During September 2011,a salvage excavation was conducted at el-Ghabisiya, east of the new Nahariyya cemetery (Permit No. A-6287; map ref. 214931–7/767562–7), prior to the construction of a pumping station. The excavation, undertaken on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and underwritten by the Meqorot Water Company, was directed by J. Gosker, with the assistance of Y. Lerer and H. Az e-Din (administration), R. Mishayev and M. Kahan (surveying) and Y. Bibas (field photography).
The site is situated on the western slope of the Asherat stream, c. 1.5 km south of Tel Kabri. The excavation area (30 sq m) consisted of a winepress and several cupmarks, hewn in the nari bedrock (Figs. 1, 2). The area surrounding the excavation had been damaged by construction work prior to the excavation. The site was documented in the Israel Archaeological Survey (Nahariyya-‘Amqa [4-5], Site 93, unpublished; IAA Reports 14: Site 39).
The winepress comprised a trapezoidal treading floor (L100; Fig. 3) and a collecting vat (L101; Fig. 4). The treading floor sloped steeply toward the east, where it narrowed into a deeply cut channel that connected it to the collecting vat. Due to the natural shape of the rock, the sides of both the treading floor and the collecting vat are of variable heights. The corners of the treading floor are rounded and parts of the winepress are eroded. The deep channel between the treading floor and the collecting vat might have been a perforation in the rock—an indicative feature of the Ta‘anakh winepress, dating to the Middle Bronze Age (‘Atiqot 34:195–197).
The cupmarks vary in size and depth; one of them is cut by the treading floor (L102; Fig. 5) and was apparently in use prior to the winepress. The location of the cupmarks shows no obvious connection to the winepress.
A rock-cut platform is located north of the winepress (L106; Fig. 6). Its northern and eastern sides are badly eroded and its southern side is cut by the treading floor. This platform could be the treading floor of an earlier winepress, whose collection vat should be found in the same location as the later one, possibly higher.
The rounded features of the excavated winepress point to a Bronze Age date; its resemblance to the Ta‘anakh winepress allows dating it to the Middle Bronze Age. At least one of the cupmarks and the rock-cut platform must be earlier and the possibility that the rock-cut platform was the treading floor of an earlier winepress can not be ruled out.