Alternate name Skhul Cave Periods Palaeolithic Excavation dates 1928 | Region Israel Cultures Natufian | |
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Location south of the city of Haifa | ||
Es Skhul (meaning kids) (Arabic: السخول) is a prehistoric cave site situated 20 km (12.4 mi) south of the city of Haifa, Israel, and around 3 km (1.9 mi) from the Mediterranean Sea. The site was first excavated by Dorothy Garrod during summer of 1928. The excavation revealed the first evidence of the late Epipaleolithic Natufian culture, characterized by the presence of numerous microlith stone tools, human burials and ground stone tools. Skhul also represents an area where Neanderthals - present in the region from 200,000 to 45,000 years ago - lived alongside these humans dating to 100,000 years ago. The cave also has Middle Palaeolithic layers.
The remains found at Es Skhul, together with those found at the Wadi el-Mughara Caves and Mugharet el-Zuttiyeh were classified in 1939 by Arthur Keith and Theodore D. McCown as Palaeoanthropus palestinensis, a descendent of Homo heidelbergensis.