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History |
| Scythopolis (Beth-Shan)
Scythopolis is the Greek name for the site of Beth-Shan in the Old Testament. The Philistines hanged Saul's body on the wall of this city after they defeated the Israelites in the battle on Mt. Gilboa. Alexander Jannaeus met Cleopatra here, and Pompey marched through it on his way from Damascus to Jerusalem. In the Jewish war the residents of the city slew thirteen thousand Jews. Bishops of Scythopolis attended the councils of Chalcedon and Jerusalem (A.D. 536). Archaeology has added considerably to our appreciation of this site during the New Testament period. Its modern name is Tell el-Husn, and it is one of the most imposing city-mounds of the Holy Land. The nearby village of Beisan preserves the name of the ancient city which once stood on the tell. At the foot of the tell flows the perennial River Jalud. In addition it is located at the intersection of the ancient highways leading north to Syria, west to the seacoast, and south to Egypt. The University of Pennsylvania Museum excavated the tell during the nineteen twenties and thirties. This project centered its activities on the main mound at the tell's summit and the cemetery north of the mound. Since that time numerous archaeological teams have continued exploring the site, including present-day efforts led by Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The name Scythopolis apparently comes from a group of Scythian mercenaries in Ptolemy II's army who settled there in 254 B.C., and it was quite evidently a pagan city. The first mention of Jews being present there appears in 2 Maccabees 12:29ff, and by that time the city had passed from Ptolemaic to Seleucid control. A large Roman theater is the outstanding ruin at Scythopolis. It sits in plain sight of the mound of ruins, which have been carefully excavated, revealing a city of considerable size. Although some of the most interesting materials uncovered at Beth-Shan come from Canaanite and Israelite periods, significant discoveries illustrate the importance of Scythopolis in New Testament times. |
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