Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve

The Caves of Nahal Me’arot / Wadi el-Mughara ("Caves Creek"), named here by the Hebrew and Arabic name of the valley where they are located, are a UNESCO Site of Human Evolution in the Carmel mountain range near Haifa in northern Israel.^[1][2]

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: The Nahal Me’arot / Wadi el‑Mughara Caves
Location	Mount Carmel, Israel
Criteria	Cultural: (iii), (v)
Reference	1393
Inscription	2012 (36th Session)
Area	54 ha (130 acres)
Buffer zone	370 ha (910 acres)
Coordinates	32°40′12″N 34°57′55″E
Location of Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve in Near East Show map of Near East Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve (West and Central Asia) Show map of West and Central Asia Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve (Israel) Show map of Israel

The four UNESCO-listed caves are:

• Tabun or Tanur cave (lit.: "Oven")
• Gamal or el-Jamal cave ("Camel")
• El Wad or Nahal cave ("Stream")
• Skhul or Gedi cave ("Kid")

The four caves were proclaimed a site of "outstanding universal value" by UNESCO^[1] in 2012. They are protected within a nature reserve.^[2]

The caves were used for habitation by hominins and prehistoric humans and contain unique evidence of very early burials, at the archaeological site of el-Wad cave in the Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve.

Gallery

• 
  A Paleolithic reconstitution in Jamal Cave
• 
  Paleolithic tools in Jamal Cave (replica)
• 
  Entrance to el‑Wad Cave
• 
  Inside el‑Wad Cave
• 
  Excavation work in el‑Wad Cave's terrace
• 
  El‑Wad point microlith
• 
  Flint stone points, Boqer Tahtit Cave (Ein Avdat) and el‑Wad Cave, 50000 – 28000 BP (Israel Museum)
• 
  Homo neanderthalensis fossil from Tabun C1 (replica). 120000 – 50000 BP (National Museum of Natural History)

See also

• List of World Heritage Sites in Israel and Jerusalem
• National parks and nature reserves of Israel
• Skhul and Qafzeh hominins

References

1. UNESCO website
2. "Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve". Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Retrieved 31 December 2019.

External links

• Official page at Israel Nature and Parks Authority website
• UNESCO: Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: The Nahal Me’arot / Wadi el-Mughara Caves
• Nahal Me'arot recognized as World Heritage Site