High on a limestone cliff above Wadi el-Yabis, a cave known as ‘Iraq ed-Dubb — the “Cave of the Bear” — sheltered some of the last hunter-gatherers and earliest farmers of the Levant. Around 11,000 years ago its people built small stone houses inside the cave and began to cultivate barley.
Where Is Iraq ed-Dubb?
The cave lies about 7 km north-west of Ajloun, on the south side of Wadi el-Yabis, in the al-Kura area. It is one of several caves and rock shelters in a limestone escarpment some 150 m above the wadi. “‘Iraq” is a local word for a cave, and local stories link the name with the bears that once lived in the forests of the area.
Historical Context and Origin
The cave was used in two main phases. In the Late Natufian period, roughly 13,500–11,700 years ago, hunter-gatherers camped and buried their dead here. After a gap, people of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A — the first Neolithic period — returned, around 11,700–10,500 years ago. Radiocarbon dates span about 11,200 to 9,300 BC.
Architectural Design
Inside the cave, deposits cover some 150 m², with a terrace twice as large at its mouth. In the early Neolithic two oval stone structures, each 4–5 m across, were built with mud floors. One was replastered again and again and had a hearth; the other had grinding stones and anvils set into its floor and a mud platform.
Two Ages in One Cave
Late Natufian deposits below, Pre-Pottery Neolithic A above.
Oval Houses
Two stone structures, 4–5 m across, with plastered mud floors and a hearth.
Ancient Burials
Late Natufian adults and children buried among the bedrock.
Early Farmers
Barley grains point to some of the earliest cultivation in the region.
Hunters, Gatherers and the First Farmers
Beneath the first structure lay several Late Natufian burials of adults and children, placed between outcrops of bedrock, mostly without grave goods. The excavators recovered more than 50,000 pieces of chipped stone, including el-Khiam and Jordan Valley arrowheads and sickle blades. Pistachio and almond shells show the gathering of wild foods, while barley grains have been cited as evidence of early cultivation — whether any cereals were already domesticated is still debated.
Destruction, Rediscovery, and Restoration
The archaeologist Ian Kuijt discovered and excavated the cave in three seasons from 1989 into the early 1990s, as part of research on the Wadi el-Yabis. In modern times the cave has been used as a pen for goats. It has not been restored.
Visiting Iraq ed-Dubb Today
The cave is about a 1 km hike up the hill from the road. Wear sturdy shoes and bring water; there are no facilities.
Further reading: Kuijt & Goodale, Paléorient 32/1 (2006); ex oriente — ‘Iraq ed-Dubb radiocarbon dates.
