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In the shallow underwater zone adjacent to Nahal Megadim on the Carmel coast, a concentration of bronze objects, among them coins from the Hellenistic and Mamluk periods, were discovered. The coins belonged to three hoards: 55 medium-sized Ptolemaic bronze coins (Hoard 1), probably from the joint reign of Cleopatra III and Ptolemy IX; 19 silver tetradrachms (Hoard 2), ranging from Ptolemy VIII to Ptolemy X (152/1–100/99 BCE); and 10 bronze coins that were found within an amphora (Hoard 3), dating between c. 180(?) and 168 BCE. It is likely that the Ptolemaic silver coins of Hoard 2 belonged to the ship’s owner, a crew member or a passenger, and were current at the time the ship was lost, thus suggesting that the ship was Ptolemaic. The presence of Ptolemaic, Seleucid and Lycian coins in Hoard 3 attests that the ship visited diverse ports, one of its last stops being in Egypt or, more likely, Cyprus.

A total of 23 tombs were excavated in the Palmahim Northern Cemetery, located on the shore, some 200 m south of Nahal Soreq’s outlet to the Mediterranean Sea, just north of Yavne-Yam. The tombs were hewn in bedrock and lined with stone slabs, a method of burial that is almost unique in the Late Bronze Age in Israel. The pottery from the Northern Cemetery was in a fine state of preservation, pointing to various production techniques, such as knife-paring, slipping, burnishing and painting. The assemblage, dating between the late fourteenth and the beginning of the thirteenth centuries BCE, includes local wares alongside imported vessels from Cyprus—Base Ring Ware, White Slip Ware, Plain White Wheel-Made Ware and Red Lustrous Wheel-Made Ware. Also found were imports from the Lebanese coast and a Mycenaean piriform jar. The high proportion of imports at Palmahim reflects the economic and cultural aspects of the region during the Late Bronze Age.

The site is located approximately 4 km west of Tel Ashdod, about 50 m from the shoreline. Two areas were excavated: in Area A, installations identified as winepresses, as well as occupation levels, were found; in Area B, a mud-brick complex was uncovered. One tomb (T1) was discovered, and traces indicating the presence of other tombs were discerned north of the site. In the building and in the vicinity of the winepresses numerous pottery sherds were found, of locally-produced vessels, as well as Cypriot, Mycenean and Egyptian imports. Other finds included an Egyptian scarab, spindle whorls and loomweights, metal fishhooks, needles for mending fishing nets, and stone and lead weights for the nets. Based on the architectural evidence and the finds, this is a single-period site that existed for a short period of time during the later part of the thirteenth century BCE. The winepresses were set up together with the building to form an industrial-administrative complex that was primarily engaged in the production and marketing of wine. The site was abandoned at the end of this period for unknown reasons; there is no evidence that it came to a violent end.

The excavation took place on a kurkar hill overlooking the sea. Four squares were opened on the southern slope, and settlement deposits of the Late Bronze Age II were revealed, without any architectural elements. A ceramic figurine was found. The vessels that were found at the site seem to indicate a single-period LB II settlement. The fabrics point to a number of sources, local (Canaanite) and foreign (Cypriot, Mycenaean and possibly Egyptian). This international character is clearly in keeping with the general picture of the period.

A salvage excavation was conducted on the eastern slopes of a kurkar ridge that runs parallel to the Mediterranean shoreline. The excavation revealed remains from the Intermediate Bronze Age and Middle Bronze Age II. Architectural remnants of the Intermediate Bronze Age (2200–2000 BCE) comprise a ‘cluster’ of round or oval rooms, constructed of mud bricks. The pottery assemblage from the site is characteristic of the Intermediate Bronze Age in southern Canaan. Sixteen pit graves dating to MB II were discovered in three clusters. The inhabitants buried here may have lived in a satellite settlement of the MB II fortified city at Tel Ashqelon. The cemetery contained individuals interred with grave goods, including domestic wares dating to MB IIB–C, in particular storage jars along with dipper juglets and bowls.

The excavation revealed fragmentary evidence of occupation from the Iron Age through the Early Roman period (Area E); five early Gaza-jar kilns from the first–third centuries CE (Area F1); the remains of a well-built installation complex that included a bathhouse, pools, an oil press, two winepresses, several warehouses and a pottery kiln, belonging to a large Byzantine-period (late fourth or early fifth to early seventh centuries CE) agricultural estate (Areas A–C, E); and several Byzantine-period graves and a tomb (Areas A, D). Hellenistic and Early Roman pottery, dating from the third through the first centuries BCE, as well as five Hellenistic coins and stone vessels from the Early Roman period, were found. A Roman milestone, which marked the third mile north of the center of the Roman city of Ashqelon, was found as well. Early and late Byzantine pottery, dating from the fourth through the early seventh centuries CE, was unearthed. A large amount of jar fragments was uncovered in and near the Area B kilns; however, the rest of the ceramic assemblage was relatively small, including bowls, basins, jugs, juglets, jars, cooking ware, lamps, a lantern and ceramic pipes. The estate produced mainly wine and oil, as indicated by the industrial winepresses, the oil press and the large warehouses and storerooms adjacent to the installations. Its location along the coastal highway, its high-quality masonry and the elaborate bathhouse suggest that it belonged to a church.

Heavy rains exposed a Late Bronze Age IIB pit-grave in the eastern burial ground at Akhziv. Fourteen vessels, arranged in two groups, were interred along its eastern and western sides; no skeletal remains were preserved. The pottery assemblage includes bowls, juglets, jugs and jars, local and imports. Of note was a collection of lead fishing-net weights found inside one of the bowls.