states: [israel]
category: cultural
year: 2014
region: Europe and North America
latitude/longitude: 31.6000000000, 34.8955555556
unesco id: 1370
world heritage site: 1370
Copyright © 1992 - 2025 UNESCO/World Heritage Centre. All rights reserved.
The Caves of Maresha and Bet-Guvrin, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Israel, represent an extraordinary network of ancient underground chambers carved into soft chalk bedrock. This archaeological marvel includes hundreds of bell-shaped caves, originally quarried for building materials and later repurposed as homes, tombs, and places of worship across Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine eras. Renowned for their historical and cultural value, they offer a unique glimpse into the region's subterranean past and human adaptation.