Gesher Benot Ya'aqov archaeological site

Gesher Benot Ya'aqov is an excavation site along the Jordan River with multiple layers of sediment that built up over vast stretches of time. The location holds tools like hand axes and scrapers as well as plant remains that show the daily life and environment of that era.

The area was studied between the late 1980s and 1990s and holds deposits reaching far back into human prehistory. The findings show that people were present in this region across hundreds of thousands of years.

The site shows how early people used and understood their surroundings through the tools and daily activities they left behind along the riverbank. These objects tell us about shared practices and craft skills that were passed down across generations.

The site lies along the Jordan and is a sprawling excavation area that takes time to explore properly along the riverbank. It helps to move slowly through the different sections to appreciate the layers and finds fully.

The site provides rare evidence that early people already controlled and used fire to process food. This discovery shows that the ability to work with fire was a foundational skill of that time.