Rare coins and jewelry from the time of Alexander the Great have been found by chance in a cave in northern Israel, according to officials with the Israel Antiquities Authority.

The 2,300-year-old cache includes silver coins of Alexander, who conquered the region in the late fourth century BC. Several pieces of silver and bronze jewelry were also found, including decorated earrings, bracelets and rings, which were hidden in the cave inside a cloth pouch.

"The valuables might have been hidden in the cave by residents who fled there during the period of governmental unrest stemming from Alexander's death, when the Wars of the Diadochi broke out between Alexander's heirs," the antiquities authority said in a statement on Monday.