one Mousterian.

Stone tools recovered include hand axes and side scrapers, some knapped bifacially and others unifacially. One tool still in place shows a dark red hue from burning. A Middle Paleolithic blade was found in the uppermost part of the deposit.

Animal bones, including an ancient deer tooth, were also recovered. No hominin remains have been found. The cave is larger than first estimated, Vardi said. Shimelmitz noted that only seven Acheulean-Yabrudian sites are known in Israel.

"This is the end of the Lower Paleolithic, which began 2.6 million years ago," Shimelmitz said. " Vardi described the tools as a "Yabrudian petting zoo" that visitors can handle. The site lies in the Mediterranean climate zone and once had a spring that likely drew hominins between 400,000 and 250,000 years ago.

Romans later quarried limestone nearby.