Tell Shaikh Hassan al Rai

Tell Shaikh Hassan al Rai is an archaeological site 2 km south of el Marj, 2 km north of Hoch Harime in the Beqaa Mohafazat (Governorate) in Lebanon. It dates at least to the Neolithic with Medieval material also attested.^[1]

Tell Shaikh Hassan al Rai

Location	2 km south of el Marj, 2 km north of Hoch Harime
Region	Bekaa Valley
Type	Tell
History
Cultures	Neolithic, Medieval
Site notes
Excavation dates	1927, 1966
Archaeologists	J. King, R. Dussaud, R. Saidah, Lorraine Copeland
Condition	Ruins
Public access	Yes

Tell Shaikh Hassan al Rai is famous for being the site of the first unquestioned evidence of the domestication of cats, after archaeologists found remains dating from the Uruk period (3500-3000 BCE) of cats smaller than the wildcat.^[2]