The site, discovered by Gerard Dekker in 1963, was surveyed by Gérard Bailloud in 1964, and then systematically explored by a French mission directed by Jean Chavaillon (1965-1982 / 1993-1995). Since 1999, an Italian mission directed by Marcello Piperno for the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the University of Rome “La Sapienza” has worked at the site in agreement with the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage of the Ethiopian Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau.
