roman columns linning main street of bet shean,Israel
columns line this major roman street in the administrative centre of bet shean Beit She'an is first listed among Thutmose III's conquests in the fifteenth century BC, The Bible mentions it as a Canaanite city within the tribe of Manasseh in the Book of Joshua, and its conquest by David and inclusion in the later kingdom is noted, In 64 BC it was taken by the Romans, rebuilt, and made the capital of the Decapolis, the "Ten Cities" of Samaria that were centers of Greco-Roman culture, y, evidenced by its high-level urban planning and extensive construction including the best preserved Roman theatre of ancient Samaria as well as a hippodrome, cardo, and other trademarks of the Roman influence. Beisan In 634, Byzantine forces were defeated by the Muslim forces of Caliph Omar Ibn al-Khatab and the city was renamed Beisan. The day of victory came to be known in Arabic as Yaum Beisan . The city was not damaged and the newly arrived Muslims lived together with its Christian population until the 8th century, but the city declined during this period and its glorious Roman-Byzantine architecture was lost to neglect. Structures were built in the streets themselves, narrowing them to mere alleyways, and makeshift shops were opened among the colonnades. The city reached a low point by the 8th century, witnessed by the removal of marble for producing lime, the blocking off of the main street, and the conversion of a main plaza into a cemetery. On January 18, 749, Umayyad Beisan was completely devastated by the Golan earthquake of 749. A few residential neighborhoods grew up on the ruins, probably established by the survivors, but the city never recovered.
Size: 4111px × 6144px
Location: bet shean israel
Photo credit: © moris kushelevitch / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: agora, ancient, archeology, background, bathouses, bet, byzantine, caananite, christianity, circus, city, crusader, egyptian, , holy, israel, judaism, land, muslims, outpost., pilgrims, roman, shara, shean, shean beth, theatre, tourism, travel
