New Delhi, June 30 -- Archaeologists in Israel have uncovered a prehistoric cave containing artefacts dating back as far as 400,000 years, offering a rare window into a little-understood period of human evolution and revealing evidence of what researchers describe as a socially complex pre-human society.

The cave, located on the outskirts of Fureidis in northern Israel near the Zichron Ya'akov interchange, was discovered during preliminary investigations conducted ahead of planned infrastructure works.

Researchers from the Israel Antiquities Authority and the University of Haifa say the site represents one of only a handful of well-preserved archaeological locations from the late Lower Palaeolithic period in the Levant.

Although archae...