Kebara Cave (Hebrew: מערת כבארה, romanized: Me'arat Kebbara, Arabic: مغارة الكبارة, romanized: Mugharat al-Kabara) is a limestone cave locality in Wadi Kebara, situated at 60 to 65 m (197 to 213 ft) above sea level on the western escarpment of the Carmel Range, in the Ramat HaNadiv preserve of Zichron Yaakov.[1]
| Kebara Cave | |
|---|---|
Kebara 2 in situ
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 Show map of Israel | |
| Location | Zikhron Ya'akov, Israel |
| Coordinates | 32°33′29.8″N 34°56′14.3″E / 32.558278°N 34.937306°E / 32.558278; 34.937306 |
| Elevation | 60 to 65 m (197 to 213 ft) above sea level |
| Discovery | Early 1930s |
| Geology | Limestone |
The cave was inhabited between 60,000 and 48,000 BP and is famous for its excavated finds of hominid remains.
Dorothy Garrod and Francis Turville-Petre excavated in the cave in the early 1930s. Excavations have since yielded a large number of human remains associated with a Mousterian archaeological context. The first specimen discovered in 1965, during the excavations of M. Stekelis, was an incomplete infant skeleton (Kebara 1).[2]
The most significant discovery made at Kebara Cave was Kebara 2 in 1982, the most complete postcranial Neanderthal skeleton found to date. Nicknamed "Moshe" and dating to circa 60,000 BP, the skeleton preserved a large part of one individual's torso (vertebral column, ribs and pelvis). The cranium and most of the lower limbs were missing. The hyoid bone was also preserved, and was the first Neanderthal hyoid bone found.[3]
The Kebaran culture is named after the site.
