Israeli archaeologists dig up large tusk of ancient elephant

KIBBUTZ REVADIM, Israel (AP) — Israeli archaeologists recently unearthed the titanic tusk of a prehistoric pachyderm near a kibbutz in southern Israel, a remnants of a behemoth once hunted by early people around half a million years ago. The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Wednesday that the 2.5-meter (yard) long fossil belonging to the long-extinct straight-tusked elephant was found during a joint excavation with researchers from Tel Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University. Israel Antiquities Authority prehistorian Avi Levy, who headed the dig, said it was “the largest complete fossil tusk ever found at a prehistoric site in Israel or the Near East.” The site was dated to the late lower paleolithic period, around 500,000 years ago, based on stone tools found in the vicinity.