During October 2011, a salvage excavation was conducted south of Rosh Ha-‘Ayin (Permit No. A-6298; map ref. 196813–48/664117–44), prior to expanding the Migdal Zedek Quarry to the north and northeast. The excavation, undertaken on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and underwritten by the Migdal Zedek Quarries, Ltd., was directed by A. ‘Azab, with the assistance of A. Re’em, A. Gorzalczany (consultation) and A. Dagot (GPS).
An elliptical heap of small cleared stones was exposed in the current excavation on top of a bedrock surface (diam. 5.2 m, height 0.8 m; Fig. 2). The pile was enclosed within a wall built of large fieldstones, which prevented the stones from sliding into adjacent cultivation plots. The stone heap was completely excavated down to bedrock level. A scant amount of worn, non-diagnostic potsherds was recovered from the excavation. The stone heap revealed in the excavation joins the finds from excavations and surveys conducted in the vicinity, which are related to the agricultural activity in the region.