Tel Beit Sheʾan

archaeological site, Israel

Also known as: Tall al-Ḥuṣn

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June 22, 2026

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Tel Beit Shean is an archaeological site in Israel, located in the Beit Shean Valley, approximately 394 feet below sea level. It is considered one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the region.1

Excavations at Tel Beit Shean have revealed strata dating from the Chalcolithic period (c. 4000–3000 BCE) up to Byzantine times (c. 500 CE). Significant findings include buildings from the Egyptian period, with the earliest dating to the reign of Thutmose III (1450 BCE) and the latest to Ramses III (1198–1166 BCE). The site also contains evidence of Canaanite worship, including stelae mentioning Pharaoh Seti I and the goddess Astarte.1

During the Hellenistic period, the city was known as Scythopolis and became part of the Decapolis league. It was later conquered by the Romans in 64 BCE and became an imperial free city. A Roman amphitheater with a seating capacity of 5,000 was discovered there. Under Byzantine rule, it served as the capital of Palaestina Secunda. The city declined after the Arab conquest in 636 CE.1

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Palestine
Early Bronze Age
Tall al-Farʿah, Tel Beit Sheʾan, Khirbat al-Karak, and Ai (Khirbat ʿAyy). All these sites are in northern or central Palestine, and it was there that the Early Bronze Age towns seem to have developed. The towns of southern Palestine—for instance, Tel Lakhish, Kiriath-sepher, and Tel Ḥasi—seem only…
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Tall al-Farʿah, Tel Beit Sheʾan, Khirbat al-Karak, and Ai (Khirbat ʿAyy). All these sites are in northern or central Palestine, and it was there that the Early Bronze Age towns seem to have developed. The towns of southern Palestine—for instance, Tel Lakhish, Kiriath-sepher, and Tel Ḥasi—seem only…
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Beit Sheʾan
…town to the north is Tel Beit Sheʾan (Arabic: Tall al-Ḥuṣn), one of the most important stratified mounds in Palestine. It was excavated in 1921–33 by University of Pennsylvania archaeologists, who found that the lowest strata date from the late Chalcolithic period in the country (c. 4000–3000 bce) and progress…
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…town to the north is Tel Beit Sheʾan (Arabic: Tall al-Ḥuṣn), one of the most important stratified mounds in Palestine. It was excavated in 1921–33 by University of Pennsylvania archaeologists, who found that the lowest strata date from the late Chalcolithic period in the country (c. 4000–3000 bce) and progress…
Read More