Area 1. Between 0.1 to 0.2 m below surface (at c. 52.5 m asl) various concentrations of  medium-sized pebbles (diam. 10–12 cm) were encountered in both Sqs. A and B. One such concentration of stones, protruding from the north balk of Sq. B could have been a floor pavement of a circular hut. Cleaning its top and in-between the stones, flints and sporadic potsherds were collected. Another, smaller concentration of similar stones, protruding from the south balk of Sq. A proved to be the top of a small tapering pit (width 0.6 m, depth c. 0.45 m) that yielded some flints, potsherds, carbonized woods and a few animal bones. The scant datable artifacts from this stratum (I), which consisted of a layer of brown-reddish wind-blown silts (c. 0.7 m thick), pointed to the Early Chalcolithic period (Wadi Rabah phase).

Stratum I was cut through only in the southeast quarter of Sq. B to examine the underlying layers. The silty soil matrix of Stratum I sharply contrasted with the underlying layer of compact, dark gray, fat clays (Stratum II). Possible signs of human activities were only observed in its upper levels: a small fire pit or a posthole near and partly protruding from the south section of Sq. B. The gray clay indicated wetter climatic conditions than those attested to in Stratum I (E. Barzilay pers. comm.). Stratum II (c. 0.5 m thick), which did not offer any datable artifacts because of its very limited exposed area (2.00 × 2.25 m), was deposited on a conglomerate of medium and large-sized wadi pebbles from the Pleistocene era (Stratum III; U. Kafri, Geological Survey of Israel, pers. comm.). These deposits (thickness of at least 5 m) have been mechanically exposed in a deep cross-section over a large area, c. 100 m to the south of the present excavation.

 

Area 2. This area was excavated not as extensively as Area 1. However, the same phenomenon of concentrations of medium-sized pebble stones were encountered less than 0.2 m below surface (at c. 51.60 m asl, which is c. 1 m lower than Area 1). Pottery was retrieved from various loci of this stratum (I), dating them to the Early Chalcolithic period (Wadi Rabah). Due to bad weather and time constraints, none of these features were further probed.