Museum of Prehistory of the Hulah Valley *

The Prehistoric Man Museum (Upper Galilee Museum of Prehistory) , founded by Amnon Assaf, is a museum of prehistory in Kibbutz Ma’ayan Baruch, Israel. This gem of a museum draws prehistorians from around the globe. The museum is a great place for history buffs, and those interested in the Human evolution.

אמנון אסף מייסד מוזיאון האדם הקדמון Amnon Assaf
Photo: Dr. Avishai Teicher

The museum showcases historical artifacts found in and around the kibbutz. Amnon created a vast collection of some 140,000 prehistoric stone tool sand vessels, ranging from 780,000 to 12,000 years ago, including hand axes predating human settlement in the Hulah Valley, around 780,000 BCE.

The Museum showcases a wide variety of this collection, and other prehistorical artifacts, including several burials. The museum’s collection includes the skeleton of a prehistoric woman, approximately 50 years old, buried with her 5 months old puppy – an original skeleton of the first dog found buried together. Dating to the Natufian period (about 12,000 years ago), this is among the earliest evidence of dog domestication.

The museum also has an ethno-geographic wing with a collection of artifacts and tools from around the world, all made from natural or organic material.

The museum presents an ethnographic department, which displays tools used today by peoples from other continents, and demonstrates graphically life in former prehistoric cultures. The museum gives the visitors a widespread view of prehistoric people’s way of life.

The museum is located adjacent to beautiful nature reserves and historical and archaeological sites in the Upper Galilee.