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Avshalom Nature Reserve
Soreq/Sorek Cave, Avshalom Cave, Stalactites Cave
Location	On the western slopes of the Judean Hills, south of Nahal Soreq and approximately 2 kilometers east of Bet Shemesh.
Nearest city	Bet Shemesh
Governing body	Israel Nature and Parks Authority

Avshalom Cave (Hebrew: מערת אבשלום, romanized: Me'arat Avshalom), known in academic literature as Soreq Cave (Hebrew: מערת שׂורק, romanized: Me'arat Soreq; Arabic: مغارة سوريك, romanized: Mghar Suriq) and popularly as Stalactites Cave (Hebrew: מערת הנטיפים, romanized: Me'arat HaNetifim), is a 5,000 m cave on the western side of Mt. Ye'ela, in the Judean hills in Israel, unique for its dense concentration of stalactites and other cave formations. It is a popular show cave, as well as a highly valued witness of the climate evolution over the last 185,000 years.

Name

The cave is named after the Soreq/Sorek Valley (Nahal Sorek) and after Avshalom Shoham, an Israeli soldier killed in the War of Attrition.

Location

Avshalom Cave is situated near Hartuv, 3 km east of Bet Shemesh, Israel.

Discovery

The cave was discovered accidentally in May 1968, while quarrying with explosives.

After its discovery, the location of the cave was kept a secret for several years for fear of damage to its natural treasures.

Description

The cave is 83 m long, 60 m wide, and 15 m high.

The temperature and the humidity in the cave are constant year round.

Some of the stalactites found in the cave are four meters long, and some have been dated as 300,000 years old. Some meet stalagmites to form stone pillars.

Paleoclimate research: significance

The cave has been the focus of paleoclimate research, which allowed reconstruction of the region's semi-arid climate for the past 185,000 years. According to the American geologist James Aronson, the Soreq Cave is the Rosetta Stone of climate history in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Tourism

The cave is now open to visitors, in the heart of the 67-dunam Avshalom Nature Reserve, declared in 1975. In 2012, a new lighting system was installed to prevent the formation and growth of algae.

Gallery

• Sign at entrance to the cave
• Cave entrance
• Speleothems
• Stalactite meeting stalagmite to form a pillar
• Speleothems
• A stalagmite and stalactite almost touch
• Cave pond almost covered over by calcareous sinter
• Cave formation

See also

• Geography of Israel
• Tourism in Israel

References

1. ^ "List of National Parks and Nature Reserves" (PDF) (in Hebrew). Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-10-07. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
2. "Avshalom Cave". old homepage of the Israel Nature & National Parks Protection Authority. Archived from the original on 2015-07-07. Retrieved 2015-07-07.
3. Ian J. Fairchild, Andy Baker (2012). Speleothem Science: From Process to Past Environments. Section III.12.1.2, "Composite speleothem records: Soreq Cave, Israel", pp. 355-358.
4. Eminent Jewish Geologist Voyages to Tiberias to Connect With His Roots, Haaretz, 23 March 2012.
5. Sanders, Edmund (18 September 2012). "Israel's prehistoric Soreq Cave now a clean, eerily lighted place". Los Angeles Times.

External links

• Stalactite Cave Nature Reserve at Israel Nature and Parks Authority website
• Photos of Avshalom Stalactites Cave, Flickr

31°45′21″N 35°01′24″E / 31.75583°N 35.02333°E / 31.75583; 35.02333

• Limestone caves
• Caves of Israel
• Show caves in Israel
• Nature reserves in Israel
• Landforms of Central District (Israel)
• Protected areas of Central District (Israel)