Area A. Two excavation squares were opened, and small refuse pits were discovered. The pits contained finds from the Late Roman and Late Ottoman periods, including a coin (IAA 146298) that probably dates to the mid-fourth century CE, and a bullet casing (below).
 
Area B. Six excavation squares were opened, and remains of two structures were exposed (1, 2; Fig. 2). Building 1 (6 × 9 m; Fig. 3) was well-constructed, of dressed kurkar stones. Its walls (W27, W28, W30–W33; width 0.4–0.5 m) were preserved to a maximum height of two courses and delineated at least three rooms. Fragments of turquoise-painted plaster were found, which apparently fell off the walls. Remains of a red plaster floor (L208, L212) were discovered in two of the rooms. A floor foundation (L219, L222) of gray cement mixed with shells and pottery sherds was discovered west and east of W32. Sand that contained worn pottery sherds was exposed west and south of the building (L211, L216, L220). Two adjoining walls of Building 2 were uncovered (W26, W29; c. 7.4 sq m; Fig. 4); they may be part of Building 1. Wall 26 (width 0.3 m) was built of a single row of large kurkar stones, bonded with gray mortar and plastered. Wall 29 (width 0.25 m) was constructed of cement blocks set on a broad foundation of small kurkar stones. A dark gray plaster floor, the plaster mixed with seashells, was exposed in the building. North of the wall and adjacent to it was a thick level of ash (L210) above a layer of sand.
Fragments of pottery that date to the Late Ottoman period and the British Mandate were found in Area B. They included Black Gaza bowls and basins (Fig. 5:1–7), a porcelain cup (Fig. 5:8), holemouth cooking pots, handmade and decorated with a coarse incised dott-pattern (Fig. 5:9, 10) and a jar lid (Fig. 5:11). Several iron tools, including an axe (Fig. 6:1, 2), which date to the same period as the pottery, were also found.
 
Area C. Eight excavation squares (Figs. 7, 8) were opened, and architectural remains were exposed. In the southern part of the area was a building (2.7 × 8.9 m; Fig. 9) whose walls (W52–W56; width 0.5–0.6 m) were founded on yellow sand and constructed of two faces of kurkar, mainly filedstones in various sizes. The kurkar was bonded with mortar made of earth, and containing a small quantity of pottery and marble fragments. The walls were preserved to a maximum height of two courses. A stone surface (L307) was exposed in the corner formed by W55 and W56. Wall 51 (length c. 11 m, width c. 0.5 m) in the north of the area, resembles the walls to its south in its construction and state of preservation. Sand and ash accumulated above it. Southwest of W51, was an activity area (L306), of clayey earth with ash and a few stones on its surface. The building remains in this area show extensive reuse of construction material from the contemporary settlement nearby. Worn pottery fragments from the Byzantine period, and artifacts dating to the Late Ottoman period and the British Mandate were discovered in Area C. These finds included bowls and basins (Fig. 10:1–3), a holemouth cooking pot (Fig. 10:4), jugs (Fig. 10:5–7), iron tools (Fig. 6:3) and bullet casings (below).
 
Bullet Casings. Three bullet casings were discovered in the excavation. One is of a Mauser rifle, bullet caliber 7.92 mm (Area C, L306, B2100; Fig. 11:1). Rifles of this sort were used during the War of Independence. The casing had been fired. On its base were stamped the letters P and S*, and the numbers 23 and 37. The combination P23 denotes the name of the manufacturer (unknown). The number 37 indicates the year of manufacture and the letter S probably stands for ‘spitzer’, i.e. a bullet with a pointed profile. The other two bullet casings (Area C, L301, B2002, Fig. 11:2; Area A, L104, B1008, Fig. 11:3) are of a 0.303 inch British Type VII bullets, used in British light arms, such as the Lewis-Vickers machine gun and Lee-Enfield rifles. Both were manufactured in the same factory (Kynoch Limited of Birmingham) in 1915 (White and Munhall 1963:129, 1126). The bullet casing from Area A was not fired, and the primer from the casing that was found in Area C had been removed, probably in order to use it in older rifles, a familiar phenomenon in the area (Glick forthcoming, Assaf Peretz, pers. comm.).