Archaeological Examination
The first excavations ever made in the cave were conducted in 2000 and 2002 for the purpose of determining the periods of use. The wall generally attributed to the Ottoman era was found to have been constructed earlier, in the Mamluk period (13th century). A small number of fragments from the Iron Age were uncovered, but most remains were from the Roman and Byzantine periods. Further excavation in 2011 found an area that had been closed off for the use of quarry workers, probably in the late Islamic period.
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